Growing up in a suburban area makes it kind of difficult for me to buy things because the place has limited resources and stocks of items. Also, it is far from everywhere and if I use Uber to go to the city, it would be very expensive (since it is far). However, looking at this from business perspective, you can actually find both advantages and disadvantages when it comes to opening a business in a small town like this. You may be familiar with the disadvantages, right, difficult networking process, difficult reach to audience and many more. That being said, you can make use of this one advantage; the fact that the suburban area may lack resources is the problem for the people living there is enough for you to provide them with solutions. After all, a business exists to become a solution to a problem. If you give this a thought, you can create something helpful for the people living there with your business. I know what you’re thinking; it is not easy building a business in a small town where you seldom find prospects. However, even though you are living in a small town, you can still use technology, right? Yes, there is one strategy you can use for building your business in this digital era even though you are in a small town; social media. No matter where you are living and where you are going, if you have access to social media, you can make great efforts for your business marketing strategy. As a person who provides social media services for clients, I have met people from small towns looking to start their own company. Trust me; you don’t know how much influence social media can bring to businesses. With the right steps I’m going to share with you in this article, you can build your small business in your small town with social media. Keep reading to learn more!
Know what you need and who to target in your business
First, before you start with social media, you need to know what you need for your business and who you want to target for your products. For this, you need to conduct a thorough research on your market and write down what you need to plan in the future as your marketing strategy. However, you need to be careful when researching for this. For example, there are no Boba drinks in your area, but most people who live in your area are older people who have no interest in drinking this kind of drink. Therefore, you can’t expect to grow your business if you are selling Boba drinks. For that reason, you need to make sure to conduct a well-planned research that is in accordance with your target and your products.
Choose what kind of business you want to start
So, with your knowledge of your surroundings, you put two and two together and start choosing what type of business that works with the situation in your area. For example, if your area doesn’t have complete grocery store, maybe you can provide more well-resourced grocery stores in your area because you know the people in your surroundings need your business. When you have finally chosen your business type, create a plan.
After finding your target and setting up a careful plan, start your social media strategy
Okay, so you know your business type, your target and your plan. Now what? Of course, it’s social media time! And yes, before you dive deep into social media, I will not get tired of reminding you to do some research first. You have to choose which social media platform that will work best for your business. Instagram is the most chosen social media platform for business because it provides wider audience than other social media platforms.
Do the first thing to do on social media
Yes, you want to promote your business on social media, but what’s the first thing to do? Hold your horses! Never underestimate the power of social media buzz, but also never underestimate the process you have to do in order to reach your target audience – it is not that simple. You don’t just post random content; it has to be done properly. You need to create engaging content on social media especially if your business is new to social media. The first kind of content for your social media should be a sneak peek for your audience to see what kind of product to offer and tell them (literally) that you are coming soon.
Consider ads and influencers for your business
I know starting out a business alone is already difficult, let alone investing your money in other parts of your business, but this is business we are talking about. If you are not willing to take risks and invest money for your business, you are not ready for business. Going for ads on social media is important because social media ads have features that allow you to reach the right audience that is more interested in your products rather than random people you find from hashtags because social media will then show your ads to the people who often search for related content. Aside from ads, you can opt for hiring social media influencers to get some buzz so that you can increase your brand awareness. Keep in mind that it is advisable to hire social media influencers that have the similar niche to your business. For example, if you start a beauty brand, you can hire a social media influencer who is a make-up artist or a beauty vlogger. This will be a good start for your business.
Yes, that’s how you grow your business through social media. It doesn’t matter where your business is, small town or big town, you can still find your target customers! However, keep in mind that you may have to invest more money for social media marketing strategy and it is okay as long as you choose the right strategy for that.