2. For this project I am going to use an imaginary business that I created as an
effective example of how you can expand and make your business grow by using
different social media platforms. The business that I will be using to prove this point
will be “Richard & Son Mobile Sandwiches.” I am going to pretend that my father
and I own a food truck. Our food truck makes gourmet hot sandwiches and we
travel and sell our food on the streets out of our truck. Food trucks are becoming
more and more popular so in order to get our name out there I will be using social
media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.
Richard & Son Mobile Sandwiches
3. We have a
small budget for
getting our
business started
so the best way
to advertise for
Richard & Son
Mobile
Sandwiches is
social media
because it’s free.
The first step of
getting our
business off the
ground is to
make a facebook
page. http://healthcareisbusiness.blogspot.com/2012/07/advertising-on-small-budget.html
4. Our goal is to get people on
facebook to “like” our page. My
idea is that we make a sale
where if a person “likes” our
facebook page and shows us
when they are paying for their
sandwich, we will give them a
10% discount. This incentive will
get people to like our page.
Imagine if I saw on facebook that
one of my friends “likes” Richard
& Son Mobile Sandwiches, then I
would be more inclined to check
out the food truck. Our facebook
page would have pictures from
our menu and prices and we
would post our location for the
day so that everyone knows our
location. Another good feature
that facebook has is that you can
"check-in" at locations so people
would be able to check-in at
Richard & Son Mobile
Sandwiches. They can also tag us
in posts saying how good our
food and service is and all of
their 600+ facebook friends
would see that post and be
interested in checking out our
food truck so when we are in the
city closest to them they'll come
get lunch from us.
http://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&docid=9NgxOgF_fk-
70M&tbnid=a4SP4HFDIOi0zM:&ved=0CAUQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.africanbusinessreview.co.za%2Fmarketing%2Fsocial-media%2Ftwitter-and-facebook-marketing-are-african-
businesses-cashing-in-on-free-advertising&ei=aY0LUrPHG7Xh4APD3IHgDA&psig=AFQjCNEtgtWQ2CeeiPxJ-GNbnG8u-QNnwQ&ust=1376575146597313
5. Another social media
platform that my
business would use
would be Twitter. My
plan would be to
tweet our location
from everywhere we
were parked everyday.
I would also tweet a
link to our facebook
page. An advantage to
twitter is that I can
search other
restaurants in
whatever area I'm in
and see who follows
that food place then I
would go ahead and
follow everyone who
follows that
restaurant in hopes
they would follow me
back. If you followed
say 1000 people some
of those people would
follow you back and
would be able to see
your tweets everyday
about the location you
are at for the day.
6. I think that social media is extremely important for any business that is trying to get their feet off the
ground, but especially for the business that I outlined above. Its even more crucial for this food truck to
have social media because they are mobile and their location is changing day by day. If they did not have
twitter and were not tweeting their location, the only way people would know where they are that day
would be if they walked by. It's amazing to me that businesses do not participate in social media because
of all the potential new clientele that it brings in, not to mention it is free advertising. The only thing to
worry about with social media is that someone could potentially tweet at us and say that our food is bad
and to never stop here because if that did happen then everyone on social media would see and it would
damage our reputation. If you want to put your business on social media you need to be responsible and
careful about the way you are managing it. You still want to seem professional and put yourself and your
business on the internet in a positive manner.
use
social
media to
help
launch
your
business
http://www.businessinsider.com/making-your-entrepreneurial-dreams-come-true-navigating-the-start-up-process-2010-12
7. Obviously the business
that I outlined is far
fetched, but what I
outlined could work for
any business with slight
variation. Imagine if you
owned your own
photography studio. You
could use facebook as a
platform to post your
pictures on and you could
add a link at the bottom of
the picture that would
link you to a website
where they could
purchase the picture. Any
business model can be
enhanced by the use of
social media.
Social Media
8. To summarize, the social media plan for Richard & Son
Mobile Sandwiches would be effective for any business to get
started. In the end it's all about putting your name out there and
getting positive feedback and reviews from those who tried your
sandwiches or have used whatever service you offer. Social media is
not what is making your business successful--you are what is
making your business successful, but the use of social media
platforms will broaden the horizon for you and your business and
open up more opportunities for your business to be heard of.
Richard & Son Mobile Sandwiches
