Social Media Isn’t About You, It’s About Your Customers

You know you should have a presence in social media for your business. You already have a Facebook page, blog and Twitter account set up. However, you can post all the content you want and give your customers all the important information that they need, and it will do no good if you do not have an audience. If you're like the majority of companies out there, you are not maximizing your use of social media because you forgot an important fact: your social media sites are not on you, they are your customer.

Don’t Broadcast, Engage
According to Social Bakers, only about 30 percent of the questions posted by fans on companies’ Facebook pages are answered. This means that a full 70 percent of companies completely ignore their fans’ needs, using their social media sites to simply broadcast their branding message. People don’t respond to this. They want to be engaged and treated like people.

Answer questions from your fans, and then take it a step further by asking your own questions to start a conversation. Instead of telling them that your bike shop offers the latest model, ask them what their favorite place to ride is. Engage your audience, and they’ll come back for more.

Use Visual Content
The Internet is a visual place. The more visual content you can share, the more engaged your audience will be. People love to share videos and photos with catchy messages. Get them to share yours and you’ll increase your online visibility.

Do this by telling your brand’s story in pictures. Facebook provides an excellent medium for visual content. Choose pictures or videos that are entertaining, funny or thought-provoking to get the most shares and likes.

Use your Blog
Your blog is a platform you should be maximizing to drive traffic to your site. If your customers are asking the same question over and over on Facebook or your Twitter followers are experiencing problems that you offer a solution for, write a blog post about it. Then, when someone else asks that question or tweets about that problem, link to the blog post. This engages the follower while also driving traffic to your site and showcasing the products that meet customers’ needs. Link your best content to Twitter, Google Plus and Facebook for greater engagement and traffic.

Give a Reason to Follow
When people spend time online, they have one question in mind: What’s in it for me? Provide something of value for your potential followers, and you will see greater success. Discounts and coupons make great incentives, but you don’t have to offer them if you don’t want to. Changing your call to action does wonders for your message. Instead of saying “Like us on Facebook,” say “Get the answers to your plumbing questions on Facebook!” This gives something of value and brings a greater response.

Social media marketing is an effective platform for engaging with a global audience and increasing your brand awareness. Make the most of it by leveraging social networks effectively. The potential returns are innumerable, so the time necessary to learn what to do is worthwhile.