Guide to Social Media Marketing

Gone are the days when social media was an optional extra for businesses. Today, social media marketing (SMM) is a necessity. Whether you’re in the beginning stages of your business, trying to get your name out there, or you own an established brand looking to grow your community, the right social media strategy can help you reach customers, drive sales, and build lasting brand loyalty.

This guide breaks down the fundamentals of social media marketing for South African SMEs. From choosing the right platforms to real examples of local brands doing it right, we’ll help you get started.

Why Social Media Matters for Your Business?

Social media platforms offer South African businesses a unique chance to engage directly with customers at an affordable cost. With over 28 million South Africans actively using platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, there’s a significant opportunity to tap into a wide audience.

Not only does social media allow you to build brand awareness and stay relevant, but it also provides a real-time lens into what your audience cares about. Whether it’s promoting a new product, answering a customer’s question, or jumping on a trending topic, social media enables brands to authentically communicate with their audience and build trust.

Choosing the right social media platform for your marketing strategy might seem overwhelming, considering the pressure of being on popular platforms. According to Score.org, popular platforms aren’t necessarily good for your brand. To choose the right platform, you should consider the following:

Facebook

Still the largest social platform in South Africa, Facebook is ideal for businesses targeting adults across different age groups. It’s great for community-building, running affordable ad campaigns, and using tools like Facebook Marketplace and Facebook Shops for selling products directly.

Instagram

If your brand relies on visuals, think fashion, food, or décor, Instagram is your go-to. However, you can still actively post on Instagram as a service-based business. The platform offers various formats, including stories, reels, image posts, and live videos, which are all designed to build an audience and boost engagement.

TikTok

TikTok is rapidly becoming a force to be reckoned with, especially among younger users. The focus is on short, snappy videos with a strong trend culture. Brands that show personality, creativity, or even just offer helpful content can grow fast here.

LinkedIn

For B2B companies and service providers, LinkedIn is a space to position your business as a thought leader. It’s perfect for sharing industry insights, success stories, and professional updates. It’s also ideal for consultants, digital agencies, and educational platforms.

WhatsApp Business

While not a content-heavy platform, WhatsApp Business is a must for customer communication. It allows brands to bring a personal and convenient way of communicating with their customers. You can use it to send order updates, answer FAQs, or share promotions.

To grow your business with social media you must have a strategy with clear goals and actionable steps. Follow these steps to build your social media strategy:

Step 1:

The first step in your strategy should be setting clear goals. Evaluate what your business’s needs are to determine whether you are aiming to grow brand awareness, drive traffic to your website, or increase sales. Your objective will influence the kind of content you post and where you post it.

Step 2:

Next, get to know your audience. Audience management is crucial in ensuring your content reaches the right people. Understanding who you’re speaking to, their interests, frustrations, and the platforms they use is crucial. You can use tools like Meta’s Audience Insights or Google Trends to improve your audience management strategy.

Step 3:

Once you know your audience, plan your content around consistent themes or “content pillars” such as tips, behind-the-scenes stories, customer testimonials, educational posts, product/service announcements, etc. Drafting a content calendar can help you post consistently to maintain a steady presence.

Organic content is what you post without paying. These include the regular updates that showcase your brand’s personality and keep your community engaged. These posts build trust over time but usually take longer to gain traction.

On the other hand, paid social media ads let you target specific audiences based on location, interests, or behaviour. Even a small budget can get your brand in front of thousands of potential customers. If you’re just getting started, consider boosting a few of your best-performing organic posts to expand your reach.

As your confidence grows, you can explore more advanced ad features in platforms like Facebook Ads Manager or TikTok Ads to run full campaigns with specific goals like lead generation or website conversions. This includes features such as Lookalike Audiences. A Lookalike Audience allows you to tap into a new audience that shares similar traits to your existing audience.

How to Budget for Your Social Media Strategy?

As an SME, you might not have a massive budget to make an impact on social media. However, even with a small budget, you can achieve measurable results. There isn’t a definitive budget, since social media marketing has a range of variables that should be personalised to your business. But here’s an idea on what you can expect to spend:

According to WordStream, Instagram ads in South Africa can cost between R7 and R18 per click, depending on the type of interaction. Ads with clickable links tend to be more expensive but are better for driving traffic.

There are some South African businesses that have mastered the art of social media marketing. Here are two South African businesses that are successfully using social media marketing:

Pastry Skincare

Pastry Skincare’s Instagram stands out because of its visually cohesive branding and strategic content. Their approach strikes a balance between aesthetically pleasing content and educational value. Their feed maintains a soft, pastel-toned aesthetic that’s ideal for a skincare brand. Each post clearly communicates product benefits, using clean visuals and copy to address common skin concerns.

This makes it easy for users to understand what the products do, which is key in converting casual social media scrollers into buyers. Beyond the visuals, their content builds trust and encourages engagement by educating the audience. Their content includes ingredient spotlights, skincare tips, and reels that show product use in real life.

Marketing Pros

​Marketing Pros is a staffing and recruitment company with a strong LinkedIn presence that effectively showcases their purpose as a company, which is to connect South African marketing talent with global opportunities.

Their posts often highlight success stories, job opportunities, and community events. By consistently sharing valuable content, they position themselves as a trusted resource for marketing professionals seeking growth and collaboration.​

Their engagement strategies include interactive posts and informative updates, which encourage active participation among their audience. This approach not only strengthens their online presence but also reinforces their mission to empower local talent on a global stage.​

Social media marketing is beyond merely posting consistently. It’s about creating content that speaks directly to your audience. Here are a few tips to help you create content that feels authentic, local, and engaging:

Content Tips for South African Businesses

• Find your tone: When you’re starting out, you might feel pressured to imitate other brands, but it is important to stay true to your brand to remain relatable to your audience.
• Speak to your audience like you’re one of them: Using local language, slang, and cultural references shows you understand your community. A well-timed “Howzit!” or “Eish!” can make your content feel familiar and relatable – if that aligns with the tone of your brand.
• Show the human side of your business: Your content doesn’t always have to be serious or promotional. Sometimes, an occasional casual post can help you connect with your audience. Whether it’s “a day in the office”– type content, your team packaging orders, your latest trip to the factory, or other aspects of your company culture.
• Test different types of content: What works for one brand may not work for another. The key is to keep learning, reviewing your performance, and refining your strategy based on what your audience responds to.

Tools to Streamline Your Social Media Marketing

• Canva is perfect for creating on-brand designs quickly, even if you don’t have design experience.
• CapCut helps you edit videos for TikTok or Reels.
• Meta Business Suite lets you manage Facebook and Instagram in one dashboard.
• Hootsuite is a great scheduling tool to help you remain consistent.
• Google Trends can help you understand search behavior, which can help you generate content ideas.

Measuring Your SMM Success

The metrics you choose to measure your social media success will depend entirely on what your goals are. If you’re aiming to build brand awareness, it’s important to track metrics such as follower growth, reach, and the number of impressions your content receives. These will give you an idea of how many people are seeing your content and how your brand awareness is growing over time.

On the other hand, if your goal is to increase engagement, you’ll want to keep a close eye on metrics such as likes, comments, shares, and saves. These show how people are interacting with your content and whether they find it valuable. Additionally, to drive traffic and sales, you’ll need to focus on clicks and conversions.