Five ways to use social media to grow your equestrian business

Do you want to grow your equestrian business? Do you have a limited budget? Fear not, there’s never been a better time to market your business to your target customer with a limited budget. There are LOTS of ways to promote your equestrian business to your target customers, and you’ll find lots of hints and tips in this blog. I have dealt with (and spent) really sizeable sums of money on behalf of clients, and although I am not against advertising (this should be followed by a star and list of exceptions!), I also appreciate the value of money. If you’re spending any money on advertising in the conventional sense, you need to make sure you are getting maximum bang for your buck… but that’s a whole different blog. This time, we are looking at how to use social media to grow your equestrian business. Actually, we’re looking at five ways to use social media to grow your equestrian business. Are you ready? Then let’s get going…

Five ways to use social media to grow your equestrian business

Use it. Obvious? Of course it is, but I mean really use it. If you want to use social media to grow your equestrian business you need to really grasp this point. Go beyond just getting accounts on all the platforms you can and actually learn how to use them, one at a time if need be. Find the sweet spot in terms of how often you need to post, what kind of content engages your audience more than any other, and get to know them. Getting to know your audience on social media is something that is massively underestimated. If you don’t know who you’re talking to, how can you create content that they’re going to like? Consistency also falls into this bracket too. Although getting to know your audience is key, acting on this information is essential. Posting regularly (and I mean at least once a day kind of regularly, not once a month regularly!) can really change the game.
Strong images. With social media being so visual nowadays, using strong images is a must. If you’re looking to use social media to grow your equestrian business, you need to invest in strong pics. Even if you’re not a photographer. Although when we think of photograph led social media platforms, we might thing of Instagram, posts with good images do better everywhere. It’s just a fact. You don’t have to invest in getting images done by a profession if you don’t want to, but I would urge you to put some time and energy into learning how to take better pics yourself.
It’s not all about you. A key way to use social media to grow your equestrian business? Remember who it’s all about. Your customer. Yes, the content you’re creating will be to promote some element of what you do, but that’s not where it ends. If you’re a photographer, you will be looking to show your photography expertise alongside your images and what you can do for people. This combination of content will help to inform, educate and inspire… and isn’t that what all of us want to do for all our customers?
Create value. Yes. Give your clients and potential clients stuff for free that they can actually use. So, for me, although I coach people on social media and how to leverage it, I put a LOT of energy into creating content. Why? Doesn’t it hurt my business? Nope. First of all, it helps people to see that I really do know my stuff. Secondly, it actually give potential clients something to try and test that will help their businesses. Thirdly, not everyone is my client, by which I mean you might be at the start of your journey with next to no budget. Does this mean that I shouldn’t help you? No. You might not be able to afford a one to one coaching session, but you might learn something from the content I put out. You might tell a friend. You might join my Small & Supercharged Facebook group (it’s free). Your business might grow/we might work together… or you might just read this and carry on with your life. That’s fine too. Content can work in weird ways, and the more I create and learn, the more surprising it is. Never underestimate the value of creating value on social media.
Use video. Yep – we all knew that video would have to be one of my five points. Video is huge on social media and is set to continue to grow. It allows people to connect with you as a person. It allows your personality to shine. It allows your knowledge to come out too. And it’s SO easy to do now. If you have smart phone, you can Live Stream straight onto your preferred social media platform, just like that. If you want to create a video for Youtube, let’s say, you can record, edit and upload from your trusty smart phone too. You have everything you need in the palm of your hand. Honest. Give it a go. If you want to use social media to grow your equestrian business and you’re not using video, you’re doing yourself and your brand a disservice.

Of course, there are more than five ways to use social media to grow your equestrian business, but here are five ways that you can implement today, without spending a penny. And they’ll work. I have used these methods time and again with clients and I promise you that if you are consistent with all of the above, you’ll reap rewards.