The Social Media Formula for Business Success

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social-media/types-of-social-media

“Today, marketing is about being where the customers and the conversation are” –Avinash Kaushik

I wonder how many social media platforms exist today?  We are all familiar with the bigger channels that started the revolution (e.g: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc.), but what about the medium ones that have just popped up in the past couple years like SnapChat , Gym Pact, and Yelp?  And how about those even smaller channels that are working their way up to get their foot in the door like Coffee Meets Bagel and Morpholio? 

I wouldn’t be surprised if there are over a thousand social media platforms populating the web today.  With every development, more social media platforms are created to enhance the qualities that other social platforms lack, each with their own audience and set of unwritten rules on how to interact with the members within the network.  Even with all of these channels and a horizontal interaction happening between customers & businesses, its imperative that businesses maintain presences on more than one social platform. 

There is a balance.  A presence on all platforms is nearly impossible and a horrible waste money and being on one platform will slowly make you irrelevant.  Adopting a presence on multiple, manageable technological channels (e.g. mobile) and social platforms allows you to view “the experience through the eyes of your customer, orchestrating the customer experience across all channels so that it is seamless, integrated, and consistent. Omni-channel anticipates that customers may start in one channel and move to another as they progress to a resolution. “ (Stocker, 2014).

Be where the customers are… (Kaushik, 2010)

How can you and your business identify which social platforms to use? 

First, you must identify your business’ target audience including your existing customers. 

Next, do a little research and answer these four, core questions (Patel, 2014):

·      Where is my audience?

·      Where is my audience active?

·      Where is my audience searching?

·      What niche social media sites are right for me?

Most likely, your research will lead you to join the “big four” social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+ (Patel, 2014).  Almost all of your customers will expect you to be on at least three, if not all, of these social platforms.

Depending on your audience, there are plenty of other social platforms you can establish a presence on, but you want to make sure you have the resources to manage them first.

Work from the top down…(Lake, 2009)

According to Lake, “taking a top-down look at interaction - and monitoring how customer engagement changes over time - can really help you position your company as a community-centric organization, by proving that an investment into customer engagement is a wise one.” (2009)

Once you establish your presence, you can continue to grow your social platforms by….

1. Measuring your multiple-point data—walk in your customer’s shoes by navigating through clickstreams on your blog, find which posts get the most shares/page visits/retweets, etc.  All of this data gives you a clearer picture of your audience and what engages them.  Engaged customers=positive brand attitudes (hopefully)=customer loyalty.
2. Segment you audience based on your data—“‘Whatever the determinant, customer segmentation lets marketers know where to focus their efforts and how to best allocate marketing resources’” (Said & Wang, 2014).  The audience handles different social platforms in different ways.  Get to know those unwritten rules about good content to fuel conversations by segmenting your data. 
3. Be consistent in your messages—no matter what, always stay true to your company’s overarching mission, vision, and goals.  Consistency increases your transparency, which, in turn, gains customer trust, respect, and loyalty. 

Be where the conversation is…(Kaushik , 2010)

Your presence on social platforms makes you more relevant in the customer’s eyes because you are now a part of the interaction.  You will be judged by your content, however, the higher quality content you contribute, the larger the more engaging conversation.  Content fuels the conversational fire…and vice versa.  As a result, the interaction that happens within the online community becomes establishes a certain customer experience to your brand.  According to Robert D’Loren, CEO of Xcel Brands, “‘If you want to succeed in your omnichannel marketing efforts, you first have to provide a great customer experience, so you earn the right to operate in multiple consumer spaces’” (Fallon, 2014).

The formula?  Relevant content (determined through data analysis per above)+ high quality content + consistency= increased customer experience leading to positive word of mouth, increased customer base, and increase in conversions….the possibilities are endless! 

If there is anything you can add, correct, or elaborate upon in this post, feel free to start the conversation here and comment below. 

References:

Fallon, N.  (2 July 2014).  Market Everywhere: 3 Tips to Use Omnichannel Right.  Business News Daily.  Retrieved from http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/6716-omnichannel-marketing.html

Kaushik, A. (2010). Web analytics 2.0: The art of online accountability & science of customer centricity (p. 120). Indianapolis, IN: Wiley Publishing.

Lake, C. (7 October 2009).  Media KPIs to Help Measure Engagement.  Econsultancy.  Retrieved from https://econsultancy.com/blog/4887-35-social-media-kpis-to-help-measure-engagement/

Patel, N. (2014).  Which Social Media Accounts Really Matter and Why.  Kissmetrics.  Retrieved from https://blog.kissmetrics.com/which-social-accounts-matter/


Said, Y., Wang, L. (2014).  Data Analytics Provides the Key to Sales and Marketing Success.  Informatica.  Retrieved from http://www.informatica.com/us/potential-at-work/sales-leaders/data-analytics-provide-the-key-to-sales-and-marketing-success.aspx#fbid=pilw2hy1W6f

Stocker, M. (1 April 2014).  The Definition of Omni-Channel Marketing – Plus 7 Tips.  Marketo.com.  Retrieved from http://blog.marketo.com/2014/04/the-definition-of-omni-channel-marketing-plus-7-tips.html