How to promote your business on social media

A social media presence is essential for new businesses. Not only is it a vital way to engage with audiences, but it’s also one of the primary ways to promote your products and services and build brand awareness in 2024. 

In this blog, we explore different tips and techniques new businesses should use to promote themselves on leading social media channels: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X, and LinkedIn. 

1. Facebook

While it’s no longer used much for social networking, Facebook is now one of the primary ways to promote your business and interact with existing and potential customers. But how exactly can you get the most out of this social media platform? Here are our top tips:

Optimise your page

First, populate and optimise your page. Add key business information that visitors will be looking for when they land on your Facebook page, such as your contact details, opening hours, and a link to your website. 

You should also create a relevant call-to-action (CTA) that prompts users to interact with your business. For example, if you provide a service (let’s say hairdressing), add a ‘Book Now’ button that allows clients to book an appointment with you. Or if you run an e-commerce site, a ‘Shop Now’ button is a quick and convenient way for people to browse and purchase your products. 

See also: 5 small ways to make a big difference to your business image See also: An essential checklist for business startups See also: The easy way to get your business bank account

Once you’ve got these essential details covered, bring your page to life. Start by sharing a few engaging posts – perhaps introducing your business or highlighting your USPs.

If you’re not sure what to post about, get some inspiration from your competitor’s pages. Take a look at what others are talking about and what users find interesting. Use this as guidance to get your promotion off to a strong start. 

Engage with your followers

This is a fundamental technique that applies to all platforms. To promote your business on social media, you need to create noise and fuel conversations, so engaging with your followers is a must.

When someone leaves a comment on your Facebook page – good or bad – be sure to respond promptly. It shows that your business is active and that you value your audience’s voice. 

Also, don’t be afraid to initiate conversations. Things might be a little slow-moving at first. After all, your business is brand new and people don’t know much about you yet, but you don’t have to wait for your followers to make the first move. 

So, why not simply ask them a question or share a fun poll that sparks a discussion? It’ll get people talking and make your business memorable. 

Go live

Social media is all about valuable, rich content. To promote your business on Facebook, try Facebook Live. This function allows you to broadcast live videos, which viewers can react to, share, and leave comments on in real-time. 

You could go live to share company news, teach people about what your business does, express your company culture, answer FAQs, and even host virtual events. And don’t worry, a ‘rough and ready’ approach is to be expected when using Facebook Live, so you don’t need to trouble yourself with ensuring everything looks amazing and is delivered flawlessly. 

Run promotional ads

One of the best ways to promote your business on social media is by running ads. Facebook’s advertising capabilities have become incredibly sophisticated, allowing you to not only schedule and run promotional campaigns, but also track and review their performance. 

Facebook’s Ad Manager works with you to create the optimal promotional campaign. When setting one up, you’ll be asked to set an objective, which in this early stage of your business could be to increase website traffic, gather insights on your target audience, or boost brand awareness. 

You can then apply additional settings, such as A/B testing (where you can change variables to find the best strategy), ad placement, calls to action (CTA), and when the promotion is to start and end. 

The purpose of running Facebook ads is to tap into a much wider audience. Remember, you don’t just want to reach your existing followers; you should engage with all relevant users who have yet to discover your brand. To access these people, you should be running Facebook (or rather, Meta) ads. 

2. Instagram

Next up, Instagram. Ideal for images and short videos, Instagram offers a variety of ways for new businesses to promote themselves:

Share the right content type

Instagram is perfect for showcasing what you do best. For instance, if you run a creative business, share your portfolio here. If you provide a service, share examples of your work. Or if you sell consumer products, showcase them in action.

Instagram is also useful for conveying your brand culture, values, and personality. You can do this by sharing ‘about me’ style posts, letting your audience see what goes on behind the scenes, and giving them an idea of who you are as a business owner. 

Interestingly, a study by the social media management tool SproutSocial shows that 70% of consumers find a brand more authentic when a brand’s CEO is active on social media. They feel similar about employees, too, so if you have team members, ask them to engage with your brand profiles.

Additionally, feel free to share updates on your team-building activities, social events, or anything else that you feel represents your company culture. 

Post frequently

Posting too much or too often is generally a no-no when it comes to promoting your business on social media. However, in Instagram’s case, you should post frequently to build up your profile, generate excitement, and encourage engagement.

Now, too often would be several times a day, but a few times a week is perfect for a new business getting started on this platform. But don’t just share sporadically; create an effective schedule where you’re more likely to reach a wider audience and get the most out of your content. 

According to SproutSocial, the optimal times to post on Instagram are:

• Mondays, 11am – 2pm
• Tuesdays, 10am – 4pm
• Wednesdays, 9am – 4pm
• Thursdays, 9am – 1pm
• Fridays at 11am

The best days to post are Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, and the worst day (which is likely to generate the lowest results) is Sunday. Use this as a guide to find the posting schedule that works for your business and audience. The general idea is to ramp up your posting frequency as a new business promoting on this social media platform. 

Boost your posts

Don’t let your Instagram posts simply sit on your page – improve your promotional strategy by ‘boosting’ posts. Essentially, these are sponsored ads. 

When you share a post, you’ll see a ‘Boost’ button appear next to it, which is only visible to you. Similar to Facebook ads, this allows you to set an advertising objective and activate a campaign to build awareness, grow sales, and connect with your target audience. 

Instagram’s built-in campaign manager will also suggest simple but powerful tips to enhance your ads. You can review and adjust these based on your goals and budget. 

Furthermore, Facebook owns Instagram. So, to scale your campaign and reach more people, consider cross-promoting across both platforms, so that relevant users can engage with your business, no matter where they are browsing. 

Feature user-generated content (UGC)

To grow your following, you should share genuine and relatable content on social media. A great way to do that is through UGC. This type of content is created by fans rather than brands, and encompasses everything from text and reviews, to photos and videos. 

UGC is a powerful social media promotion tool, as it’s a cost-effective way to advertise and varies the type of content that you share. More importantly, it shows that your brand is authentic, encourages a sense of community, and improves brand loyalty. All these benefits accumulate to promote your business and drive growth. 

3. TikTok

Despite launching nearly a decade ago, TikTok is still an alien concept to many people. However, with over 1.5 billion monthly active users and over 2.2 billion predicted by 2027, plenty of opportunities await small businesses there. 

Before we go into promotional methods, let’s establish this platform’s purpose. TikTok is primarily for short-form videos (generally between 10 and 60 seconds, depending on the topic). Users can also purchase products through the app. 

Create relatable and shareable content

TikTok is all about sharing. When someone lands on a video they like, that makes them laugh, or they can relate to in some way, they want to share it with their friends. Therefore, to successfully promote your new business on this social media platform, you need to create content that your audience will want to share.

But what exactly do TikTok users want from brands? According to the consumer research platform GWI, the majority of people would like to see funny videos (60%), followed by creative (45%) and relaxing content (37%). 

You don’t have to be a comedian to do well on this social media channel, but you do need to be creative. You might be surprised to know that some of the funniest brands on TikTok are Ryanair and Duolingo. They’re not traditionally humorous brands, but they appeal to users by putting clever, playful spins on their services inspired by popular trends (also known as memes). 

If you’re completely new to TikTok, a simple way to start promoting your business there is to share work-related content – anything about your office culture, team dynamics, etc. And don’t be afraid to be bold and goofy. Remember, the aim is to be relatable and urge people to share your videos. 

Sell your products

If you sell consumer goods, you should sell them on TikTok. Social commerce is a fast-growing trend that creates a seamless user journey, allowing scrollers to shop your products at the click of a button without leaving the app.

TikTok is now one of the main platforms people turn to for shopping-related research, especially for younger generations. The GWI report above explains that an incredible 50% of Gen Z users turn to social media over search engines to conduct product research. 

One way to benefit from this trend is to sell your products on TikTok Shop. Make your items shoppable by creating a separate seller account and linking it to your business account. 

Then, boost your first shoppable videos with TikTok’s affiliate programme. Alternatively, you’ll have exclusive access to the TikTok seller community, where you’ll receive expert tips and advice on how to get your products noticed and sold. Also, as a new seller, you can earn vouchers for your customers, to help attract shoppers and increase sales. 

Another way to sell on this platform is through live-streaming shopping events. This function not only lets you promote and sell your items, but also engages with your audience in real-time. Unsure how to master live sales? TikTok runs educational courses to help you optimise them. 

4. X (formerly Twitter)

Despite its unpopular rebranding, X remains a highly relevant and powerful promotional tool for businesses. Here’s what you need to know to win on X:

Share newsworthy content

People mainly use X to keep up with the news. To promote your business on this social media platform, stick to newsworthy content. The focus is to inform your followers, so you could, for instance, tweet company updates, spark political debates, or express your thoughts on breaking news. 

To keep and grow your following on X, remember to keep your content relevant to your business, industry, and values. This will also help maintain a strong and consistent brand image. 

There is also room for funny content on X if that’s important to your brand, but first and foremost, users want you to inform and engage with them on this channel. 

Watch your Tweet length

X is all about fast news. Trends move incredibly quickly, so to keep up with the pace, tweets are capped at 280 characters (including spaces). Be prepared to get creative with what you say and how you say it, ensuring that you encapsulate your core message and relevant hashtags in that character limit. 

5. LinkedIn

Last but not least is LinkedIn. When you launch a new business, one of your main goals is to promote it to customers. However, don’t forget to keep building professional connections too, as those are equally important in building brand awareness. Let’s take a look at the promotional opportunities you can unlock on LinkedIn. 

Update your profile

Your new business will go through frequent changes during the start-up phase. To promote it effectively on LinkedIn, you should update your profile regularly, displaying an accurate picture of your company’s journey. 

Maybe you’ve just moved into your first commercial office – add your address to your page. Or maybe you’ve hired some new employees – update your company size and shout about your growing team. All these events and achievements will show visitors that your company is on an upward trajectory. 

Whether a potential investor wants to learn more about you, or a potential recruit is researching your company before applying for a role with you, it’s vital to keep your LinkedIn profile up to date. 

Boost discoverability

You’ve completed your LinkedIn profile – what now? Make your business page easier to find by optimising it. 

Firstly, use relevant keywords across your page. Keywords could relate to the product or service that you sell or the industry you operate in, for example. Think about the search terms that relevant users might be searching for, and incorporate those into your LinkedIn profile to improve their chances of finding you. 

Secondly, make sure you’ve linked your website to your LinkedIn profile. This will appear in the ‘Contact Us’ section, containing your website URL, industry type, company size, and address. 

Finally, share relevant content and share it often. As we mentioned earlier, 10 posts a day might be too much, but post frequently throughout the week to get your brand to the top of people’s LinkedIn feeds. 

You might be wondering how you’re supposed to maintain all your social media pages as a busy business owner with barely any time to spare. Don’t worry, there’s a simple and free way to automate this. Simply sign up to Hootsuite, link your social accounts, schedule your posts in advance, and respond to comments – all in one place. 

Share different media types

The great thing about LinkedIn is that it’s suitable for a range of media types. Whether you have a new image, an exciting video, or even a document (like a PowerPoint) to share, LinkedIn is the place to do it. 

Attract new recruits

When you’re ready to take on employees, promote your business by recruiting via LinkedIn. Not only can you advertise vacancies for free, but it will improve people’s chances of finding your business’ page.

Conclusion

As you can see, each social media platform serves a very different purpose, and what might work on TikTok, for example, might not work quite as well on X. For a new business, the world of social media can be overwhelming, but we hope that our guide has helped you understand how best to promote your brand on different channels. 

And don’t stress if your first few posts don’t get many likes or comments, or go viral – it’ll take some experimenting to find what works best for you. Play around with your content and techniques, take inspiration from others, and always stay true to your brand.

Thanks for reading. Please feel free to leave us a comment or question below.