The Flower Power of Social Media
A company’s web presence is like a flower. Their website is the center. It contains the seeds necessary for the flower to flourish, given the opportunity – facts about what services they provide, the pricing, FAQs, contact information. However, the seeds aren’t always enough.
Flowers have colorful petals for a reason – they attract the pollinators to the seeds which allow them to grow. This is similar to what social media platforms do for companies – they use a bit more “color” to attract potential partners, clients, and customers.
In today’s market, you need social media platforms appropriate for your business in order to connect with your audience and establish your company as an authority in your field. Using social media offers a space for clients to learn about the culture of your company and engage with it in a more authentic way, rather than just being on the receiving end of a sales pitch. These platforms give you the opportunity to drive traffic to your website and, hopefully, convert some of those leads.
Whether you’re an entrepreneur, marketing professional, social media influencer, or virtual assistant, knowing how to use these platforms to your brand’s advantage is vital to its success. If you’re working with a smaller budget, these platforms can give you the best ROI compared to other forms of promotion. Here’s how to make sure you’re using your social media presence to your fullest advantage.
1. Prepare your social media in advance. Before you begin writing across your various social media platforms, have a plan of the type of content you’d like to publish over the coming months. While some posts will happen organically because of special deals your company may offer or because of a relevant current event, your social media should be planned in advance. This way, you ensure that you have content to post consistently and that you’re spacing it out in a way that doesn’t overwhelm your audience.
Helpful Hint: Establishing a series is a great way to create a longer-term social media strategy. You can use this to set up your calendar and then build in holidays and other important dates.
Use a platform like Hootsuite to schedule the publication of your posts in advance. You can input your content for the week, month, or quarter, and have it automatically published on the date of your choosing. By planning in advance, you don’t have to worry about forgetting to post or getting behind on your social media calendar.
Even better, use Wordzen to edit your social media posts before you publish them. Our professional editors can shorten those tweets when they’re more than 280 characters and know when to keep grammar rules, as well as when to break them. Submit your short-form posts via email and then just copy and paste them into the appropriate platform once they’ve been edited.
2. Establish a unique, consistent voice. While different platforms require different tones (LinkedIn tends to be professional, Twitter is quippy, Instagram is fun, and Facebook is a casual blend of these attitudes), it’s important to figure out your company’s identity so that it’s consistently reflected across these venues. A unique voice makes your company more relatable and helps consumers feel like they’re communicating with a person rather than a corporation.
Helpful Hint: If you’re having trouble identifying your company’s voice, answer the questions listed in this article to help you determine what tone, language, and level of professionalism is right for you.
Wordzen editors are pros at evaluating tone and can edit your posts while maintaining your voice. When you’re wondering how to best word a post, send a draft, and let our editors do it for you. As they edit, they’ll begin to know you and your company and make your posts sound like you have a social media specialist onsite, even if you’re a company of only two.
3. Publish content that establishes your company as an authority in your field. Provide valuable, relevant information to your customers in all of your posts, both original and shared. Even if you’re retweeting an infographic or linking to another company’s blog post, the content should directly benefit your customer. Sharing the knowledge that you have and find will help deepen your customers’ trust. Being a resource for all things related to your company’s niche will encourage people to come to your page, giving you the opportunity to interact further with them.
Helpful Hint: Having a blog allows you to share your company’s unique voice while also establishing yourself as an authority in your field. By publishing original ideas or compiling old thoughts and adding new twists that others can share, your reach will increase. This is your opportunity to show your knowledge with authority and gives people a reason to remember your company for their future needs or for referring friends.
4. Use content to have conversations. Social media isn’t all about publishing posts. The content you’re publishing should encourage thoughtful conversations. These platforms offer your clients and potential clients a way to interact with you and with each other, so it is not a place that’s solely for pitching sales. Use a healthy ratio of community-building to sales (such as the “4-1-1,” “5-3-2,” or “10-4-1” rules) — share content that will keep your audience engaged, then occasionally, make your pitch.
Helpful Hint: Reply to others’ posts regularly. By interacting with your clients on a routine basis via social media, you prove you’ll be there for them whenever they encounter an issue or have a question about your product or service. They know they can rely on you to reply in a timely manner and provide the answer they need.
Building trust can lead to more sales (learn more in our blog post here). By creating and reposting content that allows your audience to engage with you and each other, you help your them feel like they have a personal relationship with you, and they will be more receptive when you put out a call-to-action and ask them to do business with you.
5. Drive traffic to your site. With all of the above, you will inevitably drive more traffic to your site. However, to ensure that leads who find you on your social media petals make it to the center of that flower, make sure your URL is clearly visible in the About section of the platform. If you refer to a blog post, give the link so that it’s easily accessible. Use targeted social media ads to encourage your followers to visit your company site and get to the root of what you offer. The petals did their job by attracting visitors; make sure your site can close the deal.
Helpful Hint: Be smart about your hashtag usage on social media posts. If you offer a technology that allows you to track your #productivity throughout the day, you want it to be highlighted so that anyone searching for “productivity” can find your social media page and, ultimately, be led to your site where they can sign up or take action.
When creating your social media content, use Wordzen’s services to ensure you’re publishing professional and engaging posts while maintaining your unique voice. Our editors are well-versed in the various rules for short-form posts across the most popular social media platforms. They are standing by, ready to help you perfect your social media posts.