There is something to be said about the tale of the tortoise and the hare. Of course, when you started your business, you hoped for overnight success. You put so much of your blood, sweat and tears into preparing for the big opening. Certainly, you may have decent sales, but how do you get more?
There is a huge push toward putting advertising dollars into social media. It is like a shiny new toy — everyone’s favorite go-to. “Put your business on Facebook and Twitter and that will bring in new business like you have never seen before!” However, nothing is a sure thing and there are no overnight success stories.
Even with the added benefit of Facebook and Twitter, and reaching new audiences you may never have found before, building your company into its own brand is a process. Facebook and Twitter are definitely great tools for helping to build your reputation, but it takes time. Initially, getting your current customer base as a Facebook fan or Twitter follower should be your goal. The next step is to provide the kind of content that will be interesting enough for them to share with their friends. Provide information or special sales and discounts. Ask questions and get people to interact with you. Hold contests and give-aways. In other words, create a personal touch in an otherwise impersonal online world.
Even as you build your fan and friend bases, you can’t always expect to see sales in your store immediately. In order to track where your sales are coming from, you can always offer special discount codes for each social media site to see where your customers might be logging in. At the end of the day, though, think of the social media game as more of a process to build brand loyalty first, and then the sales will follow.
Creating your brand can sometimes be a time-consuming process. If you need assistance with building your social media plan, please let Social Sonar know!
