How to Create a Social Media Marketing Plan for Small Business

In 2021, having a social media presence is a requirement for most businesses. But let’s be honest, most business owners view social as a necessary evil. Something they know they need to do, but dread having to sit down and do it. 

Why is that? 

Because social media can certainly become overwhelming - especially for businesses that are working without a plan or strategy. In this article, I will walk you through how to create a social media marketing plan for your small business that won’t drive you crazy trying to execute it.

Why does a small business need social media?

To answer this question, let’s look at a few interesting stats:

• 1.3 million new users per day joined social media in 2020 (Hootsuite)

• 54% of buyers conduct research using social media (GlobalWebIndex)

• Facebook had 1.84 billion active users per day in 2020 (PR Newswire)

• As of 2019, Instagram Stories had 500 million monthly active users (Statista)

• LinkedIn has 740 million members across 220 different countries (LinkedIn)

As a small business owner, you want to be exposed to the largest number of potential customers as possible.  Social media is one of the core marketing tools for a small business and can provide you with that exposure.  And the best part?  It is free!

Creating a Social Media Plan in 4 Easy Steps

As I said above, social media can quickly become overwhelming if you don’t have a plan.  As a small business owner, you have enough to do.  You’re focusing on running your business - not trying to be a full time social media manager.  So the biggest thing in your social plan is to keep it simple.

Step 1: Know your Audience

This may seem like an obvious one, but you’d be surprised at how often it gets overlooked. As a business owner, you will have a good idea of who your target audience is. But keep in mind that there may be multiple target audiences for your business.  It will be crucial to understand the needs and habits for each of these groups.  It will help you immensely in Step 2.

Step 2: Choosing your Platforms

It seems like there are a million different social media platforms - with new ones popping up endlessly.  As a small business owner, there is no need to chase them all. You’ll drive yourself crazy. You want to be very strategic with the platforms you choose. This is one area we see our new clients struggling before they partner with us, they’ve spread themselves too thin on social media. Less is definitely more when it comes to small business and social media. 

So how do you choose your platforms? This is where the importance of  knowing your audience comes in. You’ll want to choose the 2-3 platforms with which your audience is most likely to be actively engaged. 

For example, you are the proud owner of a nail salon where your audience is primarily women ages 16+. That’s a pretty wide age range.  How would you target that entire group with a single social media platform.  The answer is - you wouldn’t.  

So let’s break it down a bit further. Your audience is comprised of a few different groups that share similar social media habits.  

• Ages 16-25: Mostly Instagram, TikTok, etc.

• Ages 26 - 50: Mostly Instagram, Facebook, Twitter etc.

• Ages 50+: Mostly Facebook, Instagram, Twitter

As you probably guessed, in this situation your best strategy is to focus your attention on the Instagram and Facebook platforms.  Both are visual and will give you the opportunity to not only promote your business, but also showcase your work through photos and video.

Step 3: Optimizing your Accounts

After you’ve chosen your platforms, you’ll need to make sure your profiles are optimized.  What does that mean?  For every platform it is a bit different, but essentially you’ll be going through and making sure that all your information is accurate and your profile page looks professional.

There are a few things to consider when you’re doing this:

1. Make sure that your profile image features your logo, is clear, and well cropped.

2. You have a quality header image on your profile that serves a purpose for your business. It could feature your products or services, promote an event, or include an offer - but it should have a purpose.

3. Dimensions are critical. Make sure the images you’re using in your profile are the right dimensions for the platform.  Be careful, because they change frequently.  Hootsuite has created a great cheat sheet you can use for 2021.

4. Be sure you’ve gone through and entered complete and accurate information for your business.  This should include a description of what you do, your contact information, and your website.

As you’re optimizing your profiles, don’t be afraid to show a bit of personality and creativity. Just be sure everything looks good and doesn’t contain any typos or mistakes. Remember, this is your chance to make a first impression.

Step 4: Creating a Content Calendar

Your content calendar is the plan that will help you keep social media from becoming overwhelming. At some point, every marketer has known the panic of “oh no, what can I post today?!?!” A good content calendar will help you avoid that feeling. (PRO TIP: Avoid that feeling if you can.)

There are plenty of great templates you can download including this free content calendar template from HubSpot .

To start, you’ll just want to list out each of the platforms you’ve chosen. Going back to our earlier nail salon example, we’ll be using Facebook and Instagram.  We want to make sure we keep a regular posting schedule so we maintain an active presence on both platforms.  For this business, 1-2 posts on Facebook and 2-3 posts on Instagram per week would accomplish that goal. In addition to the posts, both platforms have a Stories feature that can be used effectively to promote the salon. The business would want to try and post a story each day - or at least 5-6 days per week. 

So what should these posts and stories be? Here are a few tips:

1. Nobody likes going on their social media feed and seeing a brand constantly promoting.  Download this. Buy that. It’s a surefire way to get someone to unfollow you over time. For that reason, you should not try to promote in every one of your posts. Yes, you will obviously be doing some of that, but you’ll want to find a balance. A good rule of thumb is 60-70% of your posts should not be direct promotion. 

2. If I’m not promoting, then what am I doing? Good question. The simple answer is that you’re providing value to your followers.  That could come in a number of different forms - you could be entertaining them, you could be educating them, or even inspiring them. But the bottom line is before you post, ask yourself what value you’re providing your followers.

3. Don’t be afraid to use content on multiple platforms. In the nail salon example, Facebook and Instagram make it easy to post on both platforms. You’ll just want to make sure your tags and captions are accurate and relevant on each one.

4. Sharing is OK. Sharing someone else’s content on your social media still provides value to your followers.  Remember, it doesn’t need to be all about you. It’s about your followers and what serves them the best. As long as the content is relevant to your audience, and you properly credit the original source, sharing is not only OK, but encouraged.

5. Keep in mind that quality is important. Make sure that you’re using good quality images in your posts and stories. You don’t always need to create fancy graphics for your social media posts, but that can add a professional look to your timeline as well.  A great tool I’ve found for creating those graphics is Canva. It’s very easy to use and offers tons of templates to get you started.  They even have a free version to get you started.

Using Social Media to Get Exposure for your Small Business

Social media can be an amazing, cost effective tool for small businesses. As long as you have a well thought-out plan, you can effectively reach your audiences and provide them with engaging content.  Remember, consumers do business with companies they enjoy and who provide them value. If you keep your audience and their needs at the core of what you do, you’ll give yourself the greatest chance for success.

Do you want help with creating a social media strategy for your business? Schedule a free small business review with Blue Beagle Marketing and we’ll provide you with some actionable advice on how to grow your business.