The pandemic has been rough on us all and businesses are no exception to this rule. Businesses of all sizes across industries have felt the impact of the many national lockdowns, with SMEs hit the hardest. In fact, more than 76,000 small London businesses have closed down for good in the face of the pandemic.
At the same time, throughout the lockdowns, social media usage exploded. All the platforms saw increased usage including Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. But TikTok in particular reaped the greatest rewards.
By July of 2020, Tiktok had more than 700,000 million active monthly users, an increase of more than 800%. This increased usage represents a significant opportunity for businesses to capitalise on social media advertising as life returns to normal.
Why Use Social Media Advertising?
Though the success of the vaccine rollout has helped in bringing us back to a new norm, many businesses are still struggling. In particular, brick-and-mortar businesses that rely on foot traffic.
It isn’t only high street shops that are feeling the impact of the new norm. Consumer behaviour has changed significantly throughout the last year. The new increase in online spending habits doesn’t look like it will be leaving us any time soon.
It isn’t all bad news for business. For those with a strong online presence already established, it was great news as their profits soared. For those without, it means learning how to utilise digital marketing and social media marketing to their advantage.
There are millions of active social media users in London alone and almost as many different means to reach them on social media. Whether that’s through building an organic following through high-quality content and interaction or targeted paid advertising within the platforms, there are many benefits for businesses using social media ads.
London Social Media Marketing Benefits
The aim of the game with social media marketing for businesses is simple — attract customers. Social media helps do this in many ways, but firstly by increasing your brand recognition.
You can reach so many more people, both across the country and local to your business. This brand recognition helps build your brand’s trust and authority. People like what they know.
Social media is also a great place to engage with the same customers. Thank them for purchasing your products, answer questions, respond to concerns and complaints and engage. This kind of interaction helps build brand loyalty and increase customer retention through great customer service.
Finally, one of the biggest benefits when it comes to social media advertising is how affordable it is. Any business can create an account for free and they’re good to go. As well as this, paid advertising within social media platforms is very affordable compared to traditional marketing channels.
Better yet, you know exactly what you’re getting in return for your advertising efforts thanks to analytics available on the platforms.
Of course, while any business can start a social media campaign, not every business can get it right. Not only do you need to reach more people, but you need to reach the right people who would be interested in your product or service.
Many businesses get this part wrong and see lacklustre results in their campaigns as a result. This is why many businesses wisely opt to use agencies like One of One Social Media Marketing to ensure they see the best results for their business.
Get Help to Get Seen Online
It’s been a tough year for businesses thanks to the pandemic, but an explosion in social media usage represents a significant opportunity. A strong social media advertising campaign can attract new customers, increase sales and improve customer retention.