10 Ways to Embrace Social Media

Published on Friday, 09 September 2011 09:02

	By Starrlena Ansell-Knight Follow @StarrKnight

With social sites Groupon and Facebook growing rapidly, it was only a matter of time before social commerce was tipped to be one of 2011’s highest online growth areas.

As shown by Forbes, 41% of Facebook fans are more likely to recommend a brand to their fellow online community. Social commerce is only as confusing as you make it; the best place to start is by implementing a strategy that will work effectively for your company. To help you with connecting your brand to social commerce, here's 10 tips on embracing and facing the social world of commerce.

1. Check & re-check your analytics
When dealing with analytics, you need to measure your social web traffic to help identify your goals and work towards future results. If you find that your social networking traffic is not converting effectively, you need to identify the problem quickly. It is crucially important that you check and re-check your analytics because even the most thorough professional may fail to identify an issue.
 
2. How social are your customers?
To find out how social your target audience is, set up a Facebook and/or Twitter account to promote your brand. You may not receive the response you initially wanted but, social sites are not for everyone so give it some time before you re-think your strategy.
 
3. Using Facebook to promote your brand
As mentioned previously, Facebook is not for everyone but it doesn’t hurt your brand to have an account regardless; it’s free publicity!
The best thing about Facebook is the opportunity it presents to market your product. If you use analytics to measure success, then you'll know exactly where you stand with your brand and its connection with social commerce.
 
4. Make your website share friendly
Add social media links to your website e.g. ‘like’ or ‘tweet this’ buttons. This encourages your users to get involved and promote your brand by sharing content with their friends. 
 
5. Use a Facebook shopping app
As most people now have a Facebook account, take your brand to where they feel most comfortable and offer them an opportunity that they cannot refuse. Using the ‘Shop Tab App’ is an easy place to start when building your Facebook shop. (Although this is limited in regards to its use, you can upgrade to a better platform whenever you feel like it)
 
6. Investigate customised solutions
If you feel you are ready to transform your Facebook into a fully functional ecommerce platform then there are various routes you can take.
The American firm 1-800-Flowers offers a flash based site which is pulled in through an iframe hosted on a different server. This is the very first company to trial f-commerce and has proven incredibly successful in doing so.
 
7. Do more than just sell
Social media can be much more than just a cheap way to pump out your latest product. You wouldn't just walk up to a prospective client in real life, whack your product in their hands and shout "BUY THIS" at them. You need to appeal to them. Make them feel part of your brand. Give them opportunities, competitions, news, and any little tidbits to keep them interested. 
 
8. Create content that you can give away
By creating original and interesting content, you are developing a new way to interact with your audience. Provide a blog, news from that sector, company information, or anything else that your customers will find engaging. Introducing this will show your target audience that you have produced content that gives them something they can value. Go beyond just a corporate website and a flimsy Q&A section.
 
9. Be responsive
The key word here is "social". Re-tweet or respond to comments that you find interesting. But don't stop there. Have a look at what that person may have to offer you. Take a look at their website/blog and interact with them. 

10. Create ONE message
The important thing about social media is that you have one direct message that you want your peers to see. Yes, you can show other interests but make sure it is part of your overall message; whether that is as a person, or representing a company. For example, you may be a well respected and knowledgable economists. Your opinions on money matters are why people follow you. They don't want to know what you had on your toast this morning. Keep it relevant.

Remember, on average a fan is worth $136.38 to a brand and spends on average $71.84 per year. It’s the perfect time to embrace the world of social commerce; it has the ability to increase brand awareness and much, much more.
 
Are you ready to embrace Social Media?