Social media is growing in importance, with every passing day. It has become an important tool to engage customers and gain more visibility. An increasing number of customers directly contact businesses through their social media pages. Naturally, it’s a field that you need to master to get the best benefit.
However, doing so isn’t as easy as it sounds. Far too many businesses have just gotten negative publicity because they didn’t handle social media well. A single bad post can ruin your reputation for a long time. To avoid that, consider the following points:
Honesty Matters
It’s important to be honest on social media. It’s a simple rule to follow. Don’t lie about your products and services, don’t spread false rumours about your competition, and don’t make promises you can’t keep. The old adage of keeping your mouth shut if you have nothing good to say works well here. If you can’t be honest about a subject, don’t post content on the matter.
Use Your Voice
It’s understandable if you, as a busy small business owner, delegate the task of social media engagement to someone else. Just make sure that the person who engages customers on your behalf gives your company a voice and an identity. Experts will always recommend that you handle social media for your company yourself. It’s a very simple matter of sounding genuine and authentic on Facebook and other such platforms.
Avoid Foot in Mouth
Regardless of what your private opinions on region, politics, society, and culture are, try to keep them limited to your friends and family. Do not comment on these sensitive topics on a public forum, especially with your company’s name on it. That would lead to some very bad publicity and you want to avoid that. You might think that social media is safe platform to vent your opinions on, but eventually, you’re going to run into people that disagree with you. These people might possibly be your potential customers too.
Be Steady and Consistent
Flooding the social media with content when you’re free while being silent for several long days when you’re busy will harm your company’s reputation. It’s very important to be consistent and timely when you engage in social media marketing. You should determine which schedule is comfortable for you and post content according to that schedule.
Build Credibility
There are several ways to attract short term attention but you shouldn’t do it. Instead, settle down for a long haul and slowly build your social media presence. You won’t see much return on your investment at first, but as your presence grows, your return will too. The idea is to create brand recognition and loyalty. You’ll need time and patience for that.
Avoid a Promotional Tone
If you keep promoting your products blatantly through your posts, you will only chase customers away. Social media is an engagement platform. You need to give your customers the content that they’ll benefit from and value. If you keep promoting your products, they’ll turn away.
