Who is managing your social media? Thinking about who manages your social media; is it your staff, or the owner of your company? Selecting the right person is one of the most significant things, as you will need to consider they are marketing your brand. Ensure that they are aware of what things to talk about, and what not to talk about; i.e personal topics and politics are a big no no. Creating guidelines of what ‘brand voice’ and making sure they are checking their spellings, and grammar are key.
Talking to your customers. Social media is a great way to get really personal with your customers, so make sure you assign time throughout the day to check your posts, and respond to the comments.You can really get across your brand through how you respond! Just remember, negative comments will occur, but how you handle them is key. Reply in a neutral manner, and attempt to solve the customer complaint, if you can, but sometimes you will get that odd customer which you won’t be able to please - so don’t take it personally.
On the positive side, replying to your customers can help develop a relationship, and in return loyalty. So that simple thank you, or response to their question can really make a difference in brand perception.
Scheduling! Being consistent in your social media use will help develop it further; are you willing to post each day, or is it more beneficial to post really good content a few times a week? With social media tools, such as hootsuite, you can your tweets and Facebook posts weeks in advance! Keeping a plan of your social media activity will help it be consistent, and align with your key goals, i.e ensuring that you post about an upcoming sale, or showing sneak peeks of new products, or events keeps them interested.
Encourage your staff to talk about your social media, promoting new products or offers, competition to your customers, to gain followers.
Set yourself realistic goals for your social media, whether it is be the amount of followers, or comments per post - keep it simple and achievable, as organic growth online is not easy, but worthwhile.