One of the most overwhelming things about doing business today is social media.
Our kids dream of spending all day on their social media favorites — currently Instagram and Snapchat for most — and while we fight against that, if you’re a small business owner it’s certainly easy to see how keeping up on social media could take all day.
Whether you have a business and are struggling to keep up with your social media efforts to promote your business, or you’d like to have a business but can’t help but notice how successful businesses seem to “be everywhere” on social media, we have some good news for you today.
The Evolution of Social Media
When social media first arrived on the scene, those in the business world called it Web 2.0, and the internet was all abuzz about how this new phenomenon would change the way we do business.
Having your audience all gather in one place where you could get their attention for free was certainly a small business owner’s dream.
Larger companies paid thousands and millions to get in front of these same audiences for just a few seconds, and here they were now on places like MySpace and Facebook and you could “friend” them and set up free business pages to do free advertising when they logged on to these places, which they were doing more and more frequently with each passing day.
It was almost too good to be true, and in many ways has become too good to be true.
The problem is simple: there are just too many social media networks vying for our attention.
And, too many advertisers (a.k.a. businesses of all sizes) vying for the attention of the consumers that use those networks.
How You Think Your Business Needs to Use Social Media
Popular advice from the “experts” on using social media for your business goes like this.
You need to post multiple times a day, so you’ll need to create a piece of content to post every day, and find other things to share that your audience will appreciate.
And you need to get this content on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, YouTube, and maybe even SnapChat.
And don’t forget the riches you can find on Tumblr, Reddit, StumbleUpon, and the ever-growing list of newcomers like Rutube.
Of course each social media platform is different, so doing all of this will require you to write content, create graphics, and even learn how to make and post videos.
At the end of the day, you’ll have no time to actually provide your service or product, do any admin work in your business, or create any new products or services.
And perhaps most importantly, you’ll have set yourself up for an 80 hour a week “job” that will make an ordinary full time job look like kids play.
Not at all what you pictured when you dreamed of having your own business, huh?
How Your Business Actually Needs to Use Social Media
Fortunately, making this your social media strategy is just silliness and totally unnecessary for your success.
To answer the burning question of which social networks are “must haves” for business owners — none of them.
Yes, like all things business, there is no magic social media formula that’s going to bring you success.
The one thing we do know is that trying to be on all of them will most certainly not bring you the success you’re looking for.
For starters, pick two places to focus on.
Which two? The two you like the best and get most interaction from your audience with.
Yes, social media for your business is work, but it should also be fun. Your audience will likely be able to tell if you’re drudgingly creating stuff to post there every day, and your interactions will suffer.
Eventually you’ll quit, likely sooner rather than later.
Which two you’ll pick may be obvious to you, or you may have to spend a little time looking at where your audience is and testing similar posts in different places to see where you’re getting the most interaction with people.
Start by taking a breath, letting go of some of those places you thought you had to be, and posting consistently in your two “happy spots.” And yes, once a day qualifies as consistently.
What to Do Next
Whether you’re struggling to meet your definition of “keeping up” on social media, or hesitating to get started with your business because it feels like jumping into a huge vat of quicksand, you should now have a better perspective of what it really takes to be successful with social media.
Choose your networks, make your plan, and stick with it.
If you have places where you’re currently active that you’ve decided to pull back on, make sure to invite your audience to join you the places you’ve decided to focus on.
Be honest and tell people that’s where you have most fun and will be sharing your best stuff.
And remember, your social media can grow as your business does.
You may have noticed that Kids Party Characters is active on several social media channels.
But remember, owner Cheryl Jacobs is an experienced entrepreneur who’s grown her business to six figures, has had a hand in starting 10 different businesses, and has the resources to have a team working with her to spread the Kids Party Characters messages.
You’ll get there too!
And you don’t have to kill yourself on social media 24/7 to do it.
If you want more help, schedule a chat with Cheryl right here and she’ll tell you about an opportunity to mentor with her.
Cheryl’s taken her passion for helping other moms and created a membership opportunity with Kids Party Characters that cuts down the learning curve when it comes to starting your own business.
Membership includes your very own Kids Party Characters business with an exclusive territory in which to book parties, access to our 200+ costumes, casting director, and acting coach, as well as step-by-step training from Cheryl on how to set up your business for success.
Get all the details on your free, no-pressure chat with Cheryl, and learn more about Kids Party Characters by connecting with us on Facebook for daily updates about the magic we bring to children’s parties.
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