Marketing Influencers

What the hell is social media suppose to do for me anyways?

Everyone thinks they need to add social media to their marketing mix. Who's to say they are wrong? Afterall, hundreds and thousands of people connect on social media everyday.

What is it that you are trying to achieve and what should you expect to get out of social media if you are wanting to use the tools to generate leads or build community among your current user base?

The answer is simple: Interest, Visibility, Connections

Getting there is the tough part.

As a marketing professional who dabbles in social media and has had to figure out how to make it work for the clients I serve, I decided to step back from the noise and ask myself a handful of questions that I now ask EVERY client who approaches me to help them incorporate social media into their marketing strategy.

Questions to ask before embarking on any social media strategy:

1.      Where do most of your customers engage in social media? If you don't know, don't begin. You want to purposefully connect with your clients. Ask and you shall know.

 

2.      Do they spend their time making buying decisions from information they acquire on social media? Probably not. However, they strongly influence and are influenced by what they see. People want to know that they are making a good buying decision. By seeing others interact and comment about your products/services in a positive light, their decision to work with you is only reinforced. The power of suggestion is powerful. It can make or break a buying decision. 

3.      How do you typically communicate new news to clients socially? Could a social media tool be added to the mix? Social Media is a great way to create the "sticky" factor that every company wants with their clients. Really think this through and find a strategy that keeps you top of mind and visible to your clients. Don't try and be everything to everyone. Choose a handful of social tools and be consistent-- make them work for you.

4.      How do your clients currently learn of new products, updates and "insider" news about you? (Or do they? Just kidding...sort-of.) So many times we spend hundreds/thousands of dollars to win new clients. We win them and ignore them until we are ready to ask for more money. Keep your current (and most valuable) clients close by announcing fun updates about your product, "Did you knows" about how to make the technology work for you and insider news that they can only get by connecting with you through a social channel.

5.      How would I use social media to cultivate current client relationships to create a degree of "stickiness" to our services? This is the key to making social media work for you. Don't just think business. Use a mascot or clever tagline to create community and interaction. The more your clients think of you, the stickier you are to your product/services and the less likely they are to leave you.

6.      How can I use social media as a tool for boosting my search engine rankings to drive clients to my website? Yes, yes, and yes! The best part of social media, you can use tools like blogging, social RSS streams and new content to keep your website at the top of the browser rankings. If you don't understand SEO (search engine optimization) or can't figure out how to link social media to your site, outsource it. There are a lot of affordable and talented SEO companies that can use your social activity to get your website higher rankings. You provide the content; they provide the know-how.

Ginger Clay provides the spunk and drive behind 4-Profit’s marketing strategy, which is designed to help solution providers transition from little to no-marketing to focused outsourced marketing strategy that positions solution providers uniquely in their market space, drives demand, and maximize sales effectiveness. Ginger leads the Marketing Influencers Peer Groups for marketing professionals in a solution provider's practice. To learn more about 4-Profit and questions for Ginger visit ginger@4-profit.com.