How to Use Social Media for Business – Facebook

Are you wondering just how to use social media for business?  Before you go bah humbug I promise I’ll be quick. In a previous post we looked what isEngage with customers on your facebook fanpages required to build a social media content strategy (click here) which was presented by social media expert Mikal E. Belicove. You may be like me and find business theories interesting but  all too often find that the reality as quite different. So I was greatful to find an article and video which gives actual real life examples of how social media and specifically facebook has helped two businesses, in the language and style of actual small business owners. It also reiterated the steps in my previous post. Phew!

 

Click the link below to view the video & read the article:

http://www.kspr.com/news/kspr-social-media-reinventing-the-wheel-for-local-businesses-20120517,0,5946238.story

 

How to Use Social Media for Business

 

Don’t fall into the trap that Facebook and other types of social media are the total answer and will automatically generate sales. Social media is all about building a relationship, getting potential customers to know, like and trust you….. it’s then when your authority is established that the sales can occur.

Jennifer of Facebook Ads Lab has this to say:

The key thing to remember – and a big mistake many marketers make – is that your WEBSITE is the center of your business. Not your Facebook Fan page.

Gather traffic from Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, etc and drive it all to your main “money site”. This means that you want to use Facebook to continually send people to your website. Don’t get confused and start thinking your Facebook Fan Page is the “be all” of your business. It’s not. Your “money site” is. source: Fb ads lab.com

So this is how to use social media in business, as a tool, but not as a sales technique.

And also just to add more confusion, here’s something else to consider, do your customers actually want a social relationship with you? Pete Davis, MD, of Getmemedia.com shares the following on how brands can humanise their social media strategy.

So where should they start? I asked some the social media experts at UM to come up with their top five tips…

1) Don’t assume that your consumer wants a social relationship with you. They may just want to transact with your brand and nothing else. Don’t waste time, effort and investment on creating a social relationship when there isn’t a genuine consumer need for one.

2) If you find that your consumers do want a social relationship with you, find out what kind of relationship they want. Not all consumers, brands and categories want the same kind of social interaction with brands. Some want very superficial relationships, i.e. “tell me when your new product comes out” and some want very deep relationships i.e. “let me work with you to develop new products that really meet my needs”. Knowing where your consumer fits along this scale is important, because otherwise you potentially over invest in an experience that the consumer ultimately doesn’t want or under invest in an experience that fails to meet the consumer’s needs or expectations. read the full post here

I’m now coming to the realisation that there is so much to the social media stuff that I am unable to devote enough time, energy and brain cells to it, I have a business to run! At some point I can see myself having to employ someone to help me.

I hope this has been a help with starting to get you on the right track on  how to use social media for business. How are you coping  with social media in your business? Leave a comment so that we can help each  other.

 

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Social Media Content Strategy – Video

Ok, I’ll admit it, my social marketing efforts have been and are, haphazard and lacking definition. I do not have a social media content strategy. So I was pleased to find the following video by  on Entrepreneur.com which details the steps to consider before starting any social media  program.

And the steps are:

1. Set your positioning. Who are you? What do you do? Why does it matter? Why are you better?

2. Identify your target audience.

3. Create personas for your customers so you have a better idea of what they do and what they need.

4. Determine which social networks are the best platforms for your business.

 

UPDATE: Click here to view new post How to use social media for business

Social Media Content Strategy – Video

I hope you have found this as helpful as I have. Now I will sit down & think about my social media content strategy.  Have you done this or are you like me, just trying to keep up with all the so called ‘must haves’ in the social media world.

It’s all about working on your business, not in your business. Enjoy!

 

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