Spoiler Alert: This will be the most boring thing you read today.
(If you do proceed, you’ll be several steps ahead of your competition in short order.)
What do people (consumers/clients) want from your social media presence? Let’s see.
Facebook – According to ExactTarget, the primary reason why people “LIKE” a Facebook page is to receive promotions and coupons (40%), derive instant updates on upcoming sales (30%), and to show support for certain brands or companies (30%).
Twitter – According to Edison Research, 40% of the total time people are on Twitter are spent on learning about certain products and services or reading/getting feedback from what others have to say about them as well as share personal opinions and experiences.
- Based on the above, for retailers it would make sense to offer FB-only deals on a regular basis, as well as highlighting your normal sales & deals.
- For service-providers & professionals, be sure to inject satisfied customer/client/patient feedback, testimonials, and case-studies into your social media posts. Shameless plug: If you don’t have a system for gathering feedback and turning it into online word-of-mouth marketing, buy me a Raspberry Mocha and I’ll tell you about mine.
Social Media is all about building online communities (your followers, tribe, etc.) and relationships by
- listening,
- responding and
- creating value. (this is key)
Here comes the boring “work” part. 🙂
Developing your very own social media strategy:
- Define Your Goals and Objectives. Determine what are your specific social media objectives and goals and how they complement and support the overall goals of the company.
- Research, Research and More Research. Don’t make the mistake of simply jumping the in with a sea of competition and savvy consumers without having any clue. Research is very important as a basis for execution. This will include an action plan for the major social media platforms. Take time to check out what’s out there, scope the competition and understand your target audience.
- Prepare a Database of Contacts and Content. If you go about your social media campaign correctly, social relationships will start to develop naturally. Start establishing connections by following conversations relevant to your branding. Make a list that will identify the key influencers and power users that play important role in your industry.
- Join Conversations to Start Developing Relationships. Start answering questions relevant to your industry, give your opinion and join a community. This will not only help you start your network, it will also help you build your reputation as an industry expert and a thought leader.
- Strengthen Your Social Media Relationships. Don’t just hide behind an avatar or brand, make your presence known by attending events that encourage face-to-face interactions. This includes offline events that are relevant to your industry.
- Take Time to Measure Results. You have already established your goals and objectives, right? It is equally important to measure your success. Among the most common goals include:
- Enhance brand presence across social media platforms
- Increase traffic to company website
- Increase positive consumer sentiment and perception towards brand
- Develop relationships for potential partnership opportunities in the future
- Analyze, Adjust and Improve. Once you have measured your success and progress towards your goal, you need to analyze and identify key areas that need improvement, adapt to changing trends and improve your overall social media campaign. Remember, it is not always a straight road ahead, so you need to constantly evaluate and adjust.
If this sort of thing isn’t your ‘bag’, it may be time to think about enlisting some help from staff or hiring a social media person.
About the Author: Ken Ivey, affectionately dubbed ‘the Web Czar’ by peers – has been helping businesses embrace technology for 27 years. Contact him at ken@livingwaterdigital.com or call 920-645-2700.
