It is hard to imagine in this technological, social media saturated world that there are businesses who are not taking advantage of social media benefits. However, there are many businesses that still do not see the value in this business-building tool. If your company is one of those that just does not see the need for social media marketing let us give you 10 reasons why your business needs to have a social media plan.
#1: It’s Free
There are few things in life that are really free. Social media is one of them. It does not cost anything to get your business social media profiles on all the platforms that are out there. It’s as easy as signing up and creating your profile. Now if you want to hire a social media manager to create and manage your profiles then that service will create a minimal cost that is well worth it. Having someone take care of the social media side frees you up to do what you do best – run your business – so it is definitely something to consider.
#2: It Allows You To Connect With Others In Your Industry
This one might at first seem counter-intuitive but in actuality it can be very effective at getting you new customers. It also allows you to keep up with industry trends, make business contacts, create a peer group that you can bounce ideas off of, or even find other brands that you can team up with for promotions and business deals. There is no need to always go it alone and social media can get you in touch with others on the same journey that you can exchange ideas and solutions with.
#3: That’s Where Your Customers Are
It’s a digital age and the general population is on board. They are going to want the businesses they buy from and interact with to keep up too. In fact, according to Statista, there are currently approximately 2.62 BILLION social media users worldwide! If only 1% of those are potential customers for your business that is a lot of people to throw away by not being on social media with them.
#4: It’s Where Your Competition Is Too
The fact is your competitors are already on social media. If your business is not there you are letting your competition steal your customers. Why would you want to make it so easy for your competition? Give them a run for their money. Make them work for it. Having a social media presence puts your business in front of people you could never have reached by traditional means including your competitors’ customers. Do not let that opportunity pass you by.
#5: It Shows Your Customers You Are Human Too
It is easy to hide behind your company’s brand but your customers want to know who they are giving their hard-earned money to. Social media makes it really easy to show your customers the faces of those who run your company. Let them see who you are, who your employees are, and how your company is run. Take them behind the scenes at your company by making videos of your company’s products and services, interviews with you and your employees, as well as testimonials from happy customers and more. Showing your social media followers these things gives them confidence that there are real, caring human beings running your company and sometimes that is all it takes to convince them to trust in the products and services your company provides.
#6: It Creates And Increases Brand Loyalty
Social media provides a great way for your business to create and increase brand loyalty by rewarding its followers. When people follow your Facebook page they are joining your business’ club and becoming part of its unique ‘family’. This is a great time to reward them for that choice. Offer them exclusive discounts or special offers to let them know how much you appreciate their loyalty. Through engaging and interacting with your brand’s followers you create incentive and desire in them to keep choosing your business over your competition.
#7: It Spreads Your Brand Identity
The more followers you get the more chances you have to spread your brand’s identity. Every person who follows your company page has on average of 338 friends and 15% of your followers have more than 500 friends (BigThink, 2017). What this means is for every person that follows your page, you have the potential to reach 338-500 new people that you never would have access to normally. That’s mind-blowing and an opportunity no business should pass up!
#8: It Increases Leads
Through the use of contests, gated content, Facebook custom tabs, lead ads, and more you can increase your business’ leads and ultimately its sales. Social media provides the medium to capture and accumulate qualified leads. Take advantage of that wonderful benefit.
#9: Social Media Ads Are Economical
Advertising on social media is not free. However, it is very economical compared to traditional advertising methods such as direct mail, broadcast TV, magazine, newspaper, radio, and billboards. In fact, social media advertising is less expensive than any other form of advertising around today. This makes social media advertising easily available to even the smallest marketing budgets.
#10: It Allows Your Business To Respond To Customer Issues Quickly
The fact that social media has turned into such a sounding board for so many is both a good and a bad thing. It is bad because people love to complain about the wrongs that have been done to them and they do it loud and proud! However, it’s good not only because the opposite is true, people will also tell everyone they know about something they love, but also because when your customers are complaining on social media it gives you the opportunity to make everything right again. Social media is nearly real-time which means you have the chance to find out about something gone wrong immediately in order to fix it just as quickly. Nothing will win your business die-hard loyalty more quickly than your customers seeing your company doing the right thing in a public forum. This can not only confirm your customers’ loyalty but also create new raving fan customers.
Ready to build buzz and engage your customers with a social media marketing plan tailor-made for your customers and goals? Let our social media experts help you get there. Give NetSource Technologies a call today (800) 709-3240 to get started. We offer a full line of social media marketing and content development plans to get you there! Contact us today!