Secrets of Social Media Success

Social media offers fitness businesses an opportunity to market products and services. But there are some best practices to consider when navigating online platforms, explains Rochelle Sanchirico, head of marketing and analytics for Webs.com.
Sanchirico offers these insights to help you maximize your social media presence:

• Use social media to engage, not to sell. Use your social influence to become a thought leader in whatever area you are an expert in. Personal trainer? Instead of promoting your services, try posting exercises for your followers and sharing healthy recipes to keep them in shape. Yoga instructor? Although Facebook and Twitter are perfect places to promote the classes you teach, intersperse these posts with others about improving your practice, or offer tips for remaining mindful throughout a stressful workday.
  Providing followers with useful content can transform your social presence from sales gimmick to go-to source for people seeking fitness information, and they’ll think of you first when they are ready to buy.
• Promote your pages. Just as nutrition and exercise work hand in hand, creating a social media presence and promoting that presence are both key to social media health. As social platforms continue to change, it can become more difficult to rely solely on the organic reach of your networks. However, there are things you can do to supplement your posting and commenting. For example:
• Make people aware of your social networks through your website, brochures, fliers and business cards. Traditional print is still a driving force behind business
  promotion, and using traditional means of promotion alongside your social media efforts can boost the effectiveness of both.
• Start a blog, and employ an SEO tool to optimize your posts in search results.
• Make your social posts interesting enough to share, and let your followers do the rest.
• Remember: A picture is worth a thousand words. The old saying rings truer than ever when it comes to social media. Research shows that social photos generate more engagement than posts with no visual elements. So get creative— post pictures of your gym, studio, clients and/or classes via your social media accounts. Colorful, eye-catching cover photos and social advertisements are great ways to attract both current and potential followers to your social pages.

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