Why East African Entrepreneurs in Sweden Need a Directory — Not Just an Instagram Page
Instagram is great. It is visual, social, and free. Many East African business owners in Sweden have built a real following on it. But there is a fundamental problem with relying on Instagram — or any social media platform — as your primary business presence: you do not own it, and it was not designed to help people find businesses.
When a Somali mother in Gothenburg searches for a Somali-speaking childminder, she does not open Instagram. She opens Google. And if your business only exists on Instagram, Google cannot find you. You are invisible to the very people who are actively searching for what you offer.
This is why being listed on a structured business directory like HittaOss.se matters so much.
Directories are built for search. Social media is built for scroll.
A directory listing gives your business a URL, a category, an address, a rating, and structured data that search engines understand. When someone searches “Eritrean restaurant Stockholm” or “Somali translator Malmö” on Google, a well-optimised HittaOss listing will appear. An Instagram post will not.
Directories build trust. Social media builds audience.
When a potential customer lands on your HittaOss profile, they can see your opening hours, read reviews from previous customers, view your address on a map, and book an appointment — all in one place. This is what converts a browser into a customer. Social media builds followers. Directories build clients.
Directories last. Algorithms change.
Instagram can change its algorithm overnight and your reach drops by 70%. A listing on HittaOss does not depend on an algorithm. It is there, findable, every day.
This does not mean abandoning social media. It means using it for what it does well — showcasing your work, telling your story, building community warmth — while your HittaOss listing does the heavy lifting of getting found by new customers who do not know you yet.
You need both. But the directory comes first.