Social media rules the world. Don’t believe it? Look up from your device, and I bet at least half the room is scrolling TikTok or Instagram. 

Recent details report that 4.7 billion people are on social media. Normally, the more youthful the age, the more dynamic they are.

Check out the details from e-Marketer about the number of individuals from every age are investing energy in social media:

• 49% of Baby Boomers
• 77% of Generation X
• 90% of Millennials

If you have a Gen Zer in your home, you definitely realize they are stuck to their devices. Stats show that individuals from Gen Z spend nearly 3 hours a day on social media, which is roughly 30 minutes more a day than individuals from other generations. 

As a side-hustler with a-rockin’ new website, the world’s fixation via online media is superb information for you. People like scrolling social, and social media influences 71% of consumers’ purchasing decisions.

How to get started with social media marketing as side hustler

While it requires some investment to get yourself up to speed on the prescribed procedures and construct your online media showcasing plan appropriately, this article will cover the steps you need to take to begin.

1. Set smart social media marketing goals

Before you pursue a lot of social records and begin emptying cash into publicizing, it’s basic to lay out objectives to figure out what you need to accomplish.

Here are a few inquiries to conceptualize that will assist you with thinking of some SMART goals:

• What role does brand awareness play in your side hustle?
• How to drive traffic to your website?
• What demographic does your side hustle cater to?
• Do you need to build a community to support your side hustle?
• Do you need to connect with a nearby or worldwide audience?
• What sort of leads do you need to generate?
• How to sell an item/promote a service?
• How significant is brand commitment to your side hustle?

Once you conceptualize and answer these inquiries, put forward substantial objectives. Having clear objectives will assist you with making the right social media marketing decisions.

2. Do your social media channel research

Here’s the deal. Nearly everyone loves social media, but not everyone enjoys the same social media platform. 

While there is no hard and fast rule for which generations use certain platforms, research does show trends. Here is an example of age and usage trends from Pew Research.

After you know your social media goals, take the time to research each social platform. Learn what demographics live on which platforms and what type of content is popular across various platforms.

3. Define your customer profiles 

Building a customer profile can help you run better marketing campaigns that, in turn, increase your profits. With all that useful information, you can decide which strategy to implement and which ones to avoid. 

For example, if the profile says your ideal customer loves engaging with brands on Instagram, then you should probably focus on improving your Instagram marketing.

Here is what you need to address when defining your customer profiles:

• What are the main demographics for your customers (e.g., age, sex, education level, family status, etc.)?
• What are common online behavioral patterns for your customers?
• What are your customers’ psychographics (e.g., goals, pains, lifestyle, interests, habits, etc.)?
• What are the geographic details of your target audience? Do you want to target local customers or customers across the globe?
• Where does your audience spend their time online?
• Which social platforms do your customers enjoy?

Once you know who your customers are, it will be easier to determine which social media channels will be the most effective for marketing your side hustle.

4. Review your resources

Social media marketing goes hand-in-hand with content creation and advertising. As such, you must have enough talented team members and a budget to support social media efforts for your side hustle.

Consider the following:

• What sort of content will you have to create?
• Can you do the substance creation all alone, or do you have to employ someone?
• Who will deal with your social accounts?
• Do you have somebody to assist you with advertising?
• How much of your budget will you need to allocate to content creation? Advertising? Management?

Draw out a spending plan to decide the amount you’ll have to put into social media to effectively drive traffic to your website, and decide whether or not you’ll need to hire help.

5. Create a content calendar

A social media calendar is an overview of your upcoming social media posts. It can be organized in the form of a spreadsheet, Google calendar, or interactive dashboard (if you’re using a social media management app).

Each entry in a social media calendar usually includes some combination of these elements:

• The exact date and time the post is going live.
• The social network and account where the post will be published.
• The post’s copy and creative assets (i.e. photos or videos).
• Links and tags to be included in the post.
• Any additional relevant information (e.g. is this an Instagram feed post or a Story?).

One of the best ways to create a content calendar and keep a consistent schedule is to invest in a project management tool. Check out Asana, Co-Schedule, and Trello.

6. Set up social accounts for your side hustle

Once you know where your target audience lives online, it’s time to set up your social accounts for your business.

If you have a wide demographic range in terms of age, that doesn’t necessarily mean you have to sign up for every social channel and start posting everywhere. 

Start small, invest in one or two social channels, and grow from there. It makes much more sense to start small and focus on creating excellent and engaging content for one channel and then scale when you’re ready.

When setting up your social accounts, make sure to fill out your profile and research ways to optimize your social account for increased web traffic.

7. Create content and start advertising

Here are some things to keep in mind when you start creating content:

• Partner with creative people.
• Create consistently.
• Conduct Influencer Outreach.
• Follow the 80/20 rule (80% of your content should be about your audience and 20% about you).
• Invest in video content.
• Share user-generated content (UGC).
• Create content that is entertaining, engaging, emotional, or adds value.
• Focus on creating quality content over quantity.
• Campaign for social causes.
• Offer incentives to help people engage (e.g., contests or giveaways).
• Engage with your audience by answering their comments.

Get your side hustle started with a CloudyHost website!

Social media marketing is one of the best ways to draw attention to your side hustle. But remember! Your goal is to use social media to drive traffic to your website and increase sales.

With CloudyHost it’s easy to secure reliable web hosting and set up a gorgeous website. Check out our web hosting packages and start building your side hustle website.