I always encourage companies to have a presence on social media and oftentimes I get a fazed reply as to why they don’t think it’s that important. Granted, it is time consuming, you can’t really measure a return on investment, and it’s a crowded space to be in. I believe social media is important because of its reach, its massively diverse audience and the ease in which you can engage with people (to name a few). That, to me, is why you should use social media to your advantage.
That’s where schades steps in – we’re here to take a look at how you can use social media to grow your business, enhance your existing social media strategy to target customers or to even access new markets.
Today, it’s very difficult to just buy a product or service without looking at reviews or seeing how other users rate the brand first. Having said this, work on how you can build trust on the platforms. All the content on your profiles should aim to be engaging, unique, relatable and most importantly authentic to your audience. You can do this by asking for an online review from an existing client and have it displayed on your channel. Potential customers viewing your social media profiles will see this, and it will build their trust in your service.
Even though people have gotten accustomed to it, the internet is still changing the game.
Giving your brand an identity online can help personify your product or service.
The reason why a persona matters is because it humanizes your brand. People want a connection to brands, sometimes through experience and others through great products or even what they stand for. Having a relatable connection with your customers can help them see, hear, understand and eventually trust your offering to influence their purchase decisions.
I used a process of elimination to identify my brand persona. Here are a few questions I reflected on to understand my brand’s voice and they could help you too.
- If my brand were a person who would he/she be and what would he/she represent?
- I tend to always put customers first as to why I am doing this so – How do I want my customers to think about schades?
- If schades was a person, how would it’s relationship with its customers be? – A mentor, a guide, a coach, etc.
- Finally, the quite obvious one, if schades was a person, what personality would it have
So put a face to your brand and let its personality shine through.
More on how to build your brand here.
One of the biggest concerns brands have about social media is fear of negativity. To me, this is a wrong approach. Everyone’s experience with a brand is different. People who take the time to reach out to your company online feel that they are connected to your brand. By responding to them, you bring them closer to your brand. You can use this opportunity to perhaps reward them with discounts, access to specific content, and you can have followers only promotions, etc. This can also help you gain more followers. My approach to negative comments is this: If you can rectify the situation with a positive outcome, go for it. If it becomes a meaningless avenue for venting and you don’t see the solution, no problem, try your best to help. I have had much success when responding to a negative comment appropriately and ultimately the customer decided to replace the negative comment with a positive one. I gained a new customer as well as a great review.
Negative comments or not, always address the situation.
As I mentioned earlier, there’s a reason you are on social media. Having a defined action plan will help you get where you’re headed. Again, having a list of questions to guide you can help develop a strong strategy.
- Why do I want to be on social media?
- Who is my target audience?
- What am I going to share?
Your aim on social media is to drive a purchase decision. This is tricky because you can have short term success through paid ads, promotions, giveaways, etc. but it may be only for a short time frame. Remember to complement your long term goals with short term goals and not the other way around. Your short term plan should be to get prospects to your site and your long term goals should be to build a relationship with them to make more than just one purchase decision. Focusing on short term goals would attract only casual visitors and those not interested in your brand, product or service which could translate to money spent ineffectively. So develop a long term strategy and execute short term campaigns to enhance it.
There are many more methods of using social media for your brand, but these should provide for an amazing start.
I’d love to hear from you if you’re thinking about implementing some of these viewpoints in your social media strategy.
Remember, The Force is strong with you.
Till next time. Peace!
-Schranz