It's the life

Let’s face it; we are coming to that point where your business has to incorporate social media in order to continue reaching new people.  Services like Facebook and Twitter are free and easy to set up, but that doesn’t mean that managing these accounts are a walk in the park.  When used correctly, social media can really be a benefit to your business.  But on the other hand, if you don’t use it correctly, it can be disastrous.  So what do you do?

The first thing you need to do is understand social media.  Break the term down to “social” and “media”.  It is a very social outlet, meaning it is supposed to be conversational.  People log in to these sites to have fun, contribute ideas, and learn new things.  They don’t come to these websites for a sales pitch or a commercial.  So if you set up a Twitter page for your company and only use it to post deals and specials, people are going to quickly ignore you.

The media side of the term describes the network-to-network communication.  But what sets social media apart from other media is that you have the freedom to communicate from one-to-one or one-to-many.  You are given the option to speak directly to individuals as well as the masses.  So it is important to talk to your “friends” or “followers,” so that you can build a good reputation with them.

Going off what I said earlier, people don’t want their social media experience to feel like a commercial.  Your ultimate goal may be to get people to visit your website or into your store, but they don’t want to be told to do so.  If you build a solid relationship with your social network, they are going to do that on their own free will.  Think of social media as a two-way street.  You need to contribute to conversations and express ideas to stimulate discussion amongst people in your network.  Failure to do so will quickly lead to a loss of interest in your company.

What it mainly boils down to is social media is a powerful asset to all companies when properly managed.  You just need to know and understand the fine line between having a positive presence online and presenting yourself as an infomercial for your brand.  Maintain the social aspect, talk to people, and gain trust in your community and the sales will happen on their own.