4 WAYS TO USE SOCIAL MEDIA
Love it or hate it, social media is still a great way to engage with your customers, building relationships and credibility. In turn this generates trust, which generates sales.
1 BUILD RELATIONSHIPS WITH YOUR CUSTOMERS
The PWC 2020 Consumer Insights Survey [which was conducted both before the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, and after lockdown, in a range of global cities] found that the slow incremental increase in users adopting social media platforms and apps before Covid 19 accelerated significantly afterwards.
This should be no surprise - the confines of lockdown mean we are developing an increasing reliance on social media, communications and online shopping apps. It's interesting that the survery found that the majority of adopters say they’ll "continue to use video chat apps, messaging apps and social media more than they used to, even after isolation measures are eased."
One of the four foundational insights that the PWC survey takes away is "Customers will become longtime advocates if you prioritise care, well-being and innovation."
2 DRIVE TRAFFIC TO YOUR WEBSITE
The theory is that creating a profile for your business on social media platforms, generating interesting and engaging content customised for each platform, then making it effortless for your audience to share your content, will encourage your followers to go through your lead funnel and eventually reach your product purchasing page.
Not only does sharing your content help increase the audience for your social posts, but it improves backlinks to your site which in turn, boosts your SEO ranking.
Your social media also helps you to create brand awareness and getting your company in front of your target audience.
3 PROVIDE GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE
Consumers increasingly expect brands to be available on social media. They will look for a social account for customer service, and if you’re not there, it can damage your bottom line. Remember, you're building trust, and reputation.
Your followers want to engage with the person behind the brand, and feel like a valued customer. The good news is that the immediate interaction and customer feedback can turn a bad situation into a good one.
4 ANALYSE YOUR AUDIENCE
You can take the data you are seeing from your social media audience and apply it to improve your content, your targeting and your product. Your ability to build a following and convert customers can be backed up by data. Your social media analytics will reveal which social network is working for you and what your top-performing pieces of content are.
Understanding your data is critical for running marketing campaigns that result in a positive ROI, so make a point of digging into your data to get the most from your social media campaigns. There are loads of analytics tools available and you can see 10 of the best here.
HOW DO I DO ALL THIS?
You have to invest your time into creating and posting great content that engages your audience. All the content you post on your social media profiles should be authentic, address pain points and create a story your target audience can relate to.
One way to make sure that your content has these qualities is to find an influencer to promote your product. Search your chosen social sites to find people who are talking about your industry or using related keywords, then begin responding to them or sharing their content - by contributing you add value to their, and your, network.
Carefully consider which social media platforms you want to use to promote your business. Approach the decision strategically to ensure that you're choosing the best social media for your target audience.
Zapier have a helpful analysis tool here
Unfortunately you will need to put the work in to actually building your following on social media. Start with a plan and make the task manageable by creating daily, weekly and monthly goals and use a content planner or scheduler.
Hootsuite have some great tips for planning your social media strategy
WHAT'S NEXT?
The choice of social media platforms, the number of tools available for posting on them and the number of ways you can analyse the resuklts are frankly, bewildering.
The most important step to take is planning. Do your research and evaluate your target audience, set a strategy, and implement it. Remember to make it manageable and to use the tools out there to generate content, schedule your posts and above all engage with your customers.
Good luck!
#SocialMedia #UsingSocialMedia #Facebook #Twitter #Instagram #YouTube