Decision makers still sceptical about social? Here’s how to sell it to them

I often hear questions from business executives on why they should use and integrate social media marketing for their business. Traditional marketing methods such as radio, television, print, and newspaper advertisements are busy losing momentum by giving smaller returns on investment even though it is still popular for brand awareness campaigns.

In today’s hectic digital lifestyle where most of our busy work schedule depends on the web, it’s time for a new way of thinking and strategy to utilize the web for digital marketing purposes. You must have heard this before, but with a social media marketing strategy it is possible. If the decision makers in your organization still believes that social media is only a buzzword, find a couple of benefits and reasons below on why social media is the route to go.

Brand awareness

If your company has an event scheduled, with traditional marketing you will usually go the route of placing a few ads and hope for the best that you will draw attention to the event. Some people will show up for your event, yet the results may not be what you hoped for. With the use of a social media marketing strategy, you can post details regarding the event on the social media channels that you are using. Your followers and network can then help you spread the word and information about the event to their friends creating a snowball effect.

What this can lead to is a greater return on people showing up for your event, and it makes it easy to create some brand awareness for your company. Social media creates conversation between your potential customers and yourself. Doing it this way establishes your brand in your niche and it allows for people getting to know you better before you expect them to attend your event.

Customer services
Did you know that your current customers might already be online and talking about you without your presence on the social web? If you are proactive with your social media profiles, you can respond faster when the customer speaks. Your presence on the social web also shows that you are willing and interested to help, discuss, and resolve problems.

Your online presence on your social media channels also allows for much faster engagement with your target audience. Being in business is all about relationships, and social media provides a way for your to interact directly with your customers.

Lead generation and sales

Having an active and positive presence can be better for lead generation. Through your active conversations on the web, you can reach a bigger audience. It is as easy as creating a short contest on Facebook. The people who are entering are additions to the base of your leads. Some brands that I follow on the social web have new competitions every month. While the prize of the contest may not be big, it creates interaction and that can be shared with others.

Emotionally attached
If your customers are engaged with your business via social media, they are emotionally attached to your business. Everyone can remember the time when they had a very good customer experience. When this happens to you, do you tell all your friends about the good experience? I do. Engaged customers can spread the word about your business because they had a good experience with your business and they believe in what you are doing.

Build relationships
As I said before, business is all about relationship building. It is a fact that people buy from someone who they know and trust. The use of the all the social media channels to enhance your online profile allows for potential and current customers to engage directly with you can build the relationships you are after.