Unless you've been living under a rock for the last few years then you're probably familiar with social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and others. The purpose of technology is to help make our lives better, and social media makes it much easier to connect with everyone from old friends to distant family members. Many people now use social media instead of email to keep in touch with old friends. This ability to connect us with people all over the world is why many businesses are rushing to leverage the power of social media to help build their business. However, not all that glitters is marketing gold. If done correctly, social media can be a big boost to your bottom line. If done badly, it can actually work against you. So let's take a look at four tips on how NOT to use social media to promote our business.
Don't Ignore Your Social Media
A lot of people make the mistake in thinking that their businesses social media presence is like buying a house cat. You just leave out some food and it'll pretty much take care of itself. You wish that it were so easy. Being consistent with your social media is very important. What would you think if you visited a businesses Facebook page to discover that their last post was from Christmas, 2005? You wouldn't be very impressed and might even think they're out of business. It certainly wouldn't create a very positive impression. It basically tells you how they do business. You should try to post something at minimum once a week.
A lot of people make the mistake in thinking that their businesses social media presence is like buying a house cat. You just leave out some food and it'll pretty much take care of itself. You wish that it were so easy. Being consistent with your social media is very important. What would you think if you visited a businesses Facebook page to discover that their last post was from Christmas, 2005? You wouldn't be very impressed and might even think they're out of business. It certainly wouldn't create a very positive impression. It basically tells you how they do business. You should try to post something at minimum once a week.
Say No To Spam
When it comes to your social media posts, quality counts. This is sort of a golden rule of online marketing. Whether you're talking about blogging, tweeting, Facebook post or whatever, it's very important to put out high-quality content. Why? That's because to make your message effective, you want people to actually read it. Also, you want people to like what you post so much that they re-post, re-tweet, and share it. This is what's called going viral.
When it comes to your social media posts, quality counts. This is sort of a golden rule of online marketing. Whether you're talking about blogging, tweeting, Facebook post or whatever, it's very important to put out high-quality content. Why? That's because to make your message effective, you want people to actually read it. Also, you want people to like what you post so much that they re-post, re-tweet, and share it. This is what's called going viral.
No one likes spam so avoid doing post or send it. You'll get much better results putting out interesting, quality content that people actually want to read. Here's a great example. Let's say that you own a boutique that sells high-end sunglasses. You'll get much better results posting a funny photo of a cat wearing a pair of your sunglasses (with a catchy tagline of course) then you will from something like "Huge sunglass sale. Everything must go. Buy now". The former is interesting and fun. The latter is just spammy and annoying. In fact, a good rule for this is try to release 3 interesting / fun posts / tweets for every one that is highly commercial.
Keep Things Professional
This one is really important. Whatever you do, keep things friendly and professional. Leave your politics at the door. Before you post anything ask yourself if it might offend someone. Obviously there are some people who are basically offended by everything. However, try to use some common sense. You're goal in using social media to build your business is to reach as many people as possible. That means you should try not to alienate anyone. This doesn't mean that you have to be boring. You'll just need to be a little more creative. Politics are a classic example of a danger zone that you should probably steer clear off. This can be such a powerful flash-point for so many people and you can quickly annoy a lot of potential customers very quickly. Let's say you post something about one political party or the other. It's highly likely that you just offended, (or at least alienated) half of your audience. At the very least, you will leave some people wondering if they really want to give their money to someone who supports a completely opposing viewpoint.
This one is really important. Whatever you do, keep things friendly and professional. Leave your politics at the door. Before you post anything ask yourself if it might offend someone. Obviously there are some people who are basically offended by everything. However, try to use some common sense. You're goal in using social media to build your business is to reach as many people as possible. That means you should try not to alienate anyone. This doesn't mean that you have to be boring. You'll just need to be a little more creative. Politics are a classic example of a danger zone that you should probably steer clear off. This can be such a powerful flash-point for so many people and you can quickly annoy a lot of potential customers very quickly. Let's say you post something about one political party or the other. It's highly likely that you just offended, (or at least alienated) half of your audience. At the very least, you will leave some people wondering if they really want to give their money to someone who supports a completely opposing viewpoint.
Here's a quick side note about not offending people. I've encountered some business owners who have the philosophy of, "well if they get offended by what I write then they're not the kind of people I want to do business with anyways". Wow, it must be nice to have such a massive tsunami of customers that you can afford to chase away huge swaths of them. If you're serious about building your business, then it's a really good idea to keep things professional.
Do Not Retaliate Against Negative Comments
If someone writes a review or comment about your business, it's a great idea to respond to back. This builds a connection and creates loyalty. However, it's important to always take the high road. Let's say you have a bakery and someone posts something negative about their last visit. Do not retaliate. You'll just end up in an online verbal battle in front of hundreds - if not thousands - of other prospective customers. Instead, consider responding with something along the lines of, "Sorry to hear you had a bad experience. We'd love to make it up to you. Come back in and your next order is on the house".
If someone writes a review or comment about your business, it's a great idea to respond to back. This builds a connection and creates loyalty. However, it's important to always take the high road. Let's say you have a bakery and someone posts something negative about their last visit. Do not retaliate. You'll just end up in an online verbal battle in front of hundreds - if not thousands - of other prospective customers. Instead, consider responding with something along the lines of, "Sorry to hear you had a bad experience. We'd love to make it up to you. Come back in and your next order is on the house".
These are just a few social media tips you can use right away to help promote your business. Social media is a great way to find new customers and build a connection with existing ones. However, if done poorly, it can really hurt your business.
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