Social Marketing is about Interactions, Questions, Creating Buzz

Having a Facebook page or Twitter account is not enough to be successful with Social Marketing.  The search engines (Google, Bing, Yahoo) entered into agreements with the top Social Networking websites and classified sites (Craigslist, eBay) to place content from those sites in the search engine results.  This is why when you search for a company on Google you often find the social networking pages within the top search results (if the company has the social networking setup properly). 

To be successful with Social Marketing consider the main point of being 'Social' just like you would in any offline 'social' interaction.  When you meet a potential customer the first thing you need to do is ask questions, find out what they need, what they are interested in and then share how you can meet or exceed those needs and interests.  Any one-sided conversation online or offline tends to be ignored.  People like to know you are interested in what THEY have to say, that you care enough to find out what they need or want.

Getting users to 'Like' a page on Facebook is easy since most people will 'Like' anything a friend suggests or any product they have used or may be familiar with.  April 2012 survey results show that almost 7 in 10 Millennials who like a brand on Facebook rarely or ever return to the company page.  A February 2012 report revealed that just 1% of Facebook users who like big brands such as Procter & Gamble or Coca-Cola actually interact with those brands.

Marketers looking to boost engagement need to ask the right questions and engage social network users. By asking about personal preferences, appealing to fans’ expertise, and making it aspirational marketers can achieve a positive impact and increase social network visibility.  Instead of posting one sided 'marketing' ask users how they feel about new products, what they need, wish for and be sure to interact with others.  Spend some time adding new 'friends' from Facebook suggestions or mutual connections and be sure to look at their individual or company pages to 'Like' and comment on what they shared. 

The more marketers interact with others the more others tend to interact back.  Recriprical 'Likes' and comments provide three times the results.  The more a company 'page' or account has interaction the higher it ranks within the 'social network algarythms' which determines what posts, updates, photos and information is shared in the 'News Feed' and with Search Engines.  Someone who updates and posts information all the time but has few interactions will not been seen by anyone except the person or company publishing the information. 

Updates, photos and other details posted that have numerous 'Likes' and 'Comments' will be shared with an exponential online audience (the people who interacted with, commented or liked it plus all of the people they are connected with).  This is why Social Marketing experts and companies who specialize in social marketing are able to produce better results than internal staff or a single person trying to market on social networks.  Social Marketing companies will have multiple login's and accounts they can use to 'create' the buzz, interactions and improve reach on social networks that others cannot. 

Keep the 'Social' aspects of Social Marketing first, be sure to interact, engage and entice people to come back and invest the time to do it right.  If you need expert Social Marketing setup, optimization, training or just have a question contact the Internet Experts at Internet Builder Consulting 816-842-7774.

Robert 'Dot Com' Jackson
Internet & Technology Expert
Internet Builder Consulting - Building BETTER Websites, SEO and Social Marketing since 1995