3 Reasons No One Follows Your Business on Social Media

Don't leave out the "social" part of social media.

You can have the greatest business in the world, but if no one knows you exist, you're not going to sell a thing. That's why every business, no matter the size, needs marketing. Now, the type of marketing you do will vary based on your business size, type, and yes, budget. But there's one form of modern-day marketing that everyone can -- and should -- do: social media.

Social media marketing ticks all the boxes. It's often free (or $8?!), so your bank account won't take a hit. It's used by most people, so you can reach a broad customer base. And it's multimedia-based, so you can market your business in the best format for you.

Unfortunately, effective social media marketing isn't a one-and-done type of project. Building a following, then converting that following into sales, takes time and a bit of finesse. If you're struggling to get likes or upvotes, you may need to change your approach. Here are some of the most common reasons your business's social media presence isn't getting the job done.

1. No one can find you

The very first step to social media marketing is to establish social media accounts across the various networks. And you need them to be relevant to your business. Was "@bobsbikeshop" already taken? Don't get too creative with an alternative. You need people to still associate your social media account name with your business's name.

Even with the right name, if all you do is build it and expect them to come -- well, you'll be in for disappointment. You can't simply hope followers to magically appear (unless you're happy with a subscriber base made up of random bots).

You need to actually tell your customers that you're on social media, and show them how to find you. Maybe this means putting your social media tags on the bottom of your restaurant's menu, or on a nice sign at your register. At the very least, your website should display links to your social media in easy-to-find locations, such as in the header or the footer.

2. You don't post regularly

Is your latest social media post wishing everyone a Happy New Year -- for 2021? Do you only make social media posts once a month for whatever sale you're holding? Your sporadic posts may be what's keeping you from being noticed.

Your customers' social media accounts are constantly bombarded with new messages. If you're not making regular posts, chances are good you're being pushed out of their feed within a few days.

What's more, social media operates on complex algorithms, just like search engines. If the algorithm sees that you aren't running a very active account, it's not going to promote your posts.

While you don't necessarily need to post every day -- though that may help -- new posts a couple times a week can help you stay in their feed. It will also make your posts more likely to be boosted by the algorithms.

This doesn't mean posting spam nonsense, however. Try to keep your posts relevant to your business (and your customers). Which leads us to number three…

3. Your posts aren't interesting or useful

Most people scroll social media with at least one of two goals:

• To be informed
• To be entertained

Ideally, posts scratch both itches. But at the minimum, they should satisfy at least one.

That's not to say you need a viral video or a stand-up comedian to make an entertaining social media post that gets customer engagement. Just something that makes someone crack a smile can go a long way to breaking up your audiences' midday doom scroll.

For example, do you have a mobile dog grooming business? Posting a photo of the cute dog of the day (with the pet parent's permission) can easily get you the likes you need to build a following.

If you're not the type of person who does witty on command, go for accessibly informative. If you're a plumber or electrician, for instance, your posts can include helpful tips on how to maintain or troubleshoot household systems. Freelance editors could post useful grammar or writing tips.

Despite popular wisdom, people actually love to learn things -- especially when they can learn them in easy bits in two minutes or less.

Whatever method you use, be enthusiastic about it. Chances are good that you started your small business because you had a passion or at least a lot of skill. Sharing that with people goes further than you think.