Long gone are those days when the secretary of your business was the initial point of contact between your brand and the outside world. Today, social media profiles and websites have replaced that role.
Indeed, social media has proven beneficial over the last twenty years. Big and small businesses realize social media marketing’s tremendous benefits. They also see the increasing importance of social media in the race to attract new customers and stay relevant.
Social media, like a Facebook business account, brings other benefits aside from it being an effective way to send the message of your brand and to market to the right people at the right time.
Here are seven other reasons why a social media page is imperative for your business, and how it could actually help in ensuring the success of your brand:
1. Easier And Faster Communication
For businesses, it’s now easier and faster than ever before to receive, review, and respond to grievances from customers. Customers, on the other hand, can reach out to a customer service representative easier and faster than ever before. All of these became possible, thanks to social media networks, like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
Often, even without having to pick up a phone, contacting the right people today proves to be a no-sweat task. As more brands and people use social media platforms for keeping in contact with those who matter the most to their business, things will only become easier.
Yes, challenges may remain, depending, of course, on the grievance and industry your business is in. However, it doesn’t change the fact that what was once a line of communication that’s challenging to establish is no longer as hard to deal with.
It’s something that businesses have, for the longest time, strived to achieve. Now, it’s happening–customers are able to communicate real-time feedback.
2. 1:1 Relationships With People
Is this brand actually doing what it says it does? Does its products actually work? These are questions clouding the minds of consumers before purchasing from an entity they don’t know.
As a business, you need to show to consumers who you are. You have to truly connect with them. Since people, nowadays, scour social media profiles of companies to see if customers are happy with them, it only makes sense to leverage social media. It’s what gives a voice to what truly your brand is.
Does your brand have relatable values? Does the work of your company back up those? Make sure consumers know about these truths.
The more likely people do business with you when you create 1:1 relationships with them. Social media allows you to do that. In fact, you can successfully do it with infinitely more consumers than you’d be able to meet if you only wait for them to walk into your storefront.
3. Target Consumers Better
It’s important to learn about your audience. Getting to know your market goes a long way in helping you discover different ways to creatively reach them via content or advertising. Social media gives businesses insights into what their audience is into. Targeting and catering to this degree, of course, only lead to increased conversions.
4. Increased Website Traffic
Social media enables businesses to reach different people not only in a personable but also in a useful and entertaining way. It introduces potential clients you may not have had the chance to really engage with previously. Social media even pushes them to get to know your business and try the product or service you’re offering. Whether your company is centered around your brick-and-mortar location or your brand’s website, social media channels effectively supplement these platforms and significantly increase traffic.
As long as it’s done correctly and as long as your messaging in social media reflects the value you can offer to consumers, both foot and website traffic should increase accordingly.
5. Effective Reputation Management
As a business entity, you have to “do social right”, which means that an active social listening plan is in place for your company. It will enable you to not only pick up on but also track when and where conversations of consumers happen.
Whether you like it or not, consumers will talk about your company or brand. It’s true whether or not you’re involved in or initiating these conversations. The ideal thing to do is to join in on them. However, you have to make sure that you’re taking part in the discussion as an engaged, active member of each community, and not only as a plain outsider looking in.
If people are talking positively about your brand, find ways to show your gratitude to them, either publicly or personally. Just the same, if they’re saying negative things about your company, especially things that actually aren’t true, make sure to politely and professionally share your side.
6. More Effective Lead Generation
One way of attracting customers who are really interested in your product or service is to publish and post content that’s relevant to both your audience and your brand. Social media is an avenue for great content that can help you in collecting leads and building your email list.
7. Effective Tracking Of Competition
As you probably already know, you can learn a lot from your competition. Luckily for business owners, social media makes tracking of competition possible. It allows business owners like you to keep your finger on the pulse not just of other marketing practices and tactics, but also of the specific tactics employed by your direct competitors.
You want to establish and protect your brand’s reputation and, ultimately, sell your products or services. These are the same things that your competitors are aiming for. That being said, it’s worth monitoring and finding out the ways that your business can educate and entertain users better. You have to know and understand the things that your brand does well.
Everybody can learn something. No business is perfect. Your ultimate goal should be to have the customer understand you and depend on you for your authoritative approach with your niche over your competition.
Final Thoughts
Nowadays, a significant part of surviving and staying in business is to actually remain relevant. Social media gives your brand or company insight into how it should and can continue to evolve. You’ll learn how to deliver results that your consumers really require. What better way of remaining relevant than to really be in the thick of your customers’ conversations about their wants and needs? You can do all these things through social media.
