We get it, business owners are busy people. They’re managers, marketers, accountants, salespeople, HR… and it’s really difficult to be a social media guru on top of everything else. While surveying 10+ small businesses in Brisbane we found that social media was often the last (and most overwhelming) task for business owners to tackle. They didn’t know where to begin, where to go, or how to measure success. They were paying for courses and struggling through workshops – which then caused them to fall behind in posts, run out of time, or be totally flabbergasted by a new trend. They could barely find five good photos to post each week, nevermind tweaking their hashtag strategy or staying ahead of advertising algorithms.

In 2018, 54% of Millennial and Gen X consumers turned to social media to research products and make purchasing decisions (GlobalWebIndex, 2018).

According to Forbes, 71% of consumers who have a positive experience with a brand on social media are likely to recommend the brand to their friends and families. As companies migrate their traffic to the web (Covid-inspired or otherwise), building a strong, positive, and engaging social media presence is more important than ever. 

If half of your ideal clientele spent 3 hours every day hanging around the same cafe, would you leave your advertising to a haphazard poster, barely noticeable among hundreds of others? Or would you speak to the cafe owner, a local influencer, or a stellar band – to really amplify your products and services?

We’re On Tap Social Media, and we help small businesses amplify their purpose and personality on social media. We believe in quality content – so before we tell you any more about ourselves, here are three essential tips for business owners floundering in social media:

Pick a Primary Platform

Premium content for Facebook is not the same as content for LinkedIn, Twitter, or Instagram. Pick a primary platform and research your demographic – what time of day are your consumers browsing social media and how do they interact with posts? Should you measure success through content reach, engagement, or number of followers? Do photos perform better than graphics, or are animations king? Is the ideal video length 20 seconds or 2 minutes? Does this platform algorithm prefer consistent posts or sporadic content? The more you know about your platform (and effective ways to use it) the less content you’ll “waste” by shouting into the void.

Optimize for Cross-Posting

Having a primary platform doesn’t mean you can’t post anywhere else – nor does it mean you have to create unique posts for every platform. Social media is dynamic and transient, so learn to recycle content in a clever and effective way. Schedule your posts to be off-set (by at least half a day, if not a couple days) across platforms and make sure to tweak your copy, hashtags, or even the hero image on your post. Finally, make sure all your peripheral platforms link back to your primary platform with a link or shout-out in copy (“check out our instagram for weekly specials!”)

Be Consistent, Be Branded, Be Human

If you want your customers to connect with your business and brand on social media, you need to be consistent in tone, branding, and personality. Businesses with eclectic feeds appear random at best and confused (or off-putting) at worst. Keep in mind that your brand on social media can deviate from the office standard. Nobody wants to follow their legal firm on Instagram – unless that legal firm is posting hilarious interpretations of legal speak every week. Find ways to keep your content lighthearted and entertaining without being unprofessional. 

Now if you’re ready to take your social media to the next level (or simply don’t have the time to re-train as a social media marketing guru), let us take the weight off your shoulders.

On Tap Social Media specializes in boutique, done-for-you management with a focus on quality design and motion graphic content. We help companies nurture genuine and engaging relationships with their customers through social media. Videos, animations, carousels, and professional branded photography make up just a slice of what we provide. All of our posts are backed by high level strategy and data analysis. We take care of everything (really, everything) from start to finish. That means we create the content, write the copy, optimize your hashtags, and schedule posts across your favourite platforms. Long story short – we’ll make your old feed really, really jealous.

Does premium content come at a premium price? Our model keeps things affordable by creating content in bulk. We take clients on a subscription basis from one- to six-month terms. Alternatively, we can give your social presence a one-off boost to push specific campaigns or product launches. If you have a particularly keen employee who wants to dive into the world of social media marketing, we run one-on-one training programs that are specifically designed for your company and your employee’s capabilities and skill level.

If you’re ready to boost engagement, delight your feed, and completely transform your social media presence – reach out to teams@ontap.social. We are currently in a soft launch and accepting a limited number of clients.