When engaging in Social Media, we must realize that it’s not a walk in the park. It requires work, dedication and the right voice. But it can and should be fun and engaging for you. It’s up to you to make it what you want it to be but no matter what, it should be part of your every day routine (like brushing your teeth, but not as minty), and cannot ever play second fiddle to any of your other marketing strategies.
Social Media is NOT some craze or fad that will shove off any time soon (if ever, the way things look). It’s not a bunch of boring folk talking about what they had for breakfast. What it is, is a business tool that allows you to communicate with your potential customers by engaging them in what service/products you provide, in a way that bares no resemblance to the old days of print ad et al. Picture this:
Mr Smith (I know, I know, why are they always Smith), a building contractor, has just found his way on to Twitter after some lovely Social Media expert persuaded him to promote his business there. Of course, Mr Smith’s first objective is to get people to talk about HIS Business, surely that’s the goal isn’t it? But Mr Smith has also just ‘let go’ of his accountant and now desperately needs a new one (don’t we all). Enter Mrs Jones (I know, I know. Smith; Jones. How inventive). She happens to be an Accountant, who has also recently met with a talented Social Media expert. Mr Smith finds Mrs Jones through a recommendation from a fellow Twitterer (actually Tweeter is the correct term, but they are new, so let’s forgive them), and hey presto! Mr Smith has a new Accountant. Mr Smith and Mrs Jones are both very happy. How nice!
It’s not necessarily hard to make contacts on Twitter and asking for a recommendation of a service can get you great responses. Not only that but it goes much deeper. Down the rabbit hole we go…
Back to our two happy tweeters. Now what has happened in all of this unbeknownst to Mr Smith and Mrs Jones, is that while they were having their back and forth re their respective needs and haves, everyone else who are following them are seeing this conversation too. So now all of Mrs Jones followers know about Mr Smith, and all of Mr Smiths followers know about Mrs Jones. The seeds of connections have been planted and new branches can start to grow. Now THAT’S how to increase brand awareness.
Social Media is one of those things that so many businesses say they don’t have the money or time to invest in, but will still throw hundreds, nay thousands on the diminishing returns of print advertising that would, maybe see a return of 1%.
Times have changed and our company voices need to be heard on different platforms; Social Media platforms.
