Save $40 with our early bird discount on tickets for the 2020 Small Business BC Awards Buy Tickets

Small Business BC

Resources for Entrepreneurs to Start and Grow Successful Businesses

  • Log In
    • Wishlist
    • Cart
    0
    MENUMENU
    • Resources
          • Articles
          • Room Rentals
          • Export Navigator
          • Business Checklists
          • Bookstore
          • Bizmap
          • Business Plan Template
          • Corporate Search Services
          • Frequently Asked Questions
          • Resources Quick Links

            Starting Your Business Checklist

            How To Choose The Right Business Structure

            Meeting Rooms Info Sheet

    • Advice
          • Free Introductory Business Advisory
          • Business Registration Services
          • Business Plan Services
          • Market Research Services
          • Talk to an Expert
          • Import and Export Services
          • Upcoming Talk to an Expert

            Talk to an Accountant

            Wednesday, January 8th, 2020
            09:00AM to 4:00PM

    • Education
          • View All Education
          • Meet Our Speakers
          • Customized Education
          • Upcoming Seminars & Webinars

          • Jan 08
            Saving
            PACKAGE

            Business Planning Series Package

            Wednesday, January 8, 2020 12:00am to 11:59pm
            Jan 08
            business mapping advice
            Saving
            Accessibility Month

            Business Mapping: Developing a Smart Business Model

            Wednesday, January 8, 2020 1:00pm to 3:30pm
            Jan 09
            Saving
            Accessibility Month

            How to Do Business with the Federal Government

            Thursday, January 9, 2020 1:00pm to 2:30pm
            Jan 14
            Saving
            ACCESSIBILITY MONTH

            Get Started with Email Marketing

            Tuesday, January 14, 2020 9:00am to 12:00pm
            Jan 14
            Saving
            Accessibility Month

            Sales Strategies for Small Business

            Tuesday, January 14, 2020 1:00pm to 4:00pm
            Jan 15
            Saving
            ACCESSIBILITY MONTH

            Rock Your Side Hustle and Keep Your Day Job

            Wednesday, January 15, 2020 10:00am to 12:00pm

            View More…

    • Events
          • SBBC Awards
          • INSPIRE
          • SBBC Meetup
          • SBBC Popup
          • Small Business BC Awards

            The 17th Annual Small Business BC Awards take place Friday, February 21st at Vancouver Convention Centre. Secure your ticket now and celebrate the best of BC’s small business community.

            Buy Tickets

    • Community
          • Client Stories
          • Community Events Calendar
          • Our Impact
          • Client Story

            Frederik Orlin and Julie Wu, ORLING & WU

          • Client Story

            Meet Jordan Rogers, Lloyd-James Sales & Marketing

    • Connect
          • About Small Business BC
          • Webinar Partner Program
          • Small Business BC Staff
          • Advertising & Sponsorships
          • Careers at Small Business BC
          • Request For Proposals
          • Sign up for our eNewsletter to get the latest updates

    • SBBC Awards
    • Cart
    • Account
    • Wishlist

    Upcoming Education


    Jan

    08

    Saving

    PACKAGE

    Business Planning Series Package

    Wednesday, January 8, 2020
    12:00am to 11:59pm


    Jan

    08
    business mapping advice

    Saving

    Accessibility Month

    Business Mapping: Developing a Smart Business Model

    Wednesday, January 8, 2020
    1:00pm to 3:30pm


    Jan

    09

    Saving

    Accessibility Month

    How to Do Business with the Federal Government

    Thursday, January 9, 2020
    1:00pm to 2:30pm


    Jan

    13

    Saving

    Accessibility Month

    Key Employment Issues for Small Business

    Monday, January 13, 2020
    1:00pm to 4:00pm


    View More…

    Resources > Articles
    Article

    Creative Ideas to Improve Your Social Media Engagement

    Social Media

    Running your business social media accounts should be a fun task. It’s a dynamic and instantly gratifying channel to communicate with your customers while building a community around your brand. As we rush to keep these channels active each day, it’s all too easy to lose sight of the big picture. What was once an enjoyable distraction can become a chore. This is why we decided to list some creative ideas to improve your social media engagement.

    The Challenge for Social Media Marketers

    Attention spans are short these days. We’re now conditioned to tune out repetitive messages and focus on things that deliver instant gratification. If the law of diminishing marginal returns is starting to apply to your social media interactions, it’s an alarm that’s letting you know it’s time to freshen things up. In fact, the dynamic and fleeting nature of social media offers the perfect petri dish for you to experiment with your marketing mix.

    Creative Ideas to Improve Your Social Media Engagement

    It’s Competition Time

    Everyone loves a freebie, right?

    Running a competition through your social media accounts is one of the most impactful ways to increase follower engagement. A study by Tailwind showed accounts that hold Instagram contests grow their follower count 70 per cent faster over a three-month period than accounts that don’t. A contest offers a low barrier of entry, with your only overhead being the prize and the time taken to administer the prize giving. Encourage likes, follows or re-tweets as part of your contest and think of ways to get creative with entries. If the contest is fun, you’re likely to resonate with a larger audience.

    Take Social to the Real World

    A lovely touch when clients make an online order is to include a personalized thank you note. Including your social media accounts on these notes is a fantastic way to reach an already engaged audience when they’re hopefully at their happiest with your service. Our partners at Vistaprint produce a fantastic array of high quality postcards that are perfect for this purpose. This thought can extend to your business cards, where it’s now appropriate to put your social handles.

    Host a Takeover

    Social media takeovers are an increasingly common way of tapping into a new audience. It works by handing the keys to your account over to an outsider for a day – usually an influencer, celebrity, or well-known figure in your industry. Not only will this instantly freshen up the voice of your account, it also brings your outsider’s active audience along for the ride. Draw up a list of the ideal candidates for a takeover and think of the most impactful times you could slot them into your social calendar.

    Introduce Video into Your Mix

    As we alluded to in our intro, attention spans are on the wane. A side effect of this phenomenon is the rise of video content marketing online. As sites like YouTube and Twitch grow in prominence, more people think of video as their default delivery channel for content. It receives exponentially more shares on social media and will prove transformative to your marketing efforts if leveraged correctly. Some ideas for video include how-to instructional series, quick tips and tricks, and reviews of new products.

    Join Forces with Another Brand

    Move beyond thinking of other businesses as rivals. There are plenty of businesses out there who could form mutually beneficial relationships with your operation. Recently, we sat down with the owners of Luppolo Brewing to find out more about the brewery scene in East Vancouver and how their business was evolving. During our chat, they revealed the extent of the marketing collaboration between the breweries in this thriving community. While they may seem like rivals to the untrained eye, the breweries had pooled their marketing efforts to launch the Hop Circuit, a one-day celebration of East Van’s brewing scene. The collaboration has proved so fruitful, they even came together to brew a special beer.

    by Small Business BCPosted: May 23, 2019Updated: September 23, 2019

    Related Articles:

    • What Small Businesses Can Learn from Toyota’s Social Media Marketing Strategy
    • SBBC to Visit Coquitlam for Build. Grow. Thrive. Tri-Cities
    • What’s Happening in August 2018 at Small Business BC?
    Share this Article

    About Small Business BC

    When you find yourself asking "How do I...?" Give us a call. We'd be happy to help.

    • Note: you can withdraw your consent at any time - for more information see our Privacy Policy or Contact Us for more details.

    • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

    Stop by

    Small Business BC
    54 - 601 West Cordova Street
    Waterfront Station
    Vancouver, BC V6B 1G1
    Canada

    With Support by

    Government of B.C. Logo

    Say hello

    Phone: 604-775-5525
    Toll Free in B.C.: 1-800-667-2272
    TTY (Teletypewriter): 1-800-457-8466
    Fax: 604-775-5520
    Email: askus@smallbusinessbc.ca

    We're Open

    Monday – Wednesday, Friday
    9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

    Thursday
    10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

    Saturday & Sunday
    Closed

    Additional Links

    • About Us
    • Press Releases
    • Careers
    • Privacy
    • Media Files
    • French Language Compliance
    • Terms & Conditions
    • Cancellation Policy
    • Contact Us
    © 2019 Small Business BC