Don’t Believe The Hype!
Your presence on any social network does not guarantee any increase of your bottom line. In other words, don’t expect to get rich quick–social media is not about instant sales and revenue, but rather building relationships. Could those relationships lead to potential sales? Yes! However, that should not be your first and only goal. Says “I Will Teach You To Be Rich”, NY Times Best Selling Author, Ramit Sethi:
“The hype around social media doesn’t necessarily translate into sales — in fact, it rarely does. Unfortunately, few people will tell you this because they’re busy hyping the next big thing. For example, I get more than a thousand times the financial ROI from my boring old e-mail list than from my Twitter followers. Now, if your goal is engagement or long-term bonding, social media can be a good play. But if your goal is direct revenue, I would focus on other channels that you can track and measure, such as online advertising and e-mail marketing.”
On the Scale of Social Media Which Is The Heaviest, Influence or Numbers?
As the image in our homepage slide show demonstrates, there is a great debate in social media circles about influence versus numbers. But as most social media aficionados will attest, it’s INFLUENCE that is the best indicator of your success in a social media world. Truly, of all the thousands of fans and followers you may have on your company profile, how many of them really respond to your tweets or comment on your updates? Are they truly paying attention?
“To gain paying customers you’ll need to focus on attracting the right followers, and not just on attracting the most. Communicate often with useful information to increase your value, and focus on pitching your product in a genuine way. Make sure you have a professional web presence, and with any luck, you should start noticing your efforts pay off,” says David Rosenko, founder of Wenko.
Dating Verses Being In a Relationship With Social Media
Rome wasn’t built in a day and nor should the community or network on your social profile be either. To be successful in your social media efforts, the “one night stand” approach does not work. You’ll need to spend some quality time “dating”–nurturing your online relationships through engaging and useful content, responding to questions and comments, and building trust. Try to have some fun while you’re at it too! But if you truly don’t have the time, outsource it to an agency like Sheer Social.
What’s Your Policy?
Before you post the first “hello” create a social media policy for the company. This will set the guidelines on what to say, when, and how to interact with people in your online efforts. It will also help keep your company voice and message consistent no matter who is speaking online.
Blogging, tweeting, posting updates, who in the company will be your voice? If not you, then find those employees that communicate well online and off–those who can become your “ambassadors.” Will you or they need training? If so, seek out agencies or consultants that specialize in social media marketing and PR. And remember, in many cases the interactions your company has with the friends, fans, and followers online could lead to increased business offline.
Quotes source: http://mashable.com/2010/11/10/small-biz-social-media/
