11 indisputably good reasons why your business should use social media
Why should I use social media? Good question and one that is often the second question asked immediately after I tell people what I do.
The short answer is that given the sheer volume of customers using social media multiple times every day, it is THE most effective way to build your brand awareness. But just in case you need a few more reasons, read on and don’t miss the last reason.
- Your competitors are using social media.
And if your competitors are marketing their brand on social platforms to customers, and you aren’t, who will those customers remember when they next have need of your service or product?
- Your customers are on social media.
Research indicates that 46% of shoppers rely on social media when making a purchase so doesn’t it make sense to be where those decisions are being made to influence them.
- You can test different marketing messages.
You could place one advert in a magazine one month, tweak it and then place a second version in the same magazine the following month. And spend a lot of your marketing budget. Or you could run two adverts simultaneously one day on Facebook targeting a tailored audience for a couple of pounds, and fine tune your marketing message to run the next day.
- You can build trust at a personal level.
Trust is earned not bought. Through social media you can slowly build that trust with relevant useful content that resonates with customers. You can respond to individual questions and queries in real time and demonstrate your brand values one post at a time.
- You can provide customer service.
Only 30% of consumers receive answers to their queries posted on a company’s Facebook page and 71% of tweets are ignored and only 23% generate a reply. If you can be found on social channels you must respond efficiently. Better to have a bad review and respond positively and quickly than let it sit there and fester.
- Direct traffic to your products and service.
Every social media post is an opportunity to direct customers towards your offer. It doesn’t have to be a direct link to your website, it can just as easily be an indirect message like giving someone some advice that they find valuable such that they look you up for future reference. Who knows, they may even tell their friends about your business.
- Conduct customer research.
Not sure which product your customers would prefer? You could stock them all, or you could ask your customers. Not only will you have some evidence for your buying decisions, your customers will feel valued and privileged to be asked.
- Build your brand’s reputation.
A google search on a business will bring up all kinds of content, some you have put out there and some your customers and clients have published. It all goes towards building awareness. Add a social media presence to the mix that will be found by search engines and returned on page one, just adds to your reputation.
- It’s free (or great value at worst)
It costs absolutely nothing to create a social media account, just time to optimise it and maintain your presence. Where else can you get marketing for free? And if you want to make it work harder for you, you can place adverts on all the social media platforms to extend your reach and attract ever wider audiences.
- It compliments and amplifies your marketing strategy.
Whatever else you have planned in your marketing plans, social media builds on and amplifies your messages. If you are running an offer in a magazine, share it on Facebook, don’t just rely on that magazine’s circulation. If you are running a seminar at a local business expo, film it and share it on Youtube so more people can see it. If you are having a Christmas shopping event, post it on Twitter and encourage your followers to retweet it. But be careful, you could be overrun with visitors!
- It’s fun.
And if it isn’t fun talking to customers about your business, then something is very wrong!
If after reading this you are ready to grow your business through social media, get in touch and we can put a plan together for you and get the conversation flowing about your brand.
