Experts reveal how services businesses can grow with social

But what if you sell a service or something intangible? You might be wondering how you can use social media to grow your business.

As head of an agency that specialises in services marketing, I invited social media experts from across the world to share their best advice to help services businesses succeed on social. Here’s what some of them had to say.

1. Collaborate and co-create

Neal Schaffer, fractional CMO and author of The Age of Influence, USA

If you are trying to sell services on social media, you are probably challenged with coming up with fresh content ideas to engage users while attacking the weak performance that most business posts get in any given social media algorithm. That is why you should be shifting to an influencer-first approach to content and ideally consider co-creating or sourcing 100 per cent of your content from influencers. When I say “influencers”, I am not referring to the likes of Kim Kardashian but to your employees, customers, partners, and followers who are active in social media, have built a community of at least a few hundred followers, and are creating their own content. Collaborate with these social media users through interviews for your blog, getting them to try your service and posting a review about it, having them appear on your podcast or webinar etc. By doing so, you will not only perform better in social media, but you will also deepen relationships of business value that provide tremendous benefits to all of your content marketing.

2. Create compelling video content

John Ross, CMO, Test Prep Insight, USA

Services businesses are uniquely positioned to excel at YouTube marketing. Whether your company cleans pools, installs septic tanks, or sprays for bugs, the nature of your business makes for compelling video content. And there is a very good chance someone is out there searching on YouTube for how to do your service themselves, DIY-style. This gives service business owners a chance to capture this DIY audience and extract a few benefits out of them. For one, you have the potential to turn some viewers into customers if they find that the service is over their head. Or more likely, you have a chance to get serious social media interaction through likes and comments on your YouTube videos. When connected to your website, this social media interaction provides real and significant SEO benefits.   

3. Use real testimonials

Malte Scholz, CEO and co-founder, Airfocus, Germany

Businesses that offer services need to emphasise what the user experience will look like. A great tactic is using real testimonials. Your audience is much more likely to connect with real people and their first-hand experience. Don’t fall into the trap of staging testimonials too much. You want them to seem natural and spontaneous. Your job is to provide a framework as well as some of the basic guidelines. When it comes to format, you can use either written testimonials or videos. The latter are a bit harder to produce, but they can have a powerful effect on your audience.

4. Interact! 

Kindra Svendsen, vice-president of client partnerships, Speak Creative, USA

Interact with your customers! They want to feel like they’re being heard and paid attention to. Commenting on their posts, sharing their content, and otherwise having a conversation with them online is great for loyalty and promoting your brand name to others, especially when product reviews don’t exist. Customer service is the most important piece of the puzzle for service-based businesses. Too often, businesses focus on posting and forget to interact with their active audiences, which ultimately leads to a stagnant social media presence.

5. Evoke feelings with images

Natalia Shirshova, CMO and co-founder, REINNO, Bulgaria

Visualisation is extremely important. However, it can be hard to find appropriate visuals for intangible products and services. If you are marketing something that cannot be easily photographed, try to evoke an emotion with your imagery. Whether it’s security, inner peace or financial stability, show your audience what they would feel while using your service (or as a result of it). Social media is flooded with posts from millions of brands and a powerful image can help your business stand out. Don’t settle for safe and boring pictures. Use colours and faces, don’t be obvious, and make people take a second look.

6.  Don’t just set and forget

Dale Reardon, CEO and founder, Travel For All, Australia

So many companies use social media to just shout at everyone without engaging, participating or listening. You cannot simply set up your social media with some automated posting system and ignore it — that will get you nowhere. The key is to engage with people. Get involved in discussions and reply to customers or prospects when they comment or ask questions.

7.  Get personal

Carmen Varner, social media manager for small businesses, USA

Integrate personal content into the mix. Why, out of all the businesses in your area that offer the same service, would someone pick your company? Potential customers want to get to know the people behind your service, the ones who make it all happen. It might be the reason they choose to do business with you over some other company.

8.  Share useful content

Edward Eugen, 10Beasts, England

Find out what your audience needs and give it to them. When your audience realises that the content you share helps them, it will be easier to build a relationship with them. They will follow you, comment on and share your content. And, when the right moment comes, they will buy what you sell.

But first, they need to see that they are getting something out of it. So, be useful to them. Make their life easier, happier, better. And then show them your services do that, too.

9.  Leverage partnerships

Amber LaShawn, brand strategist, Brand Girl Magic, USA

Leveraging partnerships is one of the quickest ways services brands can find success on social media. By teaming up with other accounts that have similar audiences, you boost your visibility, without the stress of trying to beat the algorithm. Platforms, like Instagram, are making this easier by releasing features that allow you to go live with up to three other people.

Consider story takeovers, guest training, panel discussions and interviews when brainstorming partnership opportunities.

10.  Don’t spread yourself too thin

Domitille Holik, founder, Mademoiselle Social, France

It can be detrimental to a service provider to try to be on every social platform. It all comes down to knowing your target and choosing the best place to reach them.

If you’re targeting women Millennials, Instagram and Pinterest are the places to be. If your market is younger, like Gen Z, then TikTok would be a good choice.

11.  Provide proof

Ezio Razzi, freelance copywriter, EJR Media, Italy

We live in a world in which everyone can claim to do or be anything, in which it is easy to fake almost anything, but the one thing that you cannot fake is proof of results.

In whatever you do — whether you’re a dentist or a mechanic — show proof of results, of happy customers. You can display them as written testimonials, photos, short videos, reports or statistics.

12.  Shoot it yourself

Abby Herman, director of strategy, Snap Agency, USA

Video doesn’t need to be professionally filmed or edited. In fact, most of my clients have had better social media engagement when they posted a self-recorded video or a simple tutorial or a behind-the-scenes bit.

13.  Add value

Emily Griffin, internet marketing co-ordinator, SERVPRO, USA

Service-based businesses should provide value. Educate your target audience so they want to keep up with your business and will call you when they actually need your services. For example, if you’re a home cleaning business, this may be posting weekly spring cleaning tips and tricks that home owners may want to try and share.

14.  Define your target audience

Reem Aubdool, founder, VM Director, England

I’ve lost count of the number of times I have seen services businesses on social media trying to target anyone and everyone.

When you define your target audience, you’re able to create engaging content for them which will help them to connect to your brand.

15.  Turn golden nuggets into gold

Steven Horne, owner, Steven Horne Affiliate Marketing, USA

Instead of promoting your services up front on social media, give your potential customers little golden nuggets that they can do themselves and then promote your services on the backend.

For instance, if you’re in the lawn mowing service, you can share tips to help your customers with the upkeep of their lawn in between services. After that, promote your services as a reliable source to do the heavy lifting.

16.  Show your personality

Niles Koenigsberg, digital marketing specialist, FiG Advertising + Marketing, USA

People flock to social media platforms because they crave interpersonal connection, which can be tough to establish with a business. But what you need to remember is that your business is personal to you.

You need to showcase your own personality on your social media profiles to build up a brand that is not only reflective of your services, but also reflective of you.