Having spent a considerable amount of time working within the realm of social media management, I have often been asked what value social media has for business.
Many clients understand the reasons behind social media, whereas others want to know the potential ROI and not much else. Social media must be treated differently to your other marketing channels. You can easily calculate the ROI of a PPC, email marketing or mobile advertising campaign, but the value of social media is a little harder to identify – and with good reason.
Brand awareness
One of the main reasons businesses make use of social media is to access its vast audience. According to research conducted by wearesocial.net, as of January 2015 there were 2.078 billion active social media accounts in the world (that’s 2.078 billion potential customers worldwide!).
Brands using social media introduce potential customers to their product or service offering in the most efficient and effective way, starting with a ‘from one to the masses’ approach. It is through the provision of engaging and relevant content that a relationship of trust and transparency develops between a brand and social networkers. This may ultimately result in users acting as brand advocates and communicative activity shifting from ‘one to the masses’ to ‘masses to the masses’. This shift allows news of your brand to be carried much further than if you were sending an email to one potential customer.
New customers
It has been reported that 78% of small businesses attract new customers through social media [1]. That being said, the use of social media isn’t just about achieving an immediate sale. As explored in a previous article, the communications revolution has changed the way we communicate with customers and prospects, which in turn has altered the selection to purchase process.
Digital word of mouth is extremely powerful in promoting products and services and with a wealth of information now available 24/7 with WIFI and 3G, a brand’s most challenging task is to attract and retain attention. Social users recommend products and services to their friends and family, ‘check-in’ at relevant places and even use social media to reach out to customer services, all of which is visible to the rest of the network.
The presence and discussion of a brand online, results in the brand being noticed and remembered. Just because Jo Blogs just liked and shared the image of your new range of hot tubs, doesn’t mean he will buy one today. He might however be interested in purchasing a hot tub in the future and when he is, guess whom he’ll think of? You!
It is because of this delayed reaction in purchasing that it’s considered inaccurate to base the value of your social media marketing on the sales value from social network referrals. Jo Blogs may search for you on Google when he is ready to buy that hot tub. He may even remember your brand name and go directly to your website via your URL. This sale should be attributed to social media, but in fact it will be attributed to a direct visit or organic search.
Legitimacy
It has become somewhat suspicious for a brand not to be connected to social media. We ask ourselves why. Do they have a bad reputation? Are they avoiding direct contact with customers? Just having a social presence isn’t enough however, as poor social media management can result in the delegitimisation of a brand.
Below are 10 tips for successful social media management:
1. Choose the right platform for your business
Not every social network will be suitable for your business. For example, a local tiling company won’t achieve a great deal using Pinterest, but should definitely be on Twitter, Facebook and Google+.
2. Post regularly
Your followers will want to see new content on a daily basis. Aim to post to Facebook and Google+ 1-2 times per day and tweet 5-10 times per day.
3. Post at the right time
Make use of tools such as Fan Page Karma and Followerwonk to identify key times throughout the day that your followers are active.
4. Engage your audience
It’s not enough to post a picture of your new restaurant. Ensure you respond to comments – both good and bad – in a timely manner and with a positive tone. Run competitions and ask your audience for their feedback. Running a competition to win a three- course meal generates excitement online, which can spread like wildfire.
5. Don’t be afraid of the hash tag (#)
Hash tags are used to assign interests to a post for search purposes.
E.g. ‘Check out our latest blog post on killer social media management [link] #socialmedia #bloggers #marketingnews’.
You can use these tags across Twitter, Facebook and Google+ so don’t be afraid to experiment!
6. Use images
A post with an image is more appealing than a post without an image. It’s as simple as that. Make sure you attribute credit to the image owner if applicable – no one wants to be sued!
7. Build relationships
Social media networks are home to bloggers and present the opportunity for outreach. Check out our last post titled ‘What is Outreach’?
8. Watch out for the trolls
Your following will grow and you will no doubt find a few trolls and baiters commenting on your page. If you need to respond, be sure to do so professionally, know when to respond publicly, when to delete comments and when to just let it go.
9. Don’t overdo the ‘sales’ posts
We all know businesses join social networks to see an increase in sales. You wont achieve this if all your posts are trying to sell a product or service. Use social media to build relationships by entertaining your fans and providing useful, relevant information.
10. Why so serious?
Posts shouldn’t be serious all of the time. Seen a funny meme? Post it. Your audience will appreciate some lighthearted humour.
If you would like to know more about how social media can benefit your business, contact the team at Deep Blue Sky today.
[1] http://www.relevanza.com/research-studies-point-to-googleplus-solomo
Write a comment.