It’s clear that social media has grown dramatically over the last few years and that with more than 800 million active users, the number of Facebook users is easily more than twice the size of the complete population of the United States!
Its growth has been astronomical and today, thousands of people are posting more personal and business information online than ever before. It’s happening at lightning speed with thousands of posts, tweets and uploads occurring every hour.
Recent research conducted by the Australian Interactive Media Industry Association (AIMIA) commissioned by Sensis Pty Ltd (May 2011, p. 10) indicates, that “62% of Australian Internet users use a variety of social media sites, with many visiting each day and most at least a few times a week.” It’s no real surprise that with the millions of prospective customers from around the globe using these sites, every day, that so many businesses are determined to include social media into their marketing mix. Nonetheless it also important to get a knowledge of how these sites are increasingly being used and what’s involved with maintaining or resourcing your business presence on these sites. Your online footprint can stick around for a long period so don’t underestimate how this may affect the perception of your brand available in the market place. Spend some time upfront thinking about whether social media is right for the business.
1. Seek first to understand – It is very important that you understand the basics of how is social media actually works and how it’s being used. What exactly are people and businesses doing with social media marketing? What gets them results? A few of you may be thinking, how do I do this? Perchance you could consider trying it out on your own by setting up a personal account, then testing a number of the features, or get a trusted friend showing you their account and show you through. Alternatively you can find so many resources and ‘how to’ items online about social media, that you could run a explore Google or on YouTube on a specific topic of interest watching the video tutorials to get informed.
2. Understand your purpose – What’s your purpose is for using social media? What do you desire to achieve for your business by it? It’s really important that you identify your purpose for getting involved in social media marketing (or any other marketing activity for that matter). You need to work out why you are engaging. What do you be prepared to achieve? Do you simply desire to build brand awareness, build relationships your visitors or identify new sales opportunities? Be sure you be realistic about what you think you will be able to accomplish.
3. If you decide to take part in social media marketing, which sites are best for you personally? – With the plethora of social media sites available, those are best for the business? Think about where Lifestyle Enhancement would socialize online, and take into account the amount of time and resources you’ll realistically be able to commit to maintaining and administering your site presence. Which ones are right for you? You will probably find that some certainly are a better fit than others.
4. Quality Content – If you decide that social media is right for the business, carefully consider the amount and quality of information you intend to share in the web sphere. Remember it’ll probably stay there for a long time, so you must make sure it accurate and reliable information that’s valuable to your market. It has to be relevant, otherwise people won’t read it.