Social Media is currently top of mind for a great number of business owners. This is an exciting time in marketing and folks are clamoring to figure out the best ways to use these exceptional tools. I wanted to put together a very brief post that is focused on tips for better social media engagement.
It’s about the conversation!
I was collaborating with some really great folks, Deb and Mike Long, who own CF Web Professionals yesterday about this topic in particular and we got to talking about how many folks that have entered the social media arena are using the tools to push out a lot of information, however these folks are using the tools as a one way street. At that point Deb said something that rang very true in my ears. She said social media is where the party happens, whereas your website/blog is your information and content source. What a fantastic way to put it! Don’t forget to engage your followers with genuine conversation. That is what folks who use social media thrive on! The better the party the more followers you will earn!
Be sure to respond!
This may sound like common sense; however I feel the need to state this point. If someone reaches out to your organization through social media you have a fantastic opportunity to build a relationship. Relationships are what drive business! If you choose not to respond to that inquiry, comment or reference you have just missed your best opportunity to connect with that person. On top of missing an opportunity, you have sent a strong message to that customer or potential customer. Whether you realize it or not, by not responding you have told that person that they are not important to your company. In today’s highly competitive environment that is absolutely the wrong message you should be sending to your customers. It was startling to see how many retailers this past holiday season missed the boat here! According to a consumer study performed by RightNow
32% of consumers who posted a complaint or negative comment on a retailer’s social media platform this past holiday season were ignored! I will make a bold statement here. If you are not able to staff and support your social media strategy, you should consider outsourcing it or not having one at all. It is better to not be there at all than to ignore your customers!
Good Content Drives Clicks
It is extremely important that you offer content that your followers are interested in reading. You should take the time to understand your follower base and strive to offer them information that they see value in. Determine some topics that your followers are interested in and spend some time researching those topics. You should push out the latest news and information regarding those topics to gain even more followers. Tips and how-to’s are always a win! Also, start following folks in your area of expertise, you will get a lot of cross pollination that way, picking up their followers as your information gets reblogged, retweeted, or posted to their sites. Also, make sure you are pushing this content out at the times that your followers are present. Hootsuite and Tweetdeck can offer you some statistics to help you make those decisions.
As mentioned, these are just some brief tips to help you get the most out of your social media marketing strategy. If you have any questions, as always I am here to help! Happy selling!
Engaging Retail 
Good article Tina.
Thanks Jimmy, I appreciate the comment!