Social Media Blog
Social Media Unplugged and Uncensored
The World of Social Media Unplugged
You may be drowning in the thought of using social media to grow your business. After all, waves of new technology hit the virtual marketing shelf all the time. At times you might try these technologies yourself, ignore it, put it on the back burner, or have someone else investigate to see if it’s worth your time. Believe me; social media can be a time bandit and can get to the best of us!
But there are solutions and social media can add value to your existing marketing efforts. Small and large organizations alike have come to understand that social media is an easy and cost effective way to develop meaningful relationships. So, the question is, what can social media do for your business.
With all the marketing options out there, choosing the right marketing mix can be paralyzing. One of the best ways to solve this issue is to start using one social media tool and then experiment with other tools until you find the right one for your business. This allows you to reach your marketing objectives without feeling overwhelmed.
Since social media has hit the business world by storm and many businesses are discovering the benefits, including understanding and serving their clients better and gaining new clients.
Here’s a breakdown of the three most popular social media networks and how you can use them in your business.
Reasons why businesses use Facebook
People tend to stay on Facebook longer than Twitter, especially when you include useful information, add photos, videos, create contests, conduct surveys and include giveaways or specials as an incentive; increase the number of people who become familiar with your business; increase customer engagement; allows you to connect and communicate with partners and others in your industry; drive traffic to your website; and improve your website ranking on search engines.
Benefits of using Facebook
It connects you with your customer; improve customer relations so you can get to know your customer and your customer can get to know your brand better; attract potential customers to your Facebook page or business website.
Reasons why businesses use Twitter
Provide updated information about your business; share news, insights, or tips that maybe helpful to your audience; learn more about your competition, partners, and others of interest; create dialogue with your followers by posting and responding to tweets.
Benefits of using Twitter
Offers real-time product or service updates about your business; connects you with those who use Twitter as a communications tool; and your tweets can be shared with others.
Reasons why businesses use LinkedIn
Establish business connections and great networking tool for generating leads.
Benefits of using LinkedIn
Connect or find business associates, clients, and others.
To learn more about how you can add social media to your existing marketing strategy, give me a call today at 404-625-7387 or email me at angela@walkermg.com.
Top 5 Reasons Why Social Media is Good for Business
According to Wikipedia, "social media" refers to the use of web-based and mobile technologies to turn communication into interactive dialogue." Businesses are using social media tools like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube to effectively connect and communicate with their customer. Today, Facebook has more than 800 million active users, Twitter has 100 million active users, and LinkedIn has 100 million professional users. How many consumers are you reaching with one or more of these platforms to grow your business?
Why social media? In a Fox Small Business article, social media is considered a game changer in the world of business. Social media is a method of reaching your customer and potential customer when, where, and how they like to communicate. Basically, social media is like word of mouth marketing on steroids. It's more than a phone conversation between friends or colleagues, it's potentially hundreds, thousands, or even more "friends" listening, talking, and sharing information about their experiences with products and services. In this article, I will share the top five reasons why social media is good for business.
1. It builds on traditional marketing efforts
When you think about traditional marketing, you may think about television, print, or internet campaigns that sell a product or service. But ultimately, marketing is focused on serving the needs of the customer. When you integrate social media with your marketing strategy, you give your company a turbo charged marketing boost. Today, many companies use social media because it is one of the most powerful forms of marketing. It is cost effective and it can reach your target audience faster and with more precision. For example, when someone “likes” your Facebook page, the information posted on your wall is automatically shared with their friends.
2. It can increase your bottom line
Well, not so fast. But, having a social media strategy can produce favorable results. Whether you operate a small business or large corporation, building customer loyalty and increasing your bottom line takes time and effort. Having an active Facebook page or Twitter account may not result in increased revenue immediately, but it can reduce your sales cycle, generate leads, and increase exposure for your business. With social media, you can share valuable information, answer questions, announce new product or service offerings, provide discounts or specials, and even develop contests or polls to increase customer engagement. Building lasting and meaningful relationships with your customer through social media can increase your bottom line. After all, people buy from people they know and trust!
3. Connect with your audience in a meaningful way
Why do people buy the same product or service time after time? It could be because of relationships, satisfaction, or habit. We are creatures of habit, we are social-beings, we want to feel a sense of connection, and social media provides that for millions of people on a daily basis. With social media, you can effectively connect, communicate and create meaningful relationships with your customer. If your customer is on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn, why not join them? It's a cost effective way to learn more about your customer and build meaningful relationships. As the saying goes, "Rome wasn't built in a day." Neither are relationships.
4. Increase brand awareness and visibility
According to an article on Inc.com, business owners use social media to close sales and create buzz for their business. The numbers of consumers using social media to share, exchange, and discuss ideas are unparalleled. Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn have millions of users, these numbers represent opportunities to increase brand awareness and visibility for your business. Having a company presence on one or more of these platforms can definitely get your company noticed!
5. Improve customer communication, retention, and referrals
How do you get repeat business? One of the most effective ways to get repeat business is to meet or exceed your customer needs. When you connect and communicate with your customer using social media, you create opportunities to learn more about their wants and needs. If your customer is using social media and they are satisfied with your product or service, they can be a leading champion for your business – spreading the good news!
Bottom line
The goal is to create a social media strategy that aligns with your business goals and objectives. Listen to online conversations, they provide valuable consumer insight like no other form of market research. Talk with your customers or potential customers online, it can be a cost effective way to develop meaningful and lasting relationships. Finding the right social media marketing mix takes time, effort, and commitment, but the results can be deeply rewarding.
Let's get started! Give me a call today at 404-625-7387 or email me at angela@walkermg.com.
Creating Marketing Buzz with Social Media
Social Media Delivers
With more than 250 million users on Facebook, 175 million Twitter users and more than 100 million LinkedIn users, social media is transforming the way we do business.
Organizations of all sizes are using social media as a marketing strategy to reach, retain, and engage with their customers in a whole new way. Organizations like, McDonald’s, Time Warner, Dell Computers, government agencies, and non-profits are realizing the benefits of establishing a social media strategy and have joined the social media revolution.
There’s no doubt about it, social media has transformed the way we do business. Whether you operate a B2B or B2C business, social media is a way for your business to develop meaningful relationships with your customer.
Every day, millions of people use social networks to communicate with businesses and to each other. According to a survey conducted by ROI Research, fifty-three percent of consumers said they provided feedback to a company via social network sites. This information can be invaluable to any business. Do you know what people are saying about your business?
By engaging in targeted social media networks, you gain valuable insight about your customers, potential customers, and your competition. The benefits of using social media can include creating buzz for your business, improving customer relationships, encouraging customer loyalty, driving traffic to your website, or gaining new customers.
Before diving into the world of social media, I recommend that you develop a strategy based on your business goals and objectives. We can work with you to develop and implement a social media strategy that works best for your business.
To learn more about creating marketing buzz with social media, give me a call today at 404-625-7387 or email me at angela@walkermg.com.
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