Make social media work for your service-based practice

If your service-based practice is not already using social media to engage with your current and potential clients, then you are missing out on a large marketing opportunity.

Pew Research Center’s Internet Project Survey found that there are a large number of adults actively using social media. Of those surveyed in 2014,

• 71 percent of those surveyed were on Facebook,
• 28 percent had accounts on LinkedIn,
• 28 percent enjoyed Pinterest,
• 26 percent utilized Instagram,
• and 23 percent engaged on Twitter.

So, if you’re not on one or more of these platforms, you are losing the opportunity to meet with your target market online.

Admittedly, the process of using social media for business purposes can feel overwhelming—each platform has its own rules, nuances, and best practices, making it difficult master any of them well enough to grow your business. However, making social media work for your service-based practice may be easier than you may think.

Decide where you want to focus your efforts

Your first consideration when starting to use social media to promote your business is deciding which mediums will provide you the best results. One way to do this is to think about what you are likely to post and who your clientele is.

For example, if you plan to post a lot of images, consider Pinterest or Instagram. However, if your posts are going to be geared primarily toward written content, Facebook or Twitter will probably be your best bet. Keep in mind that Twitter only accommodates posts up to 140 characters, while Facebook allows you to make your posts as long as you’d like.

Also, be sure to consider which social media platform your particular clients use most. If you don’t know, ask them. Give them a quick survey when they come into the office or send an email and request that they respond.

Focus on one platform at a time

With so many platforms from which to choose, it is extremely easy to simply choose none—which may seem like the best choice. However, you do not need to create accounts on every social media site to be effective. Focus on just one at a time, and once you get comfortable with that one, then consider expanding your social media presence to other mediums—but in a slow, deliberate manner.

Use as an individual first, business second

Before creating a business profile on any social media account, it may benefit you to use the platform as an individual first. This will allow you to not only learn how to use it, but it can also help you understand what other users will see when you post. What shows up on your feed that you like or don’t like? Find what you like as a user, and try to duplicate those kinds of posts as a business. This will make it easier to create your own share-worthy posts once you set up your business account.

Embrace the power of video

Videos have become very popular on social media, so don’t be afraid to take some footage of your business or you talking about a particular topic and share it on your social media page. This can help your clients get to know, like, and trust you more—the three keys to successful marketing.