Seven Tips for Businesses Engaging with Social Media
By Jessica Cook, Director of Internet Marketing, ADCO
Part Five in a Series of Five Articles on the Impact and Use of Social Media
By Jessica Cook, Director of Internet Marketing, ADCO
Throughout this series, I've discussed the tremendous impact social media is having on our lives, and I've explored how individuals and businesses are using social media on a daily basis. In this final article, I'd like to focus on how businesses right here in the Midlands can engage with social media.
The reality is—social media is here to stay. It's a part of our lives. It's changing the way we do business and the way we communicate. In short, social media is becoming more integral to business every day, and your engagement is required now.
To empower you to really engage— I've developed seven simple tips for using social media to communicate with your target audiences and accomplish your business goals.
1. Realize that social networks are different. They're not marketing. Not advertising. They're something totally unique and different—a kind of strange mixture of public relations, branding, and communications—and they require an entirely new frame of reference. Creating a profile on Facebook or tweeting regularly doesn't equal success. You won't see your sales skyrocket or your customers flock to you in droves (well, most of us won't). That's not what social media is about. It's about finding where your target audiences are and communicating your brand messages to them in that space. Your clients and customers are on social networks, and they'll embrace you for joining them there (if you do it right).
2. Start with a strategy. Fact is, you're a business, not someone hoping to reunite with high school classmates. You've got goals you need to accomplish, and like most things, social media is more likely to accomplish your goals if you start with a plan. First, think about your customers, potential and existing. Then, think about where they are. Are they posting photos on Facebook, searching for qualified people on LinkedIn, or sharing useful links on Twitter? Once you've found them, create a plan for connecting and communicating with them.
3. Create good content. We've all heard stories of brands rising to prominence after creating and sharing a unique video or photo online. All these stories begin with one thing—content. That's because, when you create good content—no matter what it is, articles, videos, blogs, photos, whatever—and share it with people through social media, you're building your brand. You're giving people a reason to connect with your brand and to care about it. You're cultivating brand ambassadors—people who are invested in you and who will share your content with others. You may have heard that content is king. It's true. In online spaces from Websites to email to social media, creating good, useful, quality content is the most powerful thing you can do to build your brand.
4. Make time to really engage. In today's busy, fast-paced, always-evolving world, it's tough to find the time that's needed to really engage online. It's tough to resist the temptation to simply create a presence on a social network and forget about it. But social media requires your time. It isn't like traditional media, which allows you to create a TV commercial and relax while it communicates your messages. From profiles and wall posts to link sharing and professional recommendations, social media requires an ongoing commitment to the community—an ongoing commitment to delivering quality content, to interacting with your audiences, and to building your brand.
5. Don't sell. Users of social media don't want to be sold. They want to connect. If you're willing to put down the sales brochure and simply engage with them, they'll connect with your business, just like they connect with colleagues, friends, and family. But it's not easy. Convincing users you're not out to sell them, showing them that you too just want to connect, can be a battle. But it's one with plentiful rewards. Once they're connected, users are plugged in to you. They'll see your updates, and they'll read your messages, and, if you're lucky, they'll become the most devoted brand advocates you've ever had.
6. Embrace the one-to-one. Remember that social media is not the latest form of mass communication. Although large numbers of people are on social networks and able to receive your brand and marketing messages, communicating with a mass audience is not what social media is about. Social media is about one-to-one communication. So take advantage of social media's unique opportunity to have conversations by encouraging people to communicate directly with you and by responding to them—no matter how many messages and emails you get. True relationships are created and nurtured through one-to-one conversation.
7. Be authentic and transparent. In the world of social media, it's okay to be open. It's okay to be honest. It's okay to show the person behind the avatar. In fact, it's expected. Social media users can see through anyone who isn't real—so get real online. Don't be "all business" all the time; show some personality. Tell funny stories. Poke fun at yourself and others. Invite dialogue and discussion about your brand, the industry, the community, and more. Admit when you mess up and make it right. Respond publicly to negative comments or complaints and show your willingness to solve the problem or correct the situation. Be genuinely interested in the community and in the people you're connecting with. Be transparent about who you are and what you do so that the relationships you're building are real.
Unfortunately, these seven tips don't guarantee a successful entrance into the world of social media. They're really little more than loose rules or guidelines for your consideration as you begin thinking about integrating social media into your overall communications strategy. But hopefully, they've at least made you feel better equipped to get started with social media. Hopefully, they've given you some courage, or they've gotten you excited about the possibilities that are out there. It's time to get online and get going—before you get left behind.
Jessica Cook is the Director of Internet Marketing at ADCO, a strategic marketing, creative design, interactive media agency based in Columbia, SC. As Director, she leads the ADCO Interactive team, providing strategic vision for its operations, leading business development initiatives to expand its client base, and collaborating with her team of designers, programmers, and copywriters to develop new media solutions for clients in a variety of industries. Passionate about online engagement, Jessica also consults with clients on how to integrate social media into their overall marketing plans and use it to accomplish their goals. You can reach Jessica at 803-765-1133 or "jessica@adcoideas.com."
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