Sometimes it looks like every small business is starting a blog or starting a group on Facebook. What we see is a lot of small actions taken with few results and not a lot of thought put into the endeavor before it is too late.
As a small business trying to use social marketing you need to ask if social media is the thing for you before spending time and money. Using social media will not solve anything unless the way it is done addresses a specific business need. Blogging just because someone told you to, won’t bring more business to you. You should use social media marketing only if it is to accomplish an objective.
Then you need to ask: What do I want the relationship with my customer to look and feel like?”
When you have that answer, you can then decide which social media tools would be appropriate for your small business. You will see the picture of the way you want your prospects and customers to experience you, your products and services, your brand therefore which social media marketing strategy would make sense for you.
Some companies like Apple for example, don’t use social media at all, and that is ok too.
Now, here are some reasons why it could be a good option for your company:
– To generate more traffic to your website;
– Build customer loyalty and a community sense;
– For good PR and PR control;
– To strengthen customer relationship;
– Crisis management.
Just to name a few.
Here are some social media tools you could use to achieve these goals:
– Blog in all of the examples above;
– Online videos;
– Social networks;
– Customer reviews;
– Podcasts;
– Wikis;
– Twitter.
Many social media tools can be used for multiple purposes. You may be better choosing a couple of them and being consistent, than trying to apply all of them.
The tools you use should be secondary to the business objective. Small Businesses marketing with social media is about quality of content and consistency, not about using every single tool out there.