Social Media - The New Business Platform

Any business, whether small or large, is essentially dependent on this important platform for advertising- the social media. As a social media manager, I understand the importance of social media for not just gathering customers or creating awareness, but also establishing the credibility of your business. Social media sites like Facebook offer great exposure and opportunity for any brand.

Facebook has become an important platform. The page obviously talks about the brand, product, service or other offers.  But, does it really engage your customers? Do they actually read the information provided about your company? Your product/service? Product offers?

Well, how much as an audience would you like to see such information on any business page? As a fresher, I thought of the most exciting concept, which is to provide the best deals and offers to the customers. It would be, to talk about the company’s position and boast about the products. Gradually, I realized it wasn't just a bad idea, in fact the worst!

I would seriously recommend all of you to first check out the Facebook page of brands like Paper Boat and Happily Unmarried.

They have large chunk of customer audience. They make regular posts and the posts that are so engaging that I could spend hours scrolling and reading every post on their page.  The kind of association created by the brand with regular events and day to day activities can really be an appealing to the audience.

So, remember your Facebook post should provide a mix of social information as well  as info about your product and service. The ratio can be 80:20 or 70:30 where the larger chunk should include social information, humorous posts and other related material. However, 20% of your post should be about product and service related. Also, always try to attach an interesting image or related video. You can even link your post or add ‘call-to-action’.

For example, if you check the Facebook page of Coca Cola India you would notice that the brand does publicize its offers along with various social activities like #swachhbharatabhiyan and #supportmyschool.  

Interestingly Coke too celebrates the festivals of India along with its fans through their posts. They never miss an opportunity to congratulate on an achievement made by the country and take the time to mention special occasions are regularly linked. 

Once you have made your post, reply to all kind of comments you receive. Never ignore your audience. Whether it is a positive or a negative comment, appreciation or criticism, you should respond to each of them tactfully. Never let it be too late to reply to them.

While dealing with posts, put yourself in the shoes of the audience. Would you like to read long dramatic sentences? Or would you prefer short and direct messages? Well, I would definitely opt for the second choice. Keep your post limited to a certain number of characters, 80- 100 would be fine. It will be pleasing and convenient to the customers. Keep your language simple. Do not use too many jargons.

However, do not over-post just to attract your customers. Many a time we believe that it is beneficial to have many posts on our page so that our customers would stay engaged and remains on our page for a longer time. But, this doesn’t work. Too much information or too many posts can make your page visibly cluttered. Keep your posts limited. Make about 1-2 post each day. You can do it every day or 4-5 times in a week.

Seek for customer advice. Treat them as experts. Asking question in your post can engage your customers quite well, and get them excited. They would love to answer to your posts. 

If you work with an established brand, customers will visit your Facebook page and put up posts about their likes and dislikes. However, if you are new and fresh as a brand, don’t be depressed if you do not receive any comment on your posts. Do continue to post regularly to target your customer audience and reach out to them and soon you would see traffic flowing in your page.

However, never make false comments or fake comments. If you think fake likes and comments can help boost your business, you are definitely running on a wrong track. Remember quality is more important than quantity.

Thus, if you’re using Facebook for you own a business or dealing as a Social Media Manager, get started with all enthusiasm with these few points in mind. It can help you derive great results. Keep posting!!

Sunaina Agarwal

Attracting visitors through Social Media Marketing

Do you think writing content is enough to tag yourself as a ‘content writer’? I am sure it isn’t. Are you thinking the same? Good command and proficiency over the language were the criteria sufficient for a content writer almost a decade ago.

 In the present era, to produce good content, a content writer needs to have complete knowledge of SEO (search engine optimization). SEO is the technique required to attract new visitors to your website. Yet, SEO alone isn’t enough.

Social media plays a significant role in attracting more visitors to your website. Social media optimization, along with search engine optimization, can together do wonders; your website will attract unique and new visitors. The aim of Social Media Marketing is to create content that will help a company increase their brand exposure and broaden customer reach. 

Users rely on social media sites for news and facts. The knowledge imparted about your company on a social networking site should be equally factual. The ‘about us’ section has to be well-written and it should define your organization’s intention. Your organizations goal and vision has to be clearly stated. Provide a complete address and link it to Google map.

Make efforts to create a recall value among your consumers. Your content should be the driving force. Make sure your company is omnipresent. Create your blog, Facebook page, Twitter account, LinkedIn profile, Instagram account, Pinterest etc. Keep tweeting, updating your blogs regularly and never miss updating your status. It will help your costumers to stay connected and updated on the activities in your organization.

Keep your customers informed, whether it is a launch of a new product, a new service, any festive offer, special discount season, customized AMC offer, new recruitment, birthday celebrations, new tie-ups or promotions etc, whatever may be the reason, never miss to share an update with your customers.

Post interesting content to pull your customers to participate. The more engaging the content is, higher the participation rate would be.  Do not write long sentences. Make it short and crisp. You just have 140 characters to tweet! It is always advisable to have a landing page in your website.

Further, add social media links to the content and link them to your website. Never miss to create ‘Call-to-Action’ (CTA). This CTA converts your visitor to a lead. It determines the conversion rate.  One important rule to remember: never mislead your consumers. Do not make false promises. Offer only what you can provide. In the age of social media, it is easy to grab the attention of millions of consumers across the globe, but one false promise can lead to social disaster. Reputation and trust are two key components that can make or break a brand. No trust, no existence!

For wide exposure and visibility, a website is not just enough to run a business and be successful in the World Wide Web.  You have to explore the world of social media. It is no longer the medium used just to connect to your friends and family. It is in fact, one of the most substantial and effective professional medium.  So, keep exploring!

By- Sunaina Agarwal