By Sharon Jones

When you think of social media, what pops into your head? If you’re not an entrepreneur, you may use sites like Facebook to chat to friends, share photos and catch up with people you’ve not seen for years. If you own a business, social media can take on a whole new meaning. In today’s society, the potential to earn through being sociable is huge. If you haven’t tapped into the benefits of modern marketing yet, here are some tips and tricks to help you hit the heights.

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Social media marketing

When you use Facebook or Twitter, have you noticed adverts running at the side of the page or your friends liking or sharing posts or favoriting tweets from businesses? Perhaps you’ve seen them share a page for a local hair salon or enter a competition for a free meal at a new restaurant in town, for example. As a business owner, there’s scope to transform your balance sheets using social media if you have a market that is responsive to these channels and an effective strategy. Millions of people use social media every day. With these platforms, you have access to a massive audience at the click of a button.

If you don’t already have social media accounts up and running, the first thing to do is create some profiles, and start building an online presence. Share your page and encourage others to do the same, run some competitions to generate interest, and look into paid advertising. Make sure that your profile provides details about your company, and ensure that you website link and contact details are easy to locate. It’s really useful to have a live chat feature, as people often want an instant response if they have questions.

Encourage users and clients to leave feedback and comments. A good review online is the modern equivalent to a great write-up in a newspaper or magazine.

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SEO

When you have a website and social media profiles, you can make them work harder for you by looking into search engine optimization, or SEO. When you use a search engine like Google, for example, what do you usually do? Do you click on one of the first links on the page or do you scroll down and go through pages and pages of results? Most people will go straight to the top search result. If you can get your business up there, you’re bound to increase your sales. If you’re not an SEO expert, you can employ members of staff with marketing expertise, or you could work with an external agency like http://www.ldseosydney.com.au/. Social media and SEO are inextricably linked, and you can use your social media accounts to boost your SEO rating. Try and increase the number of followers and friends, and use creative content rich with search terms and backlinks. For more information, you may find this page useful https://www.forbes.com/sites/jaysondemers/2015/01/27/6-social-media-practices-that-boost-seo/#72ad8c893d17.

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If you run a company, and you’re keen to hit the big time, it pays to be sociable in this day and age. If you’re not already connected to your clients and potential customers online, now is the time to explore the fascinating world of online marketing.