Four Reasons You Need a Thoughtful Social Media Strategy
How are you managing your social media?
Do you post day-to-day without really thinking about the why behind what you’re posting, but rather just posting to post? Because you know you SHOULD post but not really thinking about that content in terms of a greater strategy that can impact your business? Don’t worry, you’re not alone.
Social media should be an integral part of any business’s marketing strategy - it allows you to connect with your customers and your prospects, as well as build brand recognition and your reputation in your community.
While many businesses seem to think that having a facebook page is enough of a social media strategy, I’m telling you no. Whatever your business, it is likely that a substantial portion of your customers and prospects are on social media. A recent Pew Research Center study found that 68% of American adults are Facebook users.
Therefore, promoting your business to that audience can help you boost traffic, promote your content, and introduce your offerings, and your employees to personalize your brand and build the connection with your customers.
Below are some other meaningful reasons that you should be more thoughtful about how social media impacts your business, and why NOT having a strategy behind social media is a terrible idea for your online reputation.
Drive Traffic and Boost SEO
Every business I’ve ever worked with wanted to be number 1 in Google SERP (Search Engine Result Pages). However, if you’re not driving traffic to your website, the pages out there that are ‘set it and forget it’ aren’t going to climb the Google ladder. Driving traffic by sharing your service/product page, or your business’s blog helps those SEO efforts. Keep your website up to date is another way to do that.
Understand and Connect With Your Audience
When you post to social media, a great way to think about it is “what’s in it for me?” Put yourself in your audience’s shoes - why should they care? One of the greatest aspects of social media platforms such as Facebook or Instagram is not just the insights you get into your audience - when they’re active, who they are, and where they’re located - but also the interactions with your content(or lack thereof in some cases). You can get insight into their behaviors, what they care about simply by looking at the insights behind your facebook page or following them on Twitter and/or Instagram. As you understand your audience better, you can create better, and more relevant content that speaks to them by acknowledging their pain points and answering their questions.
Build Brand Authenticity & Loyalty
Everyone wants to interact with authentic brands. Digital marketing has evolved because people are tired of being sold to. When you start using social media as a way to connect and promote your brand (rather than just promoting your services or products), chances are you’ll transform your brand and your online presence. Once you showcase authenticity and share relevant, helpful information, you’ll see your audience grow, and with that, your customer base.
Additionally, brands with more active social networks tend to have more loyal customers. When you engage with the public on social media, you build connections. Without asking anything in return, you provide helpful information which shows that you value your audience. It’s that value-add that builds customer loyalty.
Deliver Better Customer Service
When was the last time you sent a message to a business about an experience you had - maybe a negative experience? Did you email or send a facebook message? Or did you spend hours waiting on hold, or leaving messages waiting for someone to call you back? Like you, when your customers have a problem with your business they expect you to solve it. Many studies have shown that customers reward businesses that respond to customer requests and complaints - even if their experience was negative. chances are by responding to them in a timely manner will help deliver a better experience by letting them feel heard and better yet, if you solve the problem faster than they expect. Brands who ignore customer requests online, or don’t listen to customer problems, often have bigger reputation problems and more dissatisfied customers.
Listen, you don’t have to beat your competitors at the social media game to win online. You just need to figure out how to connect with your own audience in an authentic way that helps build your own brand and share your story. Share customer stories, add value, be consistent and stay positive and you’ll set yourself apart from your competition as well as
In short, social media is a necessary component of your business marketing strategy. But don’t just set it and forget it, or post to post, be thoughful and build real connections with your audience and the dividends will be sure to pay off with loyal and engaged customers.
