Posted on Wednesday June 27, 2018

Start-ups and social media: New ways of doing business

Some 23 million Canadians use social media, with the average person spending 1 hour 47 minutes per day on social media... That's a big chunk of time! The following are some New Brunswick companies that stand out for the quality of their content and their clever use of social platforms.

Sweet Spot Squad, a group of young videographers who perform trick shots on YouTube

Sweet Spot Squad features mainly trick shots on YouTube presented in English and French. What's a trick shot, you ask? How about tossing a basketball backwards over your head ? and nailing it? This start-up based in the Acadian Peninsula has earned nearly 50 million views on YouTube and more than 9,000 likes on Facebook. ?YouTube is truly international,? explained Frederick Jones, the group's lead creator, in an interview with Radio-Canada. ?A lot of people watching our videos are in England and mainland Europe.? They derive revenue from the ads on their YouTube channel and an e‑commerce site where they sell t-shirts and other promotional items.

Tuxy, the ?World's Best Onesie,? launches a successful Kickstarter campaign

Tuxy has created a cotton one-piece garment for men or women that is both fashionable and practical (featuring, for example, a specially designed pocket to hold a cellular phone). The masterminds behind this start-up launched a crowdfunding campaign in support of their product and raised $15,000 in just 24 hours. In fact, their product was such a hit that by the end of their campaign, they had logged $200,000 in preorders from around the globe. ?It's fun to see the comments from people in other countries who are so excited about a product invented right here in Dieppe, New Brunswick,? stated company co-founder Derek Martin in an interview with Radio-Canada.

Memories2Go a hit on Facebook

Countless companies use Facebook to promote their products and services. However, Moncton-based photography agency Memories2Go garnered major attention with a video that has generated more than 3,000 views. Very simple yet cleverly edited, the clip presenting one of their services has given them valuable visibility.

Advantages of social media for businesses

According to a study by Hootsuite, a social media management and tracking tool, 17.43 million Canadians purchased products or services online in 2017. In their role as brand communication platforms, social media are no longer merely optional but have instead become essential for numerous reasons, including:

• getting visibility and standing out
• taking orders
• responding to customer inquiries in real time
• promoting engagement
• retaining targeted customer groups
• putting a face to a brand
• interacting with and getting to know customers.

3 essential performance management and tracking tools

Are you looking for performance management tools to track your progress? Start with Google Analytics, which offers a wealth of information and key statistics. You can also use Facebook Business Manager to effectively organize and manage your Facebook ads with a view to maximizing your return on investment (ROI). Hootsuite can be highly useful for start-ups seeking to cultivate a presence on multiple platforms. This tool is used to plan ad campaigns, centralize management of social media posts and streamline content roll-out.

Finally, effective management of work teams is critical particularly in the context of start‑ups, where teleworking is increasing popular. Consider incorporating the use of tools like Trello or Slack to optimize the productivity of your content creation teams.