Top Tips to promote your business through social media

This post is aimed at Chambre d'hôte, Gîte or B&B owners who may experience bouts of not knowing what to promote across social media platforms. Although, much of the content can apply to other industries. Your social media marketing should assist other marketing efforts.  By using great imagery and timely placed updates you start to create a story of your business throughout the seasons.

• Let people take a peek of what they will be booking. Where will they be sleeping, eating, relaxing. Show off that blue water and garden.  What does it look like throughout the seasons?  France lends itself to stunning scenery on your doorstep, share it. 
• What can they do while they are staying with you?  While many holiday makers like to chill out and relax, there are times when a visit to the local tourist attractions will be needed.  What local attractions are nearby to you, share pictures and links and of key tourist attractions.  Are you aware of any offers at certain times of the year?  What vide greniers are taking place in and around your area, along with musical events. Create your own calendar of events to share.   
• What's local in your hamlet/town?  The local boulangerie, bar and restaurant.  Ask if you can take pictures of these establishments  and let them know you are using them to market the area through your business.  Add enticing words to your image, let them smell the fresh bread and local produce from the market.  
• What are you up to?  Get involved in creating the story.  You live in France, let your visitors get a slice of your French life.  If you love it, so will they.  Pictures of you out and about in your hamlet/town at the local vide grenier, Salle des Fetes, riding your bike, in your garden.  
• What are your visitors up to? With their permission ask if you can take a picture or two and let them know you are using it for marketing purposes. I appreciate that this could be a tough one, but if you don't ask you don't get and some visitors may just enjoy being part of your marketing efforts.
• Be proud! Share those fabulous testimonials.  Turn them into images. Either through something simple like Powerpoint or more eye catching such as picmonkey.com. Don't leave them in the visitors book or on email.  
• Have you caught the attention of the Press?  Has your establishment been reviewed or have you been interviewed at local/regional level, or outside of France?  Scan it and share it. Where possible share an online link of the originating source.  PR moments are sensational moments, so share with your visitors the hard work that you put in to market your establishment. 
  

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To make things easier, plan your thoughts and strategy into seasons, as per the image above. Apply the above tips and what you do already and voila you start to have a plan. 

Don't limit this content to just Facebook, share across your other platforms.  If you do not have other social media platforms then do at least consider Pinterest, Google+ and Twitter.  Different platforms have different audiences and if you place your content across each one at different times your audiences will be continuously visually inspired.   While social media platforms can lead to sales generation, the purpose of the activity is to drip feed consistently.  Social media platforms have the power to surprise when you least expect it and a follower on any of your platforms could be a potential customer or they know people and by sharing your content can indirectly put potential business your way. 

I am sure there are many more that can be added to the list, so please do share your thoughts

Yours socially
Micala