Make the Most of Your Online Presence

During the periods of lockdown, social media has been the only way many businesses can interact with potential customers. This makes it a vital tool to increase brand awareness, online sales and footfall as restrictions lift.

However, we know that acquiring the knowledge to keep up with the opportunities available can be daunting and time-consuming, especially when business owners and managers already have so much on their plates.

We have compiled some top social media tips with the help of Maybe*, a market-leading engagement platform, that businesses can quickly and easily implement whether currently open or not.

Here are five simple things you can do to maximise your reach and engagement.

1. Keep talking to your customers

If you are currently unable to open, it is vitally important to continue talking to your customers by finding new ways to engage with them. You could post giveaways, behind the scenes snapshots, meet the team features, tutorials or throwback images. Great examples have been a Bridgerton hair tutorial from Mark Blake Hair or the activity sheets and recipes posted by Huffkins.

While posts such as these do not directly ask the user to make a purchase, they help nurture existing relationships while increasing brand awareness among potential customers. If you need inspiration, the Maybe* platform allows users to see what similar businesses are successfully posting across the country.

2. Join conversations

Social media isn’t just about the content you post, but the conversations you join. By commenting on, liking and sharing the content of other local businesses, users can make their own business more visible while sharing relevant products and services with their followers. Plus, the businesses you engage with will be more likely to share your content, meaning it will reach new audiences and potential customers. Maybe* makes this interaction easy by integrating posts from Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn into one feed, allowing you to quickly like, share or comment on the posts of those you follow.

3. Focus on the platforms that work best for you

The world of social media can be vast and intimidating, but don’t feel like you need to do it all. Use Maybe* to identify the platforms where your customers are most engaged and invest time in posting great content on that account. As humans have short attention spans, we also recommend using engaging visuals alongside your posts. Canva is a graphic design platform that allows you to create professional visuals quickly and easily for free. A paid version is also available with more usability and design features.

4. Use analytics

Data can tell you when to post for maximum engagement and what content works well with your audience. Providing the inside knowledge needed to adjust your social media strategy for maximum output, Maybe* tracks such insights and presents them using accessible visuals, even allowing you to match social media activity to online spend, offline spend and footfall. Using a piece of scheduling software such as Hootsuite also allows you to build a solid strategy by planning and scheduling your content in advance.

5. Brush up on your skills

Whether you are just beginning to dip your toes into social media management, are in dire need of a social makeover or just fancy streamlining your tactics and goals, Maybe* offers a range of training that can enhance your online strategy. This includes over 400 help articles, free webinars and one to one support.

Cheltenham BID is working with Marketing Cheltenham and Cheltenham Borough Council to offer businesses a free membership to the Maybe* platform. BID businesses can claim their free account by visiting www.https://www.maybetech.com/.

BID businesses can also get in touch with alex@cheltenhambid.co.uk for more advice and support with digital marketing.