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October 29, 2018
It’s that time of year. Ghosts, goblins and ghouls are roaming the streets looking for tricks or treats. But as a business owner, there’s something even spookier you need to face. Your social media strategy. For some, their current social strategy is a bit reminiscent of “Night of the Living Dead.” So, we’ve compiled our top 4 tricks and treats of the social media trade to bring your social presence back among the living!
🎃 Trick # 1: Don’t be a ghost on social media! Your business may be on Facebook and Instagram, but is there anybody home? Potential customers can find you, but if you’re not actively posting, they leave with an eerie feeling and no engagement. These days, with recent algorithm changes, engagement will be the key to continued exposure and connection on social media.
🎃 Treat #1: Go above and beyond—give them all the candy (so-to-speak)! The king-sized actions on social media are those that really impress customers and prospects. Locate mentions of your business and engage your customers with a personal response. Maintain the dialogue with a follow-up question: “Anything else we can help you with?”
🎃 Trick #2: Don’t scare your customer by spamming their Facebook and Instagram feeds with mindless posts, and an endless stream of self-serving promotions. Soften your promotions with helpful, informative or entertaining content. You can add value with photos, how-to articles, interviews, webinars, reviews and more. Only 5-10% of your content should be promotional.
🎃 Treat #2: Run a contest across your social channels promoting user-generated content. Customer creativity will drive attention to your business. Bonus points if you use Facebook or Instagram advertising to get more exposure for your contest!
🎃 Trick #3: Don’t get scared off by negative feedback? Making your brand social means taking the good with the bad and capitalizing on all kinds of attention. Negative reviews don’t have to be spooky. If you address it quickly and thoughtfully, your followers will see that you’re engaged, and you care. Most of the time that’s all they really wanted in the first place. Don’t go overboard though—your response should be caring and to-the-point. Move the deeper conversation offline if need be.
🎃 Treat #3: More than just not shying away from negative feedback, you need to actually solicit all kinds of feedback and input from your customers. Ask them questions. Run a poll. Asking questions on Facebook increases interaction by 10-20%. It also shows that you value your customers.
🎃 Trick #4: Don’t haunt the wrong neighborhood. Not every fan or follower is a prospect. Stick to what you know. Create high-value content that demonstrates your expertise in your industry, and then target relevant customers to gain greater exposure with a highly targeted audience, rather than just hoping the right eyeballs will fall on your post.
🎃 Treat #4: Don’t be afraid to use Facebook and Instagram advertising, aka promoted posts. With just a few advertising dollars, you can target audiences based on location, interest and demographic ensuring your custom content is getting in front of the right prospects.
Finding success for your business on social media doesn’t have to be spooky. With the right treats, and avoiding all the tricks, you don’t have to be scared of what’s lurking in the social media shadows.
