Social media isn't just for sharing cute puppy videos or swapping recipes with your great aunt. It's also an valuable marketing tool for businesses. You can use it to attract new customers whilst keeping the attention of existing ones. It's helpful for performing on the spot market research or even for brainstorming fresh ideas with your followers. If successful, a business social media account can project your brand into the homes of millions, but first you need to learn how to attract new followers to your business account.
Whether you're a business that's just starting out, or an existing brand looking to widen your customer base, there's no question that social media is an excellent tool. But like any good tool, you have to know how to use it. Learning how to get more followers on Instagram or subscribers on Facebook can feel like a guessing game to start with but it's not really that difficult to increase your social media audience. Just keep in mind that Twitter followers are just regular people, so create good quality and engaging content and they will want to follow your feed.
If you've been delaying the inevitable, now's the perfect time to get your business onto social media. Let's jump straight into 10 quick and easy ways to get more followers.
1. Get to know your audience
Knowing exactly who your customer is can be helpful when figuring out how to attract more followers to your Instagram account. First you want to be sure you're targeting the right social media platform, there's little point having an amazing Instagram account if your target audience is primarily on Facebook.
Think about it:
- Who does your brand appeal most to?
- Which social media platform does this audience use most?
- What kind of content does this demographic respond best to?
Once you answer these questions you will start to get an idea about where and what to post online to build up your follower count. If you still aren't sure, then have a sneak peek at your competitors and learn from their social media accounts about what works. Or check out Facebook business and find companies selling similar products to yours and see how they promote their brand.
2. Incentivise followers
Ah the good old tried and tested discount code! A bargain hunters dream come true! Potential and existing customers alike can be tempted into following your Facebook business page or Twitter feed with the lure of a 10% discount for new subscribers. Or perhaps sharing a code for 'Free Shipping' on Instagram will be enough to tempt someone to hit the big Follow button!
Most eCommerce website builders like BigCommerce have tools you can use to generate these discount codes and apply them to your online store - then you just promote these on social media. Make sure you team up with a discount courier provider like Interparcel to cut costs on your shipping fees to be able to offer great savings to your customers.
3. Run competitions
A really quick and easy way to boost your follower count is to run a competition. Offering one of your own products as a prize is a really effective way to promote your brand and generate some interest. Particularly if you've launched a new product line you want people to know about, or how about creating a bespoke hamper full of your best selling products?
Running competitions doesn't have to be complicated. All you need to do is:
- Create a post on one or all of your social media platforms
- Encourage people to Like, Follow and Share your post to enter - this will ensure more people see your post
- Set a reasonable time frame for the competition to run; 1 - 2 weeks is good
- Pick a random winner!
- Post the prize out on a Next Day shipping service booked through Interparcel
Encourage your prize winner to share a photo once they've received their prize to your follower list as this will further increase your brand visibility. Be sure to educate yourself on the rules and regulations of running contests on each platform.
4. Show off your brand
The great thing about social media is that everything is available, all the time. Social media users love immediacy, and so will love brands that prioritise them to be the first to see new products. Announcing new product launches over a series of pictures or videos can really build excitement in your brand as your followers will feel like they are part of something special.
A great way to build an air of mystery and generate some excitement is to use the story feature on Instagram, just post some sneak previews of new products you're about to put up on your website. People love to be the first to know about new trends, so if you hit the right note they will start sharing your brand with their friends and you'll have a new batch of followers in no time!
If you have fantastic Customer Service like we do at Interparcel then why not show off those amazing 5 star reviews by sharing them on your social media accounts. People follow brands they can trust, by demonstrating that other customers have had a great experience you can easily build social media followers across all social media platforms.
5. Post consistently
Content is the currency of social media for business, so posting consistently is essential to keep you in the running. Lots of businesses make the mistake of attempting an Instagram or Twitter profile, posting twice, and then never again. This could be worse than having never posted at all! You don't have to be active 24/7 but by regularly sharing videos or pictures of new products, linking to your recent blog posts or maybe even just posting a funny meme can convince a casual browser into becoming a follower.
6. Communicate, Communicate, Communicate
Creating connections with your followers and building an engaging brand that listens to its followers is one of the easiest ways to increase a social media following. Responding quickly to a private message on social media or sending a short reply to engagements on your posts can be the difference between a follower and a customer so make sure you're keeping an eye on your DMs.
Although it's great to share new products, when communicating with your followers don't 'always be selling'. If you're constantly going in for the hard sell then you'll just turn people off and will lose followers. People follow brands for personality, information as well as to buy products, so keep it balanced, keep it fun and leave the 'hard sell' at the door! Focus on building trust and engaging with your followers, we can worry about converting them into customers next time...
7. Sharing is caring!
An easy way to quickly increase your follower count is to tap into your existing customer base. Let them know that you're on social media and encourage them to follow you there, tempt them in with the exclusive social media discount codes and competitions then dazzle them with the sneak previews!
These are people who already love and use your brand, so they won't need much convincing to follow you on social media. Include a link in your next email newsletter or add social media buttons on your website that will take them straight to your Facebook/Twitter or Instagram profile.
8. Link up with similar businesses
Teaming up with a similar businesses can give you both a much-needed marketing boost and it's a great opportunity to share social media business tips. Try to find a business that compliments yours, not a competitor.
The crocheters of Instagram did just this and each crocheted one square to contribute to a blanket for charity!
If another business similar to yours has more followers than you on social media, collaborating may encourage their followers to also follow you!
9. Keep following others
To get more followers on social media, you have to follow others too! Following a Facebook business or an Instagram store that are relevant to yours and the type of followers you are trying to reach is important. These accounts often have followers that would be interested in following your brand too, so you can gain followers frequently this way. Actively join groups on Facebook or have a look at the hashtags section of Instagram to see what similar accounts are out there that you can start following and engaging with!
Don't spam groups or other businesses with adverts for your own business, that's a sure fire way to get blocked! Just engage with their posts and offer help and advice where you can. You'll soon build social media followers on your own accounts by demonstrating that your brand is knowledgeable, helpful and trustworthy.
10. Stay up to date on trends
Viral posts can get accounts a LOT of new followers overnight. That's not saying that you have to do something crazy to create a viral post however. By just reposting or retweeting news content that's getting attention at the time or an opinion based post or link to a blog about a particularly relevant subject matter can get you the attention you need to gain new followers. Sometimes it pays to stay quiet and observe, but not on social media!
Stay positive!
These tips aren't revolutionary 'hacks' that will magic you a million followers overnight, sadly that doesn't exist. But they're a solid base to start building sustained follower growth over time. By communicating your brands personality on social media, you'll increase your social media audience gradually but by attracting the right kind of follower who is interested in your brand and product.
Engaging regularly is essential and it's important to develop a brand personality. Don't get bogged down if you don't get more followers immediately - just focus on filling your profile with interesting content!
Social media for business opens your brand up to a giant pool of potential followers and future customers. If you follow our tips you'll be #instagramfamous in no time!
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