5 Benefits of Social Media Marketing for Small Businesses

At The Winfield Creative, it’s no surprise that we’re big fans of social media marketing for small businesses. However, we do run into folks who don't see it as an essential tool for marketing their products and services. 

I get it...in our personal lives, social media can be a burden. (Although, it does allow us to connect with friends, family, and the creators we love). And even though they’re accessed from the same apps on our devices, our personal social media accounts are very different from the accounts we have for our businesses and should be treated as such! 

As a social media expert creating content for women-owned businesses, I see the benefits that social media marketing has on small businesses every day. Literally, every day.

Here are the top 5 benefits of social media marketing for small businesses:

1. Brand Awareness

Social media platforms are known as a “top of funnel” (or TOFU) marketing strategy, meaning that it helps create awareness surrounding a brand or product. By consistently posting content, especially content that’s funneled (no tofu puns intended 😂) to people that don’t follow you in addition to those that do, small businesses significantly boost their visibility to attract new customers. This can be done with content, like Instagram Reels, which is heavily push to non-followers, helping you reach new audiences.

2. Customer Engagement

As previously mentioned, in our personal lives we use social media as a tool for connecting with friends and family. This means that when you, as a social media user, follow a brand, their content appears in the same place as your friends and family’s content does, whether that’s on your Instagram story or in the form of a post or reel. This makes social media one of the best places for brands to interact with their consumers, as they have the capability to send a quick DM, like or comment on a post, or participate in a poll. 

So, if your brand wants to share news with your followers quickly, like changing your store hours, posting on social media is often the most effective way to do so.

3. Customer Insights

We’ve talked about the differences and similarities between personal and business social media accounts in terms of posting content a few times now. But how about on the backend of the account? 

Social media platforms offer analytics and insights into customer behavior, preferences, and demographics. By regularly checking this data and using it to inform your social media strategy, business owners can create better content for their audience.

4. Increased Traffic to your Site

By sharing blog posts, highlighting products, and other pieces of content, businesses can drive their followers to their site and encourage them to take action (think: add to cart or book a call!). 

Additionally, driving traffic to your site increases its number of visitors as well as stats such as engagement time and click through rate - factors that positively influence your site’s SEO, or search engine optimization. 

5. Cost-Effective Marketing

Compared to traditional forms of marketing, such as print or radio, social media marketing is highly cost-effective. In fact, it’s something that you can do for free if you want to! This is particularly beneficial for small businesses with a low marketing budget, as they have access to the same audience that large businesses do. 

If you are a business owner who is trying to figure out this whole social media thing on your own and are looking for some guidance, be sure to schedule a Mentor in your Pocket session to take your profile to the next level ✨