Let’s face it, in today’s world businesses need social media presence. It is estimated that over 3 billion people use social media. Whether your business is local or international social media marketing is vital for your growth. Depending on the type of business you run, one social platform might work well compared to others. If for example, you sell clothes, LinkedIn will not perform well compared to Instagram and Facebook. It is therefore important to know which platform is best suited for your business. Social marketing might seem overwhelming but it cannot be ignored. The benefits of social media marketing go beyond increasing sales. In this article, we will explore 5 benefits of social media marketing. Ready? Let’s go… ![social-3064515_1280.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmbjXe8c29mVP5a2vY3zHQuwibwJrcBUdRCu3Jk6Je5QjW/social-3064515_1280.jpg)

Increase SEO Rankings

Social media and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) are somehow connected. According to Google, social signals are considered when ranking pages. Social media presence can help you rank in top 10 in Google. There is no better way to explain this than to do a simple search of a business that has a social media presence.

Create Brand Awareness

With social media profiles, you can create brand awareness stress-free. With billions of people on social media, you can easily increase visibility of your brand by marketing to them. It is easier and affordable to market your brand via social media because the audience is defined. If your brand is for a certain locality you only need to target that locality when advertising on social media. It will only be affordable if you define what your target is. Are you creating awareness only? Do you want people’s opinion on your brand? Are you looking for more customers/Clients? By defining your target you will be able to reach make people aware of your brand.

Engaging your Customers

With increasing use of social media people are opting to communicating via these social platforms. Nowadays people do not call customer service lines; they instead go to Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram etc. to communicate. Marketing on social media platforms will help in knowing what your customers expect from you. These are real people who might not want to be seen or heard on phone when complaining or even praising your business.

Measure Performance

When marketing on social platforms the results you get afterward will help you in measuring your businesses performance. The analytics provided are important when tracking your performance. You might not get it the first time but learning and following relevant guidelines will be of great importance. You can reevaluate your strategy by checking how different types of posts perform.

Investigate Competition

Your competitors’ social media profiles should help you in knowing what is required in social media marketing. Follow their profiles and look at how they are advertising. How are their posts performing? Are they ‘liked’ by many compared to yours? If so look at their strategies and tweak your posts for better performance. ___ Conclusion If you want to grow your business use social media by picking the right platform for your business. With the right platforms and knowledge on how to market on social media, you will experience growth in your business.