So, you’ve turned your metalworking hobby into a business. Now what?
Even though a lot of people think that once they open their business customers will come, that isn’t always the case.
In order to make sales, you have to boost brand awareness. The best way to go about this is to develop a solid social media marketing strategy and campaign to attract and retain customers.
In this handy guide, we will tell you everything you need to know to get started on social media for your metalworking business.
Step 1: Set Your Goals
Before you can begin developing a social media marketing plan for your metalworking business, you need to set a few goals.
While most people want to think big here, it’s important to remember to think small too. Set achievable goals so that you can easily measure your progress without getting discouraged.
Your metalworking business will most likely not go viral overnight. So, wanting to get one million followers on your social media accounts in one week probably won’t happen.
The key to remember in this phase is slow and steady wins the race. As long as you are progressing, even if it’s just 5 to 10 followers per week, you are still scaling your metalworking business online.
Step 2: Know Your Target Audience
Now that you’ve set your goals, there’s one more prerequisite before you can dive into implementing a social media marketing strategy for your metalworking business. You need to know your target audience in and out.
By conducting research about who your target customers are, you will be better able to market to them on various social media channels. One thing you should really look into is where your target audience hangs out online.
Facebook currently has over 2.2 billion users, and it is a fantastic platform for selling products to consumers, boosting brand awareness, and kicking off cost-efficient digital advertising campaigns.
Instagram has about 1 billion active users, and it is a great place to share product photos, metalworking time-lapse videos, short how-to clips, and even customer-generated content. You can also take advantage of Instagram’s advertising platform as well.
YouTube currently boasts 1.9 billion users. This video-sharing platform allows you to boost brand awareness with entertaining or how-to videos. You can really grow your audience by creating a channel full of interesting content.
Twitter, LinkedIn, Snapchat, and Pinterest are other popular social media platforms that you can take advantage of as well. Twitter is great for public relations and customer service, LinkedIn is more for networking and reaching a professional market, Snapchat hits the younger generation, and Pinterest takes care of the older generations.
By doing proper research about your target audience, you can focus on the sites they are most likely to be active on first.
Step 3: Stalk Your Competitors
The great thing about metalworking is that it is an art form that takes a lot of time and practice to perfect. While you may be the only metalworking artist in your area, the age changes once you get online.
By doing a little bit of research, you will be able to quickly find other popular metalworking businesses and see what types of digital marketing tactics they are using in their social media business accounts.
Look at the type of content they are posting, how much engagement those posts are getting, and the time of day they post. All of these factors will help you develop your own social media marketing strategy for your metalworking business.
Step 4: Create Dynamic Content
Now that you’ve set your goals and done all your research, you can begin building a content marketing strategy for your social media business accounts.
For metalworking businesses, you can create content based on a specific aesthetic or theme that will speak to your target audience best.
For instance, if you create large-scale pieces, you can incorporate bold styling elements into your layout. On the other hand, if you’ve mastered the delicate art of intricacy in metalworking, you can use that to build an aesthetic.
It’s best to create multiple pieces of content and schedule them to post throughout the week or month. This will free up more of your time so that you don’t have to log into your social media accounts every day just to post. Build a content calendar to stay organized and keep track of your posts.
Step #5: Keep Track of Your Metrics
Next, you need to monitor the activity on your social media accounts. Find out:
- How well is your audience responding to your posts?
- Is your content engaging enough to encourage commenting or are you just receiving likes?
Answering these questions will help you figure out what type of content rings true to your audience.
Not only should you keep track of your engagement levels, but you should also take the time to interact with your followers.
Respond to comments, answer questions, and make sure that your audience feels like you care.
Step #6: Post Interactive Content
Once you start building an online following, you can begin to boost engagement by posting interactive content like polls, stories, and even live videos.
By posting a poll, you can gain valuable insight into what your audience prefers. Stories allow you to post behind-the-scenes or progress images and videos that give your metalworking business a more personal touch. Finally, going live is the ultimate interactive post that can really get people engaged. Let’s look closely at this one.
When you start a live video on Facebook or Instagram, your followers will be notified. They can join the live-stream and ask questions in real-time that you can answer right there. They don’t have to wait for you to get back to them like with email or messaging.
Live-streaming also gives you the chance to show off your metalworking skills or give a tour of your workshop. Followers love the chance to see what goes into the process of creating metal artwork.
Wrapping Up Social Media Marketing for Your Metalworking Business
Now that you understand the basics of social media marketing, you can begin building a strategy for your metalworking business. Remember to pace yourself and post relevant content that your audience wants to see.
By incorporating these tips into your strategy, you will boost brand awareness and attract the right following for your business and products.
For more information about metalworking tools, contact us today.
