The Locksmith Journal May/Jun 2018 - Issue 56 | Page 26

26 • INDUSTRYNEWS PROUD SPONSORS OF THIS PAGE DIY social media in an insta APECS marketing director, Marina Logacheva, suggests a few tips on how to get the best use of Instagram for locksmiths… » » SOCIAL MEDIA IS BIG AND WE all know that, but the amount of opportunities equals the amount of extra time you may potentially spend trying to jiggle a few promotional channels. For locksmiths, I would suggest Facebook and Instagram as two key opportunities. Twitter is a great tool for staying up to speed with industry news, but it doesn’t help as much when you need to attract new clients. In this article I will share with you some tips on how to use Instagram as a tool for attracting clients and creating awareness for your business in your area. CREATING YOUR PROFILE If you don’t already have social media accounts, it will make sense to create and use the same name across all channels. Also, make sure that you have the same profile pic to make it more obvious that it’s the same business. • Write a clear description Something like ‘fast and friendly locksmith in London area. 10 years of expertise and happy customers’ gives your potential customers a clear understanding of what you do, where are you based, and that you have good skills and work ethic. Make sure that you add a link to your website. • Explain your services Instagram highlights are the best way to describe your services. For example, you could add five highlights describing five of the services you offer. MAKE IT EASY TO REACH YOU In the section ‘edit profile’, change the setting from private profile to business profile and add Call, E-mail, and Get directions buttons. Create and start using your own hashtag (#). For example, if your account is @locksmithinLondon you could start using a hashtag #locksmithinlondongreatjob or #lockmithinlondonperfectjob FOLLOW A THEME It is important to make sure that you have a consistent design across all your social media channels. Use the same filter for all your photos, use free design tools to help you on the go. You can also use Canva. com which helps to create images with quotes, conversation bubbles, custom icons, and stickers. ENCOURAGE YOUR CLIENTS TO SHARE Ask happy clients to share a picture with you or the job you did for them to tag you and use your hashtag. To encourage people, you could offer a small discount or a small gift. The best way to remind them to do it is to print a small business card size card with your contact details on one side and your Instagram details on the back. When the person tags you and uses your hashtag, you will receive a notification. The more people talk about you via word-of-mouth, the more credible you will become, which attracts more authentic future customers. ‘The more people talk about you via word- of-mouth, the more credible you will become, which attracts more authentic future customers’ LIKE, COMMENT AND CONNECT • Follow people Click on the search bar and choose ‘places’, then ‘near current location’ to find all the people who have posted around you; your direct prospective customers. • Like posts related to your business People love likes; it seems cheesy, but it works. LOCKSMITHJOURNAL.CO.UK | MAY/JUN 2018 Sponsored by Insafe | Loksafe.co.uk | Insafe.com • Commenting is even better However it takes time. Try something simple, such as “really love what you’re doing on here! Keep it up.” Remember, the amount of accounts you follow should never greatly outweigh the amount of users following you, so be picky. REPOST Go to your app store and choose any ‘Instagram repost’ app. This will allow you to repost posts of people you follow. It will be great to repost the post from the customer who tagged you/used your hashtag. USE TAGS • Make a list of hashtags that you think your potential customer might be using; for example, renovation, newshed, newhouse, movedin, newlock. • Go to discovery settings (magnifying glass) and then click on the ‘search’ field and then on ‘tags’. Check each hashtag from your list, and number of users who used it. Look for other suggested tags which might be relatable for you. Finalise your list with 20-30 bigger hashtags (the ones more people are using) and smaller hashtags (with less people using them) • Use 3-5 big hashtags and 3-5 small hashtags, plus your own. Ideally, put no more than 10 hashtags in the photo description. • Spend some time each day liking and commenting on photos of people with the same hashtags. Next time: Facebook