Stumped by social media? You won’t be after reading this advice
When it comes to connecting with your local community, social media can be a game changer. It lets potential customers find you without you having to spend days knocking on doors or cold calling.
But social media isn’t just a box you check—using it well is a craft unto itself, and like any craft, some techniques and methods work better than others. While paid ads and sponsored content can be a quick way to get your name out to prospective clients, the savvy social media user may be able to draw a large audience with just a smartphone and a little trial-and-error.
In the PRO+ Business Training Series webinar on “Social Media 101,” Kassity Moore—founder of Ohio City Painting in Cleveland, Ohio—and Jordan Simmons—founder of Alista Media—share these three guidelines for posting on social media.
- Be Authentic
Social media gives you the opportunity to humanize your business. In other words, if you’re advertising for “Joe’s Painting Company,” let them get to know Joe. Let them meet the other people on Joe’s team. Let them see how Joe works and what he’s good at. After all, if they like Joe enough… they might buy from him.
To some, this might sound silly or unnecessary, but personal connection has always been an important part of salesmanship. Social media gives you an opportunity to highlight the real you and to build that relationship with the client before you ever even meet with them for a quote.
“There’s humans behind your brand: Who are they?” says Simmons. “That doesn’t mean you have to dance or even show your face. Some people don’t like showing their faces. But there’s plenty of ways to humanize your brand, and I have confidence you’ll find a way that works for you.”
- Be Consistent
Make it your goal to always be in followers’ feeds. The “Social Media for Painting Contractors” guide published by Sherwin-Williams offers step-by-step advice for creating a company presence on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, NextDoor, and other platforms. While you don’t need to be on every single one of those platforms, you should post regularly and consistently on the platforms you prioritize. Your followers should see you every time they open their app. Make your presence known.
For many painters, that sounds daunting. After all, you’re busy enough just fitting in all your painting jobs; now you also need to post photos and videos every day to Instagram and Facebook? The truth is that posting regularly sounds more difficult and time-consuming than it actually is.
“As a painter, you want to show the before-and-after or highlight the big things,” Moore says. “But [my team] would record me opening paint cans and just showing off the color—things you don’t normally think of as very interesting. No part of your painting process isn’t free game for content.”
Your content doesn’t need to be polished or flawless either. In fact, sometimes making mistakes can humanize and endear you to your audience. One of Moore’s most popular videos happened when she accidentally painted a wall the wrong color.
- Be Active
Once you’ve got a consistent routine down on your platforms of choice, take your social media presence to the next level by interacting with influencers. Influencers are social media users with very large follower numbers. It’s good to work with influencers because when they mention you in a post, your business has just been casually advertised to potentially tens of thousands of their followers. Now that’s efficient marketing!
“You want to look for someone with an engaged community that’s aligned with your community,” Simmons says. “This could be a local café. Even if you’re a painter, you know it’s a café your customers are likely going to be hanging out at. Next, you create shareable content. You don’t create me-first content; you create content that provides value. Maybe you start highlighting local businesses. Talk about that café when you’re there, share a picture of your team getting coffee there, and tag them. Hopefully, they’ll share that.”
“If you want to take it further, you might DM them and say, ‘Hey there! I love the content on your page. I feel so aligned with your message. I created this piece of content that I believe your community would get value from. Is there any way you could share it to your story today?’”
More often than not, Simmons says, they’ll share it. Follow up by thanking them and offering to reciprocate the favor. Kicking off a social media partnership really can be that simple and straightforward.
Conclusion
Humanizing your team, posting regularly to your chosen platforms, and interacting with local influencers are all great ways to organically build your social media audience without paying a premium. For those willing to put in the work, social media can pay huge dividends when it comes to quality lead generation and winning bids.
For more resources on using social media effectively, check out the Sherwin-Williams Build Your Business hub for social media guides. You can also hear more expert advice from Moore and Simmons in the full PRO+ Business Training Series webinar, “Social Media 101.”