7 Ways to Leverage Social Media as a Design Business

Social media has taken the world by storm. Your phone is always buzzing with creative content that is easy to follow, like, and share. Whether you’re a home decor brand, an interior designer, or even a graphic designer, you need an effective social media strategy to win clients.

If you’re not taking advantage of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or LinkedIn, then you’re missing out on a prime opportunity to showcase your work as a designer. If you’re in the business of design, social media is an essential tool to build it. You must recognize the power of social media design relatively early, if you wish to connect with your client base.

So how can you ensure you’re using your resources wisely? Here’s our ultimate guide to promoting your design business on social media.

7 Tips to Grow Your Design Business on Social Media

Here, we’ve put together a few helpful tips to help you enhance your social media game.

1. Choose the right platform

Social media platforms are wild these days, where anything and everything can work. In a place that’s buzzing 24×7, it can sometimes get confusing to choose a platform that works for your business. The most common ones available are:

● Instagram

● Pinterest

● Facebook

● LinkedIn

● Behance

Before you choose the one that works for you, ask yourself the following questions:

● Who is my target audience? Which social media platform do they use?

● What is my key goal?

● What kind of budget am I looking at?

The answers to these questions will help you choose a platform that suits your design business aptly.

2. Have clarity in your goals

Yes, you want to connect with the audience through social media marketing. But identifying your specific goals before you start posting is essential to being successful.

As a rule, social media designs should support your business goals as a designer. Making a list before you start can help. Some examples of the goals you set could be:

● Reaching a target group or audience

● Converting existing followers into buyers or clients

● Boosting sales

● Building brand visibility and awareness

● Recruiting new talent from the industry

● Receiving feedback and reviews for existing work

3. Speak visually

Use your social media handle as your digital showroom. Give people a sneak peek into your creative world. Use your unique style and design to create a brand to remember. As a designer, you are aware of the impact that negative space and aesthetically appealing designs can have on the audience.

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In addition, establish a photo style, theme, and color palette that resonates with your design business. Consider how your work will reflect who you are. Social media is the ultimate place to do the following:

● Create a before-and-after series

● Offer a behind-the-scenes look at your business and employees

● Highlight your brand values

● Create space for a thought leadership program

4. Hashtag it out

Have you ever come to wonder why the symbol “#” makes a world of difference in the virtual world? According to data collated by WordStream, posts that have at least one hashtag have an engagement rate of over 12.6% compared to posts that don’t.

Using relevant hashtags can help you gain a burst of new followers. Another thing you need to know is the hashtags that people commonly follow in the world of design. Incorporating a minimum of three to five hashtags that people resonate with could help you engage with the right audience. Ensure you do your research before using hashtags.

5. Work within timelines

While managing social media for a design business, you must share relevant content. Choose quality over quantity. But it is also essential to remember to be consistent. If you think posting once a month is enough, then think again.

Keep the following in mind:

● Create a schedule and stick to it.

● Keep special events and schedules in mind.

● Indians love holidays and auspicious occasions. Ensure you mark them on your social media calendar.

● Identify content gaps while creating a content calendar.

● Put things in a timeline, depending on your marketing or PR strategy.

One of the greatest benefits of creating a social media calendar is the time and resources it saves you.

6. Consider outsourcing

If you think you have too much on your plate, finding freelancers or outsourcing your work to a company could be your best bet. Hiring someone can help you save a ton of time and resources, while helping you focus on your design business.

Some of the key benefits of having someone manage your social media accounts are:

● Helping you create a social media marketing strategy that suits your needs.

● Maximizing your ROI with minimal investment.

● Gaining expertise with a fresh perspective and out-of-the-box ideas.

● Simplifying the process of posting online.

● Swapping tools that don’t work for your brand.

7. Consider paid promotion

Having great social media design is not the only thing that will help you. Creating and sharing promotional content could help you reach the right audience while increasing website traffic. Paid promotions are in the form of:

● Promotional ads (photos, videos, or carousels)

● Influencer tie-ups

● Paid partnerships

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You could test these out with a small budget and take it up another notch if it works out. Testing ads on a small market could also help you understand what works for you or your customer.

Alternatively, you could also go niche and choose to pay for ads on different social media platforms. With targeted ads, you can narrow down your audience with specific demographics or choices.

5 Design Businesses Acing Their Social Media Game

1. Chumbak

Launched as a small quirky brand in the year 2010, Chumbak has grown by leaps and bounds. The brand has managed to keep it simple and promotional on its social media pages. Their posts are aesthetic and timely. Their recent celebrity campaign #WithChumbak featuring Sara Ali Khan has been a social media hit. With a marketing image makeover, they have expanded in the spaces of lifestyle, decor, clothing, and accessories. To date, they continue to grow, and have become a much-loved homegrown brand.

2. Landor & Fitch

A specialist design agency, Landor & Fitch comes up with insightful and informative posts on their social media pages. The brand portrays itself as an industry leader in a highly competitive market. It does everything in its stride to stay relevant globally. Their social media game has been going strong for a few years.

3. The Label Life

Initially, The Label Life was not known for its design. However, over time, the brand took it up a notch with its sharp social media strategy. With products designed by celebrities Sussanne Khan, Bipasha Basu, and Malaika Arora, it has managed to reach an ambitious audience. This fashion, lifestyle, and design brand is now known for creating some of the most stunning products. The brand’s social media is regularly updated with new styles and offers, and the imagery is on-brand and aesthetically pleasing.

4. Canva

If you are a designer, you must have definitely heard of Canva. This Australian brand has taken the design world by storm over the last few years. Canva shares stunning designs on its social media pages as well. As one of the most beloved creative tools, it has empowered not just the design world, but people from other professions too, simplifying design for all. With diverse educational material available on their social media, they have won over clients time and again.

5. Frank Digital

Frank Digital is an award-winning digital agency based in Australia. They specialize in web development, web design, and UX design. Their Instagram page showcases their recent projects and achievements. They even share design references and inspiration with the world. The agency’s social media page clearly reflects its aesthetic, which makes it a true winner.

As a designer, promoting your brand on social media means winning customers every day. The beauty of social media lies in sharing stunning, creative content, while engaging with the audience. One of the best tips we can give you is that you must focus on creating meaningful connections rather than just adding followers.

It’s essential to showcase your real self. Make sure all your social media pages look elegant and match your brand voice. Social media is not rocket science. You can attract, engage, and influence people with suitable designs and tools.

Key Takeaways

● A good social media strategy is key to winning clients in the design industry.

● Use visually engaging images and content.

● Build up before-and-after photos when you are creating something new.

● Use hashtags wisely when creating social media designs.

● Create a content calendar for your social media marketing.

● Hire an external resource or agency to help you with marketing.

● Remember, quality matters more than quantity.

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