TwoCents | HOW TO SELL ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Lena is a business owner who is passionate about baking. Oh, she could mix and bake flour into savoury cakes, pastries, or something delicious and sumptuous that made people's taste buds dance with delight. Everyone questioned if she was born with such talent or if she had to develop it over time, so they made educated guesses. She's always wanted to transform her skill into a more profitable business, and after hearing that social media was a method to make money, she decided to expand her business into the world of social media. Basically, she wanted to legitimately increase her profit margin so she wouldn't be Sapa-rized (broke). She had no idea where or how to begin, and she had little understanding of how to navigate. One faithful day, Lena decided to take the bull by the horns and create an Instagram account for her business. You could see or feel the thrill coursing through her veins, but alas! She was going to make more money from the convenience of selling on social media. She spent hours shooting her appealing products and composing comments she hoped would entice buyers. Despite her efforts, she was not receiving any engagement on her posts. How demotivating! Feeling frustrated and disappointed Lena sought advice from a friend who had developed a successful brand on social media. Her friend advised Lena to take a step back and reconsider her strategy. She counselled Lena to prioritise brand building over product sales. Okay, let's take a pause; and pinpoint three mistakes from Lena; 📌 Lena had assumed she was going to make quick sales on social media, hence the disappointment when things turned out awkward. 📌 Lena didn't request for more information regarding her navigation on social media due to overexcitement. 📌 Lena focused more on product sales rather than prioritising brand building. This is the reality of some entrepreneurs out there, the urge to put your business on social media looks appealing but not having schooled on the right process makes it even more complex. There's nothing wrong with your business, yeah? But having the wrong approach to your business on social media will make it even look more like nothing's working. Social media marketing has strategies, here are some few tips to consider; 📍 When crafting your content, focus on your brand's unique personality and values. 📍 Your content should be somewhat educative, informative or even entertaining. Create content that's reasonable and valuable to your audience. 📍 Avoid being overly salesy to your audience. 📍Optimise your profile bio such that it reflects what your brand stands for. 📍 Avoid blurry pictures, if not, the Algorithm of that social medium will help you to. 📍 Engage with your audience or followers by responding to comments and direct messages. 📍 Hashtags are a great way of making your post discoverable online, utilise it as well. 📍 Collaborate and network with bigger account of your niche. Brethren, if you focus on these tips for your business pages or personal brand on social media, you may not get rapid growth, but I can assure you there'll be tremendous improvement gradually. Hope you got value?