3 social media tips to use for Small Business Saturday UK

The UK’s first ever Small Business Saturday is approaching fast! After it proved to be a success in the US it is hoped the scheme will increase consumers awareness and encourage them to support and spend with their local businesses rather than just large national stores.

Taking place on December 7th the event organisers have been highlighting businesses across market sectors from all over the UK on their Facebook page and other social media channels.

So how can you as a small business owner take advantage of this event by using social media?

Here are 3 top tips that you can implement today:

The big one - Use the Hashtag - #SmallBizSatUK is the main hashtag on Twitter, Google+ and Facebook, being used by the FSB, many councils along with other brands.

So if you’re not taking advantage of the hashtag you’re missing a big chance to be found by many users that are looking into this campaign which backed by American Express is advertised on TV. Start adding #SmallBizSatUK to some of your updates that are related to this event so you can increase your visibility and reach a wider audience of potential consumers.

Tell people in your store - Tell people who visit your store between now and next Saturday that you are on social media (maybe give them a little flyer or add it to your receipts) and encourage them to follow and support you online too.  The key to people following and supporting your business on social media is having a great reason to do so.

Depending on the nature of your business, here are some other suggestions :

• Offer freebies or special offers with the hashtag #SmallBizSatUK plus your location eg. #Cambridge #Birmingham etc.
• Put billboards, posters or blackboards with a message that attracts your customers – they may even take a photo of a great product in your store and tweet about it!
• People often support local businesses as they are experts in their product/service so think about sharing a snippet of information or a hint / tip

Search and engage in the conversations - The buzz around the first Small Business Saturday event in the UK is getting bigger and bigger online with many conversations going on around it. Therefore a good idea is to search for those conversations, participate and engage in them. You can use the hashtag #SmallbizSatUK or even search on Google.

So, besides writing your own updates with the hashtag, you’ll be responding and commenting on other people’s updates related to the event. Social media is all about interacting and engaging with people, other local businesses and this can make a big difference in brand awareness for you and also reaching a wider audience.

Are you a small business participating on Small Business Saturday? Visit the website http://www.smallbusinesssaturdayuk.com/ for details and to sign up for a free page.