Whether you work in sales or own a large corporation, social media has been on your radar as an important asset to your business. Marketing, PR and sales have all largely moved online, with social media as the main platform for a variety of campaigns. Here are some more ways social media has transformed the way we do business.
1. Building Customer Relationships
Thanks to social media, businesses have the power to completely transform customer relationships. Rather than reaching a target audience via advertisement and engaging with them after a sale has been made, businesses can now interact with potential customers on a daily basis, before, during and after the sales process.
Customers can interact with posts and develop a level of trust and rapport with a business that would otherwise be impossible. Businesses with excellent social media strategies will often attract a wide audience with their content, even if that content is completely unrelated to their products. It’s all about discovering how customers like to engage and then meeting them on that level.
2. Increasing Sales
The end goal of building customer relationships and carrying out ad and PR campaigns is increasing sales, and that’s something many businesses have accomplished via social media. Apps like Instagram have made it possible for advertisements to appear as interesting content, and it’s incredibly simple for customers to click through for the discount codes or sales being advertised. Some businesses have even made it possible to purchase products on social media apps themselves, cutting out the multi-step process of a sale entirely.
3. Building Trust
Businesses are no longer mysterious storefronts or invisible warehouses behind websites. By utilizing social media, brands are able to show customers who they are – their values, causes, and even personalities. Creating public posts that can be interacted with by anyone shows a degree of confidence in your business’s reputation, and can make a potential customer decide that you provide the best value for their money.
Influencers and past customers can create posts about your business with reviews and recommendations, increasing the likelihood that a casual onlooker will gain interest and click through to your website. Of course, being transparent in this way puts businesses in a precarious situation if they’re unwilling or unable to keep up with the demand of constant interactions. Depending on the platform, engaging with the algorithm effectively could be a full-time job.
4. Becoming Competitive
Social media has made the competition between businesses a lot fiercer than it might have otherwise been. The expectations of your audience are always changing with new trends, and your competitors may have a better strategy than you do. Utilizing social media means pouring time and resources into hiring social media experts who can keep up with the constant demands of these platforms. Jumping in without preparation can result in little to no engagement, leaving you trailing behind the competition.
5. Building Your Brand
With so much content constantly being pushed on social media, it takes an audience a while to associate your brand with your business. Some research indicates that a potential customer has to see your message seven times before they recognize it as yours. If you’re only advertising in print or via newsletters, there’s almost no way you’ll be able to get that much exposure for your brand.
Social media, however, provides ample opportunities for getting your message out there. A customer could see your ad banners across three different websites in a single morning, giving them an opportunity to recognize and become interested in your brand. By posting consistently across all platforms, you’ll be increasing your chances of getting seen and attracting new customers.
Utilizing social media is one of the best things you could do for your business. It’s a cost-effective way to build a brand for both small and large companies and ensures you’ll reach a much wider audience. You’ll become more competitive, build stronger relationships with customers, and get your brand some recognition in a simple, straightforward way.
