Social media was often seen as the outcast of the marketing communication department —the place where most interns started their careers and brands could say random things with little to no repercussions. But times have changed in recent times and the industry has evolved to it matured state.
It’s true, social media is still a wonderful platform for brands to have a little fun, but it also has a real and measurable impact on businesses bottom line going forward. Thus, social media can no longer be ignored or taken for granted as it has become a very powerful digital marketing tool. It has become a crucial part of brand’s business strategy in many industries.
To ensure that your social media marketing campaigns contribute to your brand’s greater business objectives, I have put together a checklist to make sure you are compliant and doing things alright…
What are your Social Media Goals as a business?
- Increase and raise brand awareness
- Improve customer service and retention
- Drive and grow website traffic
- Gather quality leads
- Source job candidates
Goal setting is essential for all marketing and business strategies – this is no different from social media as well. If you are doing this for the first time for your brand or company it can be difficult with resources, guidance and what the objectives should be used. As guide, I have highlighted some of the challenges you need to consider:
- Has your website traffic dipped?
- Is customer loyalty and retention level low?
- Do you need to do a better job of building a positive brand reputation?
- Do you just need to make people aware that your product exists?
Having a smart social media marketing campaign can help address each of these questions. Prove your social media team’s worth by tackling them head on.
How to overcome a low website challenge for your brand?
In the digital age we are, 85% of customers go online to research about product or service before making a purchase. A brand’s website, therefore, is one of its most important marketing tools. Low website traffic can mean fewer customers and lower revenue for your business. To combat this challenge, your social team should focus its goals on creating URL’s (Uniform Resource Locator) directly to the website (either they are from your own social posts or influencers). Website URL’s to useful content, subpages and company images to position your website and your brand as a useful resource rather than just another component in the corporate world. Such website traffic should increase leads and, in the long run, revenues for your brand.
What to do to overcome decreasing Customer Retention Levels?
According to The Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM), it costs 7 to 10 times more to acquire a customer than to retain one. To keep your customers around, use social as a tool to support, communicate and engage. Keeping a good social engaging relationship with your customers should translate into a better perception and cordial relationship with your brand. As you develop a strong social bond, customers will be more likely to stick with your brand time and time again.
How do you improve poor customer service for your brand?
Savvy Customers turn to social to engage with businesses day in and day out. Therefore, it is important for your brand to be ready to help customers on any channel or touch point of the customer journey they can contact you through. Adequately equip your social media team with the tools, education and authority to respond to customer questions and issues. By doing do, you will be prepared to respond to your customers in a timely and accurate way, regardless of how they reach out to you.
How to overcome the challenge of weak Brand Awareness?
Social media allows you to reach a broader customer base. But honing and perfecting that message takes brain power and time. To create authentic and lasting brand awareness, avoid over promotional messaging; instead, focus on creating meaningful and engaging content as well as a strong brand personality through your social channels. Identify relevant hashtags and industry influencers you can engage with, and tap into those resources to extend your brand’s overall awareness to your customer base.
In a nutshell, do not fool yourself into believing that social media is completely free marketing. Your time is valuable, especially if you are just starting up or you are a small business. Out-of-focus efforts spent on social media can quickly become a huge time sink for your brand and business strategy.
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