How To Use Social Media

Before you begin using Social Media, let’s talk about a few misconceptions that have been floating around for years. How do you use Social Media if you don't first understand why it works.
Like any major shifts in marketing, it can be hard to pull away from the “old ways” and jump into the “new ways”.  For those that think Social Media is a fad or it will not work for your business simply because you have never used this vehicle in the past, someone needs to say it, you’re wrong.
The most common misconceptions I have heard from clients are;
How To Use Social Media     My customers/clients don’t come from social media sites

•      I only want people that will become my customers to like or follow me
•      Picture and video sharing sites are not for me
•      I get plenty of website traffic without Social media
•      We don’t have time to keep up with all the Social Media sites
•      Social Media is only for the “younger” crowd
•      I don’t have anything to say to people on these sites
•      I don’t want people to come on my pages and talk bad about my company
•      You can’t really gauge the success of a Social Media campaign

So let’s explore these common misconceptions
My customers/clients don’t come from social media sites
Well, according to reports from sites like Yahoo Finance and TechCrunch, you could be right that out of the 170 million users on Twitter, the 1 Billion users on Facebook the 100 million users on Google+ , the 200 million users on Linkedin, the 1 billion users on YouTube just to name a few, that your customers are not using these sites.  You could be right but the math would reason that you are wrong.

I only want people that will become my customers to like or follow me
It would be pretty spectacular if everyone that followed or liked your pages turned into an immediate customer.  So what does your customer look like? Is your product or service a niche where all of your business comes from one location with one type of buyer that has no interest in anything but your product?
Consumers are swayed by the opinions of others.  Have you ever seen a crowd standing in front of a business?  What went through your mind? That’s right, you thought, “Must be something interesting or good going on in there”.  Buzz creates Buzz.

Every single person on the social sites is married to, works for, related to or friends with a person that IS your company.   People share information with those in their circles.

You are correct though if you are using social media to SELL your product only then you will not be as successful.   The beauty of social media is to interact with people, those people that are talking to YOUR potential client/customer.

Educate them about your industry; you are, after all the expert right?  Not everything you say should carry a call to action for purchase of your product.   People don’t like to be sold; they do like to come to a conclusion to buy on their own.

Look at social media sites like you would a first date.   If you were on a date and the person sitting across the table only wanted to talk about themselves, never asked about your life or ignored everything you said and went back to talking about how great they are and all the great things they do……… would you enjoy yourself?  Would you ever ask them out again?  Treat your social accounts the same way.  People like to be acknowledged.
Picture and video sharing sites are not for me

Not for you? That’s okay.  Those pictures and videos that don’t do anything for is doing it for your customers/clients.   Not only is it proven that posts with pictures/videos get shared more than those that are just text, using pictures or images that are keyword optimized can gain your site more of the authority you’re seeking from the search engines. 
I get plenty of website traffic without social media

Fantastic! Keep up the good work.  As your competitors build relationships with your customers through social interaction we hope that you continue to enjoy the revenue generating traffic.  If however you are starting to see that your site is showing up less and less on the first page of a Google search then this may be the perfect time to get involved with the social media arena.
Social media is for the “younger” crowd
While it is true that the “younger” crowd has embraced this new technology in ways that us older timers will never understand or utilize, there are just a few things you may want to know.
                In the U.S. 93% of the internet users that are adults are Facebook users.How do I use Social Media

                Out of the internet users that are 55-64 years old, 52% have accounts on social networks.

                Out of all the active users on Facebook, 40% are over 35 years old.

Last thing to remember is that those “younger” people all suffer the same end; they grow up and they consume product.  Guess what buying methods they will be using? 

I don’t have anything to say to people on these sites

I think you do.  You are confusing having something to say with needing to talk to people 5 times a day.   Posting the same calls to action will soon get you a blind ear to anything really interesting when you do post.   Take some time think about what you offer; what type of people use it, how people can learn more about it, and interesting facts about it etc.  If you still feel like you have nothing to say you can always call our offices and we can help you with topics of interest.  Just screaming look at me over and over is not the way to go.  Your followers end up like the parents who really don’t hear their kids screaming anymore because they have become numb to the noise.
I don’t want people to come on my pages and talk bad about my company

Sorry, but that is just not going to convince me.  Social sites are only one way an unsatisfied customer can spread the word.  It is however a great way to offset those occasions when a person tries to damage your reputation, their post will get lost in a sea of happy clients/customers and your good name will remain good.
You can’t really gauge the success of a Social Media campaign

Oh now you’re just being silly.  Gauging your reach and outcome is very easy.  Google Analytics has a great deal of information to share with you about just where your customers are coming from.  Facebook has really come up as a force with their own metrics to gauge your success with their campaigns.  The nice part about Facebook is that you can really test your marketing to find out what works best without spending a ton of money, a $5 budget per day can bring you a wealth of information as well as new targeted fans.

Wow! I’m guessing we all need a break after reading this article.   I hope you can see a few ways that being involved with Social Media could be a great asset to your business.  If you have questions or need a little nudge to get you started, call our office and we can help with a brainstorming session.

The call is FREE, the results could be priceless …………. 719 302 5029