Where’s the REAL value in Social Media?
Every business owner wants to know where the real value is in social media. By now, most people know that its importance is growing as the trends lean more towards inbound marketing and online communications, but finding the value is still a gray area. Though there are many aspects of social media that hold value for business owners, I broke it down to four main categories:
- Customer Relationships: Social media is a goldmine for customer data and relationship building. How else can you find out what customers want, resolves their issues, answer questions, determine how they feel about your brand or products, and establish a relationship in one place (and in real time)? By the way, there’s a reason this is listed first in my list; your customers shouldalways be first!
- Branding: This is your chance to create a voice for your brand and mold the perception of your customers/clients. With the right content and proper use of each platform, you can develop a favorable reputation for your company that can spread faster than mere word of mouth (thanks to the power of the internet).
- Impressions: If done correctly, your brand can be put in front of your target market on a daily basis. Not only are you creating conversations and showcasing what you have/who you are, you are now pushing your brand to become an evoked set in the minds of that target market. This, of course, is an ultimate goal of any business, but the ones who do it best are the ones that get their content out there on the right mediums, at the right time, and to the right people.
- Sales/ROI: Every company is in business to make money. Period. Even non-profits need to make money to survive. Increasing sales and turning a higher ROI is what can be achieved by social media if done correctly. This includes choosing the correct platforms, creating the right content, posting at the best times, being consistent, responding in a timely matter, utilizing available tools, finding the right people, etc.
If you hadn’t noticed, I like to emphasis the fact that these goals can be achieved “if done correctly”. Having an inexperienced person handle your company’s social media, or trying to do it on your “free time”, can do more harm than good. So before you hand the reigns to the high school student that wants to earn a few extra bucks, ask yourself how important your image and message is to your business. Is it worth the risk? If you need help establishing a social media presence or strategy, give us a call: 608-519-3070