The COVID-19 pandemic has left multiple economies in ruin worldwide. Commerce has come to a halt in many communities, and businesses are barely surviving, if they do at all. More establishments are closing by the day, and most businesses need all the help they can get to weather this crisis.
Why Is Social Media Important for Businesses During COVID-19?
For most businesses, social media has become a small ray of hope. Different social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram became online channels for businesses to communicate and to reach out to their customers virtually in a time where physical interaction is often minimized, if not completely forbidden. During this pandemic, it is critical that every channel available to businesses be utilized and maximized, including social media.
What Are the Benefits of Social Media During COVID-19?
Many wonder how companies benefit from social media during the pandemic, and there are many ways. For one, social media is a way for businesses to save up money; it’s a cost-effective platform for them to market in a time when most companies are having financial problems. Apart from this, social media platforms have taken it upon themselves to create innovative ways to help businesses during this crisis. Here are some examples of the new features of different social media platforms aimed at helping businesses during COVID-19:
Facebook Launches Shops
While online sales have been around on Facebook for quite some time, it hasn’t really taken off as much as it did during the pandemic. Apart from the already existing Facebook feature, Marketplace, it has launched another feature geared toward e-commerce, called Facebook Shops. While Marketplace is devoted to personal item sales, the Shops feature is built for businesses to create an online store on Facebook and Instagram for free. Here, your company can curate which items you want to feature, tell your brand story to users, and connect with customers through WhatsApp, Messenger, or Instagram Direct for customer support. According to Facebook, they are continuously improving Facebook Shops to include other features, such as live shopping and loyalty programs.
Instagram Creates Support Small Business Stickers
Another feature that has taken the social media industry by storm are Instagram stickers. With a lot of small online businesses and startups showing up on Instagram, the company has a new feature: the support small business sticker for stories. With this feature, users can mention the small business that they like on their story and give their followers a preview of the account. By tapping on the sticker, users are then diverted to the Instagram page of that business. This way, brands can stay more connected to their customers who in turn can help promote them to new potential customers. For businesses, this serves as a good marketing tool to increase brand awareness and to amplify new opportunities for growth.
YouTube Helps Businesses Make Videos
Even before the pandemic, creating quality video content hasn’t been easy, given that most do not possess the required skills or the budget to hire someone who does. It’s more of an issue now, since most businesses cannot even conduct in-person shoots. In order to help content creators with their messaging and communication, YouTube has released its Video Builder Tool, which allows small businesses to create video content for free. These short videos can then be shared to YouTube or used in a YouTube ad campaign. Also, videos made through the Video Builder Tool are integrated with the Google Ads platform and will be shown to relevant viewers.
Navigating through the current pandemic is a considerable challenge, especially for small businesses. As such, everyone has been trying their best to pitch in and help in any way that they can, including these social media platforms. At Advanced Digital Media Services, we are also committed to providing the help that you need to get back on track. We offer several affordable social media marketing services that can greatly aid your recovery and rebuilding. We would love to be your partner! Contact us by filling out the form below!
