http://blog.digit-ally.com/index.php/blog/5-tips-for-entrepreneurs-that-will-help-you-use-Social-media-to-get-your-message-across

Social media, two words loaded with misunderstanding, meaning and momentum.

Whether you are a startup or existing business, it is absolutely vital that you get to grips with how you utilise this now essential business tool to drive not only awareness of your brand but also a brand affinity, loyalty, advocacy but most importantly conversions.

Firstly always be thinking mobile first, this should be one of your business mantras, by the end of this year there are going to be an estimated 1.91 billion smartphones in use worldwide, you can no longer think should I go mobile, you have to be mobile.

Being connected is now default. People everywhere now rely so heavily on their mobile phones that we are connected 24/7, could you imagine not having your smartphone?

Short-form video storytelling is becoming ever more popular, the introduction of Snapchat, Vine and Instagram are now the norm for many people.

Social media marketing is the process of building awareness about you, your products or services through the various social channels available. Essentially the ultimate end point of any social media marketing campaign is to drive traffic to your website, increase conversions, improve product visibility and create a loyal community of passionate customers that will defend and promote your brand across the web. If you follow the five steps listed below, you will be well on your way to being able to leverage one of the most powerful forms of marketing around.

Understand the purpose of social media for your communications

At Digitally Limited one of the first things we ask our clients who are building their communications strategy is "Do you know what the purpose is for using social media?" Many organisations tell us they want to use social media to broadcast messages to existing and new customers. We would say that your purpose should be more to engage in meaningful conversations with both new and existing customers.

You need to define what it is you really want to achieve on social media. It is only when you are able to fully answer these questions that you should even start to think about embarking on any form of social media.

What do you want to be known for?

As soon as you know what it is you want social media to do for your business, you can start to focus on creating and articulating why anyone would follow you. Too many businesses often fail to understand that social media requires a brand to have conversations and give something back to those who have decided to like, follow and engage with you.

You must view social media as an ever evolving conversation and relationship rather than just another broadcast channel. All this requires investment, time and most importantly a dialogue.

Be sure to listen!

If you want to be selling more effectively on your website then you need to listen.

Time and time again we see businesses failing on social media because they just don't invest enough time listening to their users telling them day in and day out exactly what they want, this also applies to your website, capturing the voice of customer is key.

There is so much information that customers around your business are talking about on platforms such as Google+, LinkedIn and Twitter that you need to know before starting any of the planing or writing any content.

By listening to what your audience is saying you will be able to identify gaps in their knowledge, gaps in your market place even ideas for services that you may already be able to supply. Furthermore it will help you to create your content strategy, as what they say and the way they say it should impact on what you say and how and you say it on your own digital channels.

Define which platforms suit your business needs

With so many social channels available you just can't be on all of them, and why would you want to? It's important to know which platforms contain your xkey persona group and focus on getting these right, it's far better to use less platforms exceptionally well rather than be on every platform occasionally or sporadically.

It's worth spending time looking at and analysing the audiences of each platform, for example we work with businesses and concentrate our social efforts on Google+, LinkedIn and Twitter.

Participation is paramount

Social media is exactly what it says it is, it's social, it is not a newspaper or TV ad, so don't treat it like one.

Ensure that you have conversations with people and don't just broadcast, try and build realtionships and most importantly participate.