Local Grocery Stores: Do You Need a Social Media Strategy?

Local grocery stores compete with big chains day-to-day, but one thing they have that bigger shops don’t is the human factor. As an independent grocery store, you’ve likely got your own place within the local community, built up trust with your customers, and are maybe even a favourite of many in the area.

But while you have the human factor, you might find that because bigger chains can charge less than you can and still make a profit. People are swapping where they shop to save money during difficult times.

As a local grocery store, marketing might not be something you put lots of time and money into. But social media is a free way to market yourself, and you’d be surprised to know how easily you can make content.

So, do you need a social media strategy for a local grocery store? Will building a social media profile benefit you or should you look for an alternative?

In this article, we look at what a social media strategy is, how it could benefit your local grocery business, and what kind of content you could put out on your social media profiles. Check it out below.

What is a Social Media Strategy?

A social media strategy is essentially the plan you put in place for your social media marketing. It will likely include a plan for content as well as the frequency of posts, the day when you’ll be creating content and what you want to get out of this strategy.

A social media strategy should include a detailed content calendar that lets you know when you and your colleagues should be creating content and when it should be posted. A calendar can keep you on track and ahead of schedule for posting.

While a content calendar is key, no strategy is complete without targets and goals. You should set out what your goals are at the beginning of the strategy. Though they may change with time, they will give you an idea of what you should be putting out so that you can meet your goals more easily.

Targets might include follower count or engagement rate, and your goals might be to increase footfall or profits during a specific period. Setting these goals gives you something to measure against. Note down your starting metrics and measure regularly to see when they increase and decrease.

By measuring and tracking, you can also tweak your social media strategy to ensure that things continue to improve by trialing content and changing things up that aren’t working.

Your social media strategy should be set out before you start. But it’s important to build flexibility into it too. This means that if you need to switch things up, it’s not too rigid that you can’t.

Could a Social Media Strategy Benefit an Independent Grocery Store?

While it might not be the most obvious content to find on Instagram or TikTok, you’d probably be surprised at how many stores are creating content and have a cult-like following. So, if it’s something you’re thinking of, here are a few reasons why you should definitely go ahead.

• A social media presence increases awareness of your business. Making those in the area aware of your presence is a pretty obvious way of boosting your customers. Social media can help you do this through the use of local hashtags and location tagging.
• Local SEO can bring in foot traffic from out of town. Those local hashtags and location tagging can also be beneficial for drawing in tourists and people visiting your area. If they’re looking for a grocery store, some people might turn to social media to find what they’re looking for. So tagging your location and making sure your profile lists your location can draw people in.
• It could increase sales and help your business grow. Increasing customers is always going to have at least some impact on your sales and business growth. Social media can do this if you get your name out there.
• It could convince someone to switch to shopping with you. Lastly, humanising your shop through social media could be the thing to convince people to switch. You’re not a corporate brand, but you can compete by offering people the humans behind the brand and its palace in the local community.

Social Media Content Ideas for Independent Grocery Stores

So, you’ve decided to create social media content as a grocery store, but what are you even going to post? Here are a few of our top ideas for independent grocery store content on social media.

• Employee introductions: Help followers get to know who’s working for you. Conduct quick interviews or have employees answer questions like their favourite aisle in the store or their go-to product.
• New product alerts: Do you often get exotic fruit or hard-to-find chocolate in stock? Create a series of new product alerts so that followers know when to pop in and grab those grapes that taste sort of like candy floss!
• Store navigation: Don’t you hate it when you go to a new supermarket and the layout is different and you can’t find anything? Why not create a ‘Where to find…’ series to help customers who are new to the store?
• Origin story: Does the grocery shop have a backstory? Is it a family-owned business? Humanise your business by telling people the history of how it came to be, who runs it now, and how it has fit into the local community through time.
• Community outreach: Do you engage in local events? Do you sponsor a school team? If you’re actively partaking in the community around you then tell people! Customers are more likely to support you if they see the good you’re doing for their community.
• Trends: Yes, yes, we know you probably don’t want to do that TikTok dance, but there are plenty of other trends to get involved in. Check out trending audios, capcuts, memes, and more to take advantage of the virality of social media.

Final Thoughts

Social media might not be the first thing you think of for marketing as a grocery store. But there is definitely some merit in creating a strategy and testing out this free form of marketing! We’ve come up with a few ideas here for you to try, but there are so many content ideas out there that you’re sure to find one you like.

Don’t have the time to start planning and marketing in-house?

If you’d like professional support with social media or any other form of digital marketing, contact Rokir today. We’re always on-hand to help and we offer a full suite of digital services. So whether it’s creating content like short videos and graphic design, or you simply need help with strategy. We can combine packages to suit your needs.

Get in touch today!