The Social Media Checklist For Businesses Big and Small
Posted by Patrick Murphy on Mon, Aug 08, 2011
Twitter has more than 200 million users worldwide, and YouTube is the second most popular search engine used in the world. Facebook is consistently the most popular social network in the world, with over a quarter of a billion users registered. With stats like that it’s safe to assume some of your brand fans, or potential fans or customers are out there in the social media world. The smart move is to use social media to reach out to them.
Claim your accounts
Create profiles and pages on all the mediums you require, like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn etc. In the same way as you secured your domain name as soon as you registered your business, your social media pages need to be claimed too.
Complete your profile
Building relationships means that users have to know as much as possible about your business. Users want to know your business goal, ethics, what the business stands for, and what they will get by connecting to your profile.
Listen out to find out what users respond to
You don’t go barging in on other people’s conversations at a restaurant, so why start spamming them with comments on social media? Listen before you engage, find out what people are talking about, and consider how you can make constructive input into the conversation.
Engagement, not advertising
Social media users do not respond well to blatant advertising. But response rates for real engagement can be great, and improve your brand reputation. So if someone is talking about car maintenance on twitter, don’t send them a tweet saying “half prices services at our garage in July”. Engage and find out more about what their requirements are, and offer real advice.
Customers, prospects and peers are discussing your brand, your industry and your competitors right now on social media: with or without you. Unfortunately, choosing not to listen doesn’t make those conversations go away. Actively listening means protecting brand reputation, discovering opportunities, staying competititive and avoiding runaway crisis’.