While social media might seem like a relatively new phenomenon, it’s actually existed in one form or another for many years, dating as far back as 550 BC, where the existence of a very primitive postal service in Ancient Persia allowed people to send things in the mail through a system of horses. Luckily, social media these days is much more high-tech, and there are many different ways to utilize its power that go far beyond Facebook-stalking your high school sweetheart.

Social media has become an extremely important factor in business, though it’s rarely thought of as one. Putting your business on social media can be exponentially helpful in growing your audience, informing potential customers about your product, receiving feedback and reviews from current customers and building stronger relationships with them. From a business perspective, social media is a great awareness tool and a very cost-effective way to market your company. For those in the business of holiday parks, this is priceless. By using different platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram, you can offer deals to guests, speed up the booking process and promote your holiday park, all at little to no cost.

But between all the different choices of sites, how do you know which one is better suited to you? By far the most popular choice for businesses both big and small is Facebook, and when you consider that in January 2017, there were 16,000,000 Australian Facebook users, it’s easy to see why. If approximately 65 percent of all Australians are using Facebook, it’s time your business did too. Once your page is created, you can start creating content. This should include photographs, information about your park, upcoming specials, holidays or events, and anything you think will gain interest. Connecting with your audience doesn’t need to be strictly business either. Posting a few things that relate to you on a personal level can be equally effective because people enjoy knowing there’s a real person behind the business.

Don’t be disheartened if your page doesn’t explode with likes and followers immediately. Building a social media presence takes a while, but by posting regularly, engaging with your followers, holding promotions and competitions and emailing out invitations to your page, you will slowly but surely gain a following. You can also utilize various advertising measures offered by the different platforms to speed up the process. For example, you can use Facebook’s advertising options by paying a fee to boost or promote selected posts, which will ensure they’re seen by a wider audience. Choose to promote content that will widen your audience base by making sure the content is informative, helpful and interesting. Paid campaigns are highly customisable, easy to use and can help grow your followers and page visits.

Social media has the potential to provide huge opportunities and ignoring it will do a disservice to your holiday park. While success and popularity won’t happen overnight, as long as you stay persistent and engaging, you’ll find it to be highly rewarding.