If your business isn’t currently using social media, now is the time to consider why that is. These days, online presence is everything, and interacting with your customers in a variety of ways can win you valuable sales. Maintaining an effective social media campaign takes a bit of work, but many companies believe it to be worth the investment in time and effort. Here’s our summary of the main social media platforms, and things you should think about before deciding to sign up:
Interacting with your customers via Facebook gives you the opportunity to share content , advice and opinions, entering into a conversation with people who are interested in your brand. You should make sure that your posts are interesting and original, and that you respond to any communication in a timely and professional manner, as it will be seen by a wider audience.
Share short 140-character messages and links with followers, enabling you to send (and receive!) instant information about offers, products, news, or anything else you think your customers may be interested in. You need to ensure you tweet frequently enough to show that you’re current and up-to-date, but not so often that you become annoying – most companies find that 1-3 tweets per day is about right.
This is a business networking site, a B2B social network, which is great for building new connections and generating sales leads. The more time you invest in making your LinkedIn profile relevant and engaging, and in interacting with other users, the better the results you’re likely to get from it. You can get by simply by creating a profile, but to really get noticed you need to regularly update your status, participate in discussion groups and even try out paid advertising.
Pinterest and Instagram
These are image-driven social networks, so are particularly useful and relevant for e-commerce and lifestyle products, and perhaps less so for industrial or commercial businesses. Using images to promote your brand allows you to be creative – even if you don’t have a visual product or service to market, you can find images which celebrate your company values, local events, and anything you think may be interest.
Using social media can be good for your business in a number of ways:
- Customer Service and Insights: Your customers may contact you for support or with pre-sale queries, allowing your response to help boost the reputation of your brand. You can gain a valuable insight into who your customers are and how they feel about your business.
- Increased Brand Visibility and Trust: Potential customers who see that you are on social media know that they have an easy way to get in touch, and that you’re approachable.
- Promote Your Content and Drive Website Traffic: Being talked about and mentioned on social media shows that you have a popular brand, and that you have something worth sharing.
Why You May Choose NOT To Use Social Media:
Ultimately, Facebook, Twitter and any other social media platform can only be an effective tool for your business if you use it effectively. Done badly, infrequently, or half-heartedly, it can actually cause more harm than good. Nobody wants to click onto a company Facebook page only to find it hasn’t been updated for months, messages from customers haven’t been responded to, and all the offers you’re featuring have already ended. Once you commit to having a profile on a social networking site, you need to invest the time and attention needed to keep it current and interesting – if you can’t do that, it may be better not to have one, and definitely don’t link to an unmaintained profile from your website.
I Want To Give It A Go – What’s Next?
If you’re a complete beginner in the world of social media, it can be a bit daunting to know where to begin. Many companies select one of their younger employees to be a ‘social champion’, as they’re likely to already have a good understanding of how each channel should be used effectively.
Some companies outsource their social media, employing an agency or online marketing professional to keep their profiles alive. If you would like to explore this option please contact us at Amity and ask for Laurence who will be happy to discuss social media with you.