While it feels as if October has flown right by, we could not be more excited that our CEO, Zeeshan, had an opportunity to speak at this year’s PROFIT 500 Growth Summit on October 20th.
Zeeshan spoke at the conference for progressive entrepreneurs as part of a panel of leaders from the fastest growing companies across Canada including Alex Fernandes, founder of Avigilon Corporation and Lorna Vanderhaeghe, founder of Lorna Vanderhaeghe Health Solutions. The professionals came together to share their expertise, best management practices, and toughest challenges.
It was a fantastic morning of sharing, networking, and learning and we are so honoured to have been asked to be a part of it.
Tips for #Trending – Do’s and Don’ts of Promoting Your Business on Social Media
It’s 2014 – Apple is announcing watches that are able to make phone calls, Google Glass appears to be the future of eyewear, and just about everyone and their dog (in some cases, literally) have at least one social media account. In this time of futuristic technology and instant, endless communication, managing your business on social media should be a breeze, right?
Wrong. Some of the largest PR disasters in recent years have been at the hands of poor social media management. Not only do these missteps spread like wildfire across the internet, but they will also permanently be a quick google search away – forever linked to your company’s online presence.
Maintaining a clean and responsible online identity is crucial, and doing it properly can have a huge impact on the success of your business. Here are our do’s and don’ts to make sure that when your business is trending online, it’s for the right reasons.
Quality vs. Quantity
Don’t: Frustrate Your Followers
While an individual’s decision to “like” or “follow” your business may have only taken a split-second, it takes just as long for them to reverse their choice if you make them regret it. Posting too frequently, sharing unoriginal content, and filling their feeds with bizarre memes or images are all ways to lose followers and damage your business’s reputation.
Do: Post Unique and High Quality Content
Sharing information that is relevant to your business, and can’t easily be found elsewhere on the web will not only attract people to your page, but it will keep them there. Aim to post fewer pieces of content overall, but focus on posting during peak times to ensure that your key messaging doesn’t get lost in a sea of memes.
Show Off Your Personality
Do: Create Your Own Voice!
Perhaps the biggest advantage of using social media is the ability to give your company an authentic, real-time, human voice that can interact with stakeholders. Use social media as an opportunity to develop your corporate personality – integrate humour, show off your office culture, and share what makes your company a great place to work! Having a distinct and unique voice will encourage customers to interact with your company online and set you apart from the competition.
Don’t: Share Inappropriate Content
While this one may seem like a no-brainer, companies continue to get themselves in trouble for sharing inappropriate content to their thousands of followers. Companies tend to get themselves in the most trouble when it comes to posting their thoughts on current events, particularly tragedies. Sharing condolences on behalf of your company is one thing, but using someone’s misfortune to boost online engagement is a big no-no.
Communicate!
Don’t: Be Combative with Customers
While social media has become a fantastic platform for businesses to communicate directly with customers, that communication brings forth a greater quantity of complaints, issues, and frustrations. No matter how angry the comment, remember that this is your opportunity to highlight your company’s professionalism and unique approach to customer service by demonstrating how customer’s problems are supposed to be handled.
Do: Interact in a Timely Manner
Making your social media efforts interactive is integral to the success of your messaging. Any social media manager’s goal is to have lively conversations about the company’s products and promotions.
One important tip is to reply to customer inquiries in a timely (same day) manner. This attention shows customers that their contributions are valued by your company and will encourage a greater degree of engagement in the future – who knows, they might even recommend your service over a social media channel of their own!
Diversify Your Efforts
Do: Create Original Content for Each Platform
Chances are, the individuals interacting with your company online know a thing or two about social media, and don’t want to see the exact same message plastered over Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.
Each social network has different strengths and weaknesses, and more importantly, different audiences. Taking the time to create original postings not only keeps your audience engaged, but it allows you an opportunity to optimize the reach of your content through the use of platform-specific features like hashtags, targeted posts, pins, etc.
Don’t: Waste Time on Irrelevant Platforms
Like I said, each social network has its own set of advantages and disadvantages – some of which will be great for your business, and others that won’t. For instance, if you are managing a high-profile engineering firm, maybe the DIY arts and crafts focus of Pinterest wouldn’t make for a good fit.
Knowing your business is important when it comes to choosing which platforms will best connect you with the audience that wants to interact with your company.
So next time you log in to check your likes, retweets, and hashtags – remember these tips and you’ll be putting your company on the fast track to #trending!
What are your favourite social media platforms? Got any tips we missed on our list? Get in touch with us online on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn!