5 Turbo Charged Truths About Social Media
For the folks who know me well, you know that I’m a huge advocate of social media! I also know that I can be a big pain in the butt when it comes to sharing the benefits of social media.
The benefits of personal social media are awesome but for this blog I want to focus on social media for entrepreneurs. When speaking to business leaders in our industry, my question to them is simple: are you on social media in some meaningful way? If not, what are you waiting for?
Why do I advocate social media for entrepreneurs? Well, truth be told, when Facebook first launched more than 10 years ago, I hated it! That’s right, I hated it! I really didn’t understand it, nor did I give it much attention. I avoided it like the plague and the more people would tell me about it, the more I would distance myself from it. So for the people reading this that aren’t using it, I sympathize with you (a little). In fact, the point of this blog is to share how I came to love it and why you and your business should too.
Here are a few facts I want to begin with. Did you know?
Has over 1.28 billion users.
One million web pages are accessed using the “Login with Facebook” feature.
23% of Facebook users login at least 5 times per day.
47% of Americans say Facebook is their #1 influencer of purchases.
70% of marketers use Facebook to gain new customers.
Google+
Has over 1 billion enabled accounts with 359 million active monthly users.
It’s growing at an outstanding rate – 33% per year.
The 45 to 54 year old bracket has increased by 56% since 2012.
More than 20 billion photos have been shared to date.
200 million active users including 50 million that have signed up in the last 6 months.
6 billion Likes and 60 million photos shared everyday!
The facts are staggering! For me, the most important thing about social media is the ability to connect with people. As human beings, we are made to create connections; it’s in our social makeup and is linked to our happiness levels. Never before could we send a Tweet to someone we admire with a chance that they’ll respond. Well today, that’s highly likely, in fact, celebrities are reaching out to their fan base and connecting on levels never seen before!
You may not be a celebrity but as a business you do have something to share. Below are 5 killer reasons why your business could explode by using social media to fuel growth:
1. Social media is a great way to increase brand awareness:
Very simply, your customers are there, so why aren’t you? It’s the equivalent to your high school hosting prom and you not attending. Why wouldn’t you? Social media gives you the opportunity to share with the world what your brand stands for. It provides the chance to be accessible and visible to your current customers as well being actively-present for new opportunities. Showing up, being present and sharing value are the best ways to build your brand presence on social media.
2. Social media is an easy way to communicate to your target audience:
Facebook and Twitter now have tools that allow you to create specific content for specific audiences. Why is that so important? If you run a promotion that only a segment of your customers will appreciate, you can ensure that only those customers will see it. Let’s say you’re targeting Spanish-speaking social media users, your English-speaking customers won’t understand or likely appreciate the content you design in Spanish. There’s no point pissing them off by having it appear in their newsfeeds; instead, focus on ensuring the content is only seen by the group you want and will appreciate your content.
3. Social media is a great way to learn about and connect with your audience:
For any business, the better you know your audience, the better you will succeed in making them happy! Social media has made this easier than ever, with tools like Google Analytics and Hootsuite, you can gain valuable insights into what makes your audience tick. By using these tools, you’ll know their age, gender, location, language and so much more. Knowing who your fans are will allow you to create better content and products with a better return on your investment.
4. Social Media is a great tool to build trust and transparency in addition to soliciting feedback:
I love that on social media the more authentic you are, the more people will want to connect with you. I love this part because it’s really hard to fake it and if you do, it will be obvious for people to tell. The simple rule is to just be yourself! Be engaging and authentic, ensure that you give the user value and you’ll position yourself to be successful on social media. Social is a Jab Jab Jab Right Hook strategy (Gary Vaynerchuk). You have to overload your audience with value before ever asking them for anything. Like any relationship, the more you give, the better you do!
5. Social media is a fun and easy way to show your brand’s personality:
As indicated above, be yourself and always remember to have fun! At Roma Moulding, we create tons of content that we know our fans will love but we always ensure to make it fun for the audience and ourselves.
“Every day I start my morning off checking in with the Roma Moulding Team for inspiring posts and wonderfully whacky videos. Situated in a small town makes me feel far away and forgotten; but when Roma features one of my projects and interacts with me personally, I feel fantastic and a part of something much bigger. I truly enjoy the culture Roma has to offer.”
Denise dePencier, Framing DAISY Napanee, Ontario.
In closing, social media allows your business to create deep and meaningful connections with your audiences that ultimately is the only thing that counts in the long run!
So what are you waiting for? Get on social media and connect with me!