How To Increase Social Media Reach for Service Based-Business

Why is it important to boost your social media reach? Well, currently, a whopping 60% of the global population is hooked to social media – that's roughly 4.89 billion folks! 

These days, people are dedicating about 2 hours and 31 minutes of their day to scrolling through their favorite social hangouts. In the U.S, the average is slightly less at 2 hours and 3 minutes. 

Now, if you're running a service-oriented business, getting a sizeable chunk of these users to notice your brand and offerings can be a game-changer for your success.  People can only connect with your brand or sign up for your service when it becomes visible to them. 

It's quite common for individuals to mix up the terms "reach" and "impressions." Impressions refer to the total count of times people have come across your content, even if a single user views it multiple times. On the other hand, Reach is distinct; it denotes the count of distinct and active users who have access to your content.

For instance, if you share an Instagram reel and a follower watches it five times, your reach remains at 1, while your impressions increase to 5. To illustrate further, envision having a follower base of 100,000 on Instagram.

If you post a video and half of your followers see it, your reach extends to 50,000. However, in a scenario where 1000 of your followers share the content, leading 10,000 individuals to discover it on Instagram reels, your reach escalates to 60,000.

A substantial social media reach opens doors to a larger audience, bolsters your brand's recognition, and propels traffic toward your website. So, the question arises: How can you achieve this?

How To Increase Social Media Reach

Understand Your Audience

To enhance your social media reach, start by crafting a specific audience persona tailored to your brand. An audience persona essentially represents a semi-fictional version of your brand's intended audience. 

Consider who comprises your target audience, delve into their lifestyle, and take note of their demographics. To truly excel, go a step further by delving into their psychographics. Understand their predominant concerns and worries. 

Familiarize yourself with their pain points, routines, aspirations, and pastimes. By doing so, you'll be better equipped to shape the right message that resonates with them through social media. Let's take the example of managing a chauffeur service.

Lacking a solid understanding of your audience, you might incorrectly assume that convenience is their primary focus. However, it's possible that they derive more satisfaction from the prestige of being chauffeured around.

To gain a deeper insight, directly engage with your audience. These interactions will provide you with a profound understanding of their requirements. Last but not least, determine their preferred platform for interaction. 

If your target audience primarily consists of Gen Z individuals, statistics suggest that platforms such as TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram are their main hubs. Attempting to engage them on platforms like LinkedIn could potentially yield counterproductive results.

Be Conversant With Algorithms Changes

Social media platforms regularly roll out updates to decide the kind of content that deserves priority placement and how it's showcased on a user's feed. 

These updates are steered by algorithms – essentially, a set of rules orchestrating this process. Social media platforms fine-tune their algorithms with the aim of enriching the overall user experience.

Now, why does all of this matter for you? By grasping the inner workings of social media algorithms, you can tailor your content to align with these dynamics.

In 2022, Instagram unveiled plans to give precedence to original content throughout 2023. According to the CEO, Adam Mosseri, content generated from scratch will enjoy higher ranking compared to content that's merely reshared from others.

But that’s not all. Instagram algorithms also prioritize:

• Content that sparks conversations.
• Fresh content.
• Equal focus on videos and photos.

Every social media platform has a different algorithm. As for Facebook, they rank content by:

• Who posted it - users will see more content from sources they interact with.
• Content type - Users will see more of the content type they interact with.
• Interactions - users will first see posts with high engagement.

Regardless of the social media platform you're utilizing, it's crucial to grasp the underlying algorithm.

Additionally, keep a vigilant eye out for any shifts or updates in these algorithms. Now, the key takeaway is this: Familiarize yourself with what the social media algorithm values and adapt your content strategy accordingly. 

For instance, if you're active on Instagram, focus on sharing original content and capitalize on trending subjects to spark conversations among your followers. Incorporating videos and images can also prove beneficial.

By harmonizing your content with the intricacies of the social media algorithm, you position yourself to capture the attention of your intended audience and expand your social media reach.

Post More Content

Consistently sharing content emits a favorable signal to social media algorithms. Take Instagram, for instance: the more you post, the greater your likelihood of securing a spot among the top search results. 

Consequently, individuals frequently using the keywords you employ will be more likely to discover your profile. Moreover, a regular posting schedule on Instagram enhances your prospects of being featured by other accounts.

Here are the recommended posting frequencies by social media platforms.

• Instagram: At Least 3 to 5 times per week.
• Instagram Stories: Around 2-3 times daily.
• Twitter (now X app): 2 to 3 times daily.
• Facebook: Around 1 to 2 times daily.
• LinkedIn: Around 1 to 2 times daily.
• TikTok: Anything between 3 to 5 times weekly.
• Pinterest: At least 1 post every week.
• Google My Business: At least once per week.

Now, how exactly does producing more content benefit you? The majority of social media algorithms hold frequency in high regard. Essentially, by sharing more content, you secure a front-row seat.

Furthermore, posting frequently simplifies the process for social media users to recognize and associate with your brand. Once that connection is established, they're more likely to share or repost your content with their own audience. 

However, it's important to note that expanding your social media reach isn't solely about quantity. Equally crucial is the commitment to deliver high-quality content.

Cross-post Content

Once you've published content on a specific social media platform, consider sharing it across your other channels—a practice known as cross-posting.

This approach offers the advantage of conserving both your resources and time while boosting your recognizability throughout various social media platforms.

Moreover, it's a strategy that covers all your bases. For instance, a substantial portion of social media users maintain profiles across multiple platforms. Employing cross-posting allows you to connect with them on one platform, even if they happen to overlook your content on another. 

That technique also heightens the probability of your content going viral. A social media post that garners minimal engagement on one platform might achieve viral status on another. Therefore, embracing cross-posting can effectively amplify your social media reach.

Post Shareable Content

So, what exactly is shareable content? It's straightforward. Shareable content is material that individuals find appealing and willingly share on their personal social media platforms. These consider the following:

• Infographics
• Personal stories
• Surveys, 
• Memes, 
• Short videos, and 
• How-to guides.

Such content typically falls into categories like helpful, relatable, timely, enjoyable, and actionable. Crafting viral content involves working with evergreen subjects or current trending stories. 

This Shareable content serves as an effective tool for generating shares, reposts, and interactions. You can further amplify their impact by incorporating tags, geolocations, and relevant hashtags.

Use Short-form Video Content

Here's why short-form videos hit the mark. According to a HubSpot survey, 66% of respondents find them more captivating than other content formats. 

When it comes to lead generation, they deliver the highest return on investment (ROI). Notably, 47% of marketers also attest to their potential for going viral. Additionally, a staggering 81% of social media users watch around three out of every four short-form videos posted.

Considering that the human attention span barely spans 8.25 seconds, the need for attention-grabbing content is paramount. Short-form videos excel at this task. 

Their shareable nature and ease of consumption contribute to their effectiveness. Crafting short-form video content might pose a challenge. Given the brief window to capture your audience's interest, take your time and persist in refining your approach until you strike the right chord.

The top social media platforms for short-form video content are:

• TikTok
• YouTube Shorts, and
• Instagram Reels

Follow these tips to create engaging short-form video content on how to increase your social media reach:

• Follow trending topics for content ideas.
• Always start with a hook. 
• Make it relevant to your audience.
• Less is more, keep it below 1 minute 
• Record vertically.

Gathering inspiration for short-form video content can come from various sources, such as your long-form videos, blog posts, or currently trending topics. Additionally, keep in mind the value of cross-posting your short videos.

Collaborate

Stronger together – that's the essence of social media collaborations. Collaborating on social media magnifies your reach by tapping into the audiences of your partners. Begin by selecting the type of collaboration that suits you – whether it's a one-time partnership or a more enduring, perhaps permanent alliance.

Following this, search for creators whose objectives align with yours. Consider this example: If your expertise lies in beauty services, a partnership with a cosmetics brand could be ideal. 

The aim isn't just to gain new audiences, but to attract those genuinely interested in your offerings.

Once a fitting partner is identified, establish attainable goals, set deadlines, and define your aims. Sustain regular communication with your partner, and ensure your social media guidelines are harmonious.

Reach a consensus on what, where, and when to post. With the groundwork laid, start crafting content. Remember to transparently disclose every partnership in accordance with legal requirements. 

Once your content is ready, disseminate it across your social media platforms. Simultaneously, your social media partner will share your content with their audience, introducing you to a wider viewer base.

Collaborations and partnerships stand as a potent means to amplify how to increase your social media reach. Lastly, monitor your outcomes to gauge if you're hitting your targets. Collaborative efforts can involve experts, influencers, or fellow brands.

Measuring Social Media Reach

Monitoring your social media reach provides valuable insights into the effectiveness of exposing your service to potential users.

It also sheds light on the scale of your potential customer pool. As time progresses, this data becomes a yardstick for assessing brand awareness. You can achieve this by tracking keywords, ads, hashtags, events, posts, and more.

Here are some examples of tools that will measure your social media reach:

• The analytic section inside the platform
• Metricool
• AgoraPulse
• Buffer
• Hootsuite
• Sprout Social

Make sure you keep tabs on your social media performance, and whenever it makes sense, make adjustments to your strategies in order to enhance your reach.

Final Words on Social Media Reach

Unlike impressions, reach only tallies unique views. Thus, if a single individual views your content multiple times, it's registered as a solitary reach. That furnishes you with more dependable insights into the number of individuals exposed to your brand or service.

Begin by comprehending your audience and gaining insight into platform algorithms. From there, generate captivating, shareable content, maintain a regular posting schedule, and explore cross-posting. 

Short-form videos can also elevate your efforts. Lastly, always contemplate collaborations with brands that align with your platform and services. These strategies will position you in front of a broader audience, amplifying your potential for lead generation and sales.