Now that your company has a Twitter/ Facebook/ Flickr/ LinkedIn/ Behance account it is time to engage! Easier said than done, well not really, just remember to be SOCIAL…
S PAM – don’t do it!
Give followers what they want, if and when they want it. If they haven’t expressed an interest then don’t bombard them with endless messages full of self promotion and ‘exclusive’ offers. Engagement is a two-way communication process, if you aren’t receiving any feedback then that’s not engagement – that’s promotion. And trust me, people will get sick of it and are more than likely to ‘defriend’ you.
O pinions
By all means, give your opinions but stay out of the ‘how not to do it’ gang. It is so easy to get carried away and make your opinion know but remember on the internet the information is accessible to everyone and often misdemeanours spread faster than wildfire – so a word of warning. Understand that everything you do will be open to misinterpretation and even if you notice your error and delete the comment, it is still possible that someone took a screen shot and you could end up in hot water.
C hoose a brand personality
And stick to it! Ensure that the personality that your company projects online is consistent and fits in with the overall brand values. If you are a fun, lively office make sure that you project that. Social media offers a brilliant way for customers and other individuals to become involved with the business and feel part of your business. If they build up a relationship with the company they are more likely to remain loyal as they will feel an ‘emotional’ connection to it, often a powerful differentiating factor.
I nterest
Be interesting. People don’t engage with boring brands, so post fun links, make jokes and use ‘hot topics’ as a basis of your comments. By keeping up to date with what is happening to your customers then you can make sure what you are saying is relevant and people are more likely to respond if it something they have an opinion on. Take note of a previous point, be careful making comments on very controversial topics as you suffer negative repercussions.
A nswer
Everyone. Say a quick thank you or tell them to have a nice day, even if someone retweets a link make sure that you tweet them back to express your gratitude and they will be likely to do it again. Respond to questions, links, retweets and messages. By being friendly and accessible your company reputation will only benefit. The nature of social media means that responses can be sent quickly and from almost anywhere so there is no excuse.
L ook around
Check out your Klout score, keep track of the number of Twitter followers, measure your reach, see where your followers are coming from. There are hundreds of measurement tools out there for you to measure your effectiveness online so use them! You wouldn’t enter into any other type of communication with consumers without being able to measure its effectiveness and social media isn’t any different. Online advertising click through rates can be measured and you can even track an individual’s clicking process to see where they went.
When used correctly social media is an extremely powerful tool, it is a fantastic way to engage with consumers in a fast and convenient way. It allows consumers to get closer to the organisation and get a real feel for the company, be aware of this and harness the positives however ensure that you acknowledge the negatives and don’t become a case study online of a company who has used it inappropriately…
Article Written by Carli Smith
Visit Inferno Designs for more on Social Media Optimisation and Professional Logo Design.
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