Ways to Use Social Media for Growth in 2020

Utilize Stories on Instagram & Facebook

To Get Started:
Try doing 1 - 2 stories a week to get a feel for it and get some analytics. Once you have an idea of what people like to see you can start creating more stories based on those analytics.

Videos on the stories can be up 3 minutes long on Instagram but people seem to respond better to the shorter videos that are approximately 30 seconds long. Try keeping your videos 15-30 seconds longs to start.

Engage your audience in these videos and stories by asking them to DM to learn more or get more information on your product or service. This way you can send them links to your products which equal more engagement opportunities overall.

Engage with other Social Media Accounts

  1. Follow hashtags so you can engage within your social media feed
  2. Search through your hashtags on daily basis. Like 20-30 posts and comment on at least 10 posts each day. Repeat with different hashtags as necessary.
  3. Always respond with a like and respond back to any comments on your posts

Use Relevant Hashtags for Greater Visibility

Hashtags became popular on Twitter but soon spread to other platforms, including Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Pinterest. Hashtags work to categorize your content for users, and when used in the right manner, they help interested users find your content easily.

Using hashtags seems as easy as placing the # sign in front of your keywords. However, it is essential to think about the hashtags you want to use, as your customers may never discover unique hashtags.

In general:
  1. Use one or two impactful hashtags 
  2. Try not to use unusual hashtags as no one will be searching for them
  3. Use hashtags that are short and/or memorable
  4. General terms drive better results
  5. Some people say 5-6 hashtags are best some say 10-11 (Instagram allows 30 Hashtags per post)
  6. Take 30 minutes to find 30 tags (look at competitors and audience for ideas)
  7. Use a mix of tags that meet different audiences, it doesn’t always need to be in the millions to get views (it is a balance)
  8. Make sure your hashtags match each post (create categories of Hashtags you'd like to use)

Maximize Conversions On Social Media

Generating high-quality traffic is not enough unless you can convert that traffic into paying customers. Use social media to boost your conversion rate in two simple ways:

Include a Strong Call-to-Action (CTA) - Use a strong call-to-action that tells your customers what you expect them to do after reading your content. An appealing CTA will encourage your customers to take the desired action, which could be signing up for a service or purchasing your product or service.

Offer Some Freebies or Discounts - Everybody loves discounts and freebies. Creating a contest or giveaway on social media is quite entertaining and encourages customers to interact with your brand in the hope of winning a gift or receiving a discount.

Track Social Media Mentions

Whenever people talk about your brand or product on social media – whether positive or negative – that constitutes a brand mention or social media mention.  

Brand visibility is a huge benefit of social media mentions. However, brand mentions can also be leveraged to improve your customer service by reaching out to unhappy customers. 

More and more people prefer to use social media as the first point of contact with a business, brands that monitor social media mentions can respond to these mentions quickly, leading to higher engagement and customer satisfaction rates. 

With NEKO Reputaion Manager you can see what is being said all over the web, monitor customer reviews from dozens of major and vertical-specific review sites and see when your businesses are mentioned online, with sentiment analysis.

Keep Tabs on Your Competition

Competitive analysis on social media helps you analyze where you stand with respect to the competition and draw inspiration from their strategies. Use social media smartly to learn from your competitors and see if you can tweak any of their strategies to achieve your business goals.

If a company is doing better than you – say, it has more customer engagement and fans on its page – there must be something they are doing right. 

Examine how your business performs against the competition on search engines, in regards to review ratings, total reviews, and perform social comparisons using NEKO Reputation Manager.

Use a Social Media Managment Tool

Using social media is a great way of connecting with your customers on a platform they are already using. However, most customers use multiple social media platforms, with most preferring one over the other, making it difficult for brands to track customer feedback, social mentions, and discussions.

A simple way to tide over this issue is by investing in a social media management tool like NEKO Social Media Manager that allows you to manage and post on multiple social media platforms from a single dashboard.

Person writing on a calendar, May 2021, on a white desk with coffee, bow tie, and other office supplies.
By Blog Owner December 1, 2025
Enable paid appointments, add multiple staff, and streamline scheduling with NEKO360’s new Bookings Software. Contact us to activate it and get expert setup help.
NEKO Website Design and Digital Marketing Agency in Vermont logo over a landscape with trees. Celebrating 15th anniversary.
By Blog+ Owner November 25, 2025
A unified managed marketing program gives businesses one team, one strategy, and real results. Improve visibility, consistency, and growth with a coordinated plan.
Computer screen displaying a website with cityscape background, pencils, and design tools.
By Blog+ Owner November 20, 2025
A custom-built website boosts visibility, performance, and trust. Discover why a fast, secure, SEO-optimized site is one of the best investments for your business.
Person using smartphone, browsing social media.
By Blog+ Owner November 17, 2025
See why Vermont businesses trust NEKO for social media management that boosts performance, saves time, and keeps your brand message clear and consistent.
Person holding a phone with an AI graphic overlay, surrounded by digital icons.
By Blog+ Owner November 14, 2025
First impressions online matter. Learn how Northeast Kingdom Online (NEKO) helps with responsive design, fast load speeds, and modern UX.
Hand holding a phone displaying a dark webpage titled
November 6, 2025
Learn how to make your Vermont business searchable in ChatGPT with simple, local SEO steps from Northeast Kingdom Online (NEKO) — your trusted digital partner
Person in suit writing
By Blog+ Owner September 22, 2025
Discover why continuing social media management in your off-season keeps your brand visible, builds trust, and sets you up for a stronger busy season.
Laptop and smartphone on a wooden surface; the phone displays a plant image on its screen.
By Blog+ Owner September 11, 2025
Discover how AI in business drives growth, boosts efficiency, and transforms customer experience to fuel digital transformation.
September 10, 2025
See how AI helps small businesses save time by automating tasks, streamlining scheduling, creating reports, and improving customer support.
A woman is sitting at a table with her head on a laptop while holding a cell phone.
August 21, 2025
Is your VT business wasting marketing efforts? Discover the top 5 common mistakes & get actionable tips from NEKO to boost your online presence in 2025.
Show More