Use of social media to support business aims and needs

Use of social media is now a requirement for almost all companies and businesses.

For example, the following are some of the uses that a beautician might have for a social media profile:

• List company information – what are the opening hours, where can they be found
• Reviews from clients – perhaps some photos of work that has been completed along with (hopefully glowing) reviews
• Promotions and special offers – trying to tempt new customers to visit
• Engagement-increasing posts – to increase your social media presence/following
• Competitions – to increase presence and following

With people spending more and more time online, companies are competing for your time and money. What used to be passed from person to person via the word of mouth is now achieved online using social media.

Used correctly, social media is the single greatest free advertising opportunity for any business. Maintaining a profile is free. Bandwidth costs are zero. The functionality that allows users to interact with you is free. There is no ‘prime time’ rate for posting at certain times of the day.

And, most importantly of all… as soon as you interact with a social media profile, the profile owner has information about you: your name, contact details, interests, your relationships with other users… all valuable information.