No matter the size of your business, social media is a powerful tool that can be used to drastically increase brand awareness. Social media is so powerful because never before has the world been so interconnected. In fact, according to the World Economic Forum, it is estimated that by 2018 there will be 2.44 billion people using social networks. This presents a massive opportunity to increase brand awareness to a large audience interested in connecting with brands that align with their interests and values.
Social media platforms, such as LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are all great for building brand awareness. In order to increase brand awareness, it is important to post every day across your social media channels.
LinkedIn: is great for posting company news and updates, as well as relevant articles regarding your product or service. For example, on our LinkedIn page, we share our blog posts, as well as informative information related to climate change and sustainable business and post once per day.
Facebook: is a great place to share photos, videos, important company updates and more. On our Facebook page, we use the 80/20 rule and generally post articles relevant to fly fishing, sustainability, climate change and use a lot of videos, but only post about ourselves one or two days per week.
Twitter: is an excellent platform to connect with influencers, as well as a channel for customer service, and creating hash tags to quickly spread content. We post on our Twitter page 5-10 times per day and post everything from our own content, to non-profits and environmental activists we support, to articles related to fly fishing and sustainability.
Instagram: is a unique platform to use images as a way to convey what your brand is all about, and to also connect with prospects while enhancing brand awareness. For example, we post photos on our Instagram page related to outdoor sports, and particularly fly fishing, because we are targeting companies in the fly fishing industry to help them minimize their impact on climate change, while enhancing their brand value and increasing their profitability. It’s also a good idea to use multiple hashtags on Instragram to attract followers interested in similar topics and we post on Instagram daily.
There are more social platforms not listed here that are gaining traction, such as Google+ and Snapchat, that may be right for your business, but LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instragram are some of the most popular.
In summary, if you are looking to increase your brand awareness in 2017, social media cannot be overlooked because never before has the world been more interconnected and looking to buy from purpose-driven brands. In fact, according to the latest Nielsen Report:
66% of global respondents willing to pay more, over 50% of them are influenced by key sustainability factors, such as a product being made from fresh, natural and/or organic ingredients (69%), a company being environmentally friendly (58%), and company being known for its commitment to social value (56%). Sales, and coupons didn’t even make the top five. For this group, personal values are more important than personal benefits, such as cost or convenience.
In short, consumers are looking to connect with brands that align with their own values and are even willing to spend more money on products that have a social or environmental mission. Because social media is becoming so widespread, it is the most powerful tool available today to connect with consumers and build brand awareness.