I have another guest in the house today and, I’m happy to have my friend Ivy Delfin here. He will be telling us about how to build our business brand with social media. Lets hear what he has for us
Using social media to enhance and build your brand is a bandwagon everyone wants to jump on at the moment, but without the right idea of how it works, it could be a waste of time. Using social media is an opportunity to connect with your customers on a personal and emotional level. Because you are working on such a personal level, your correspondence needs to be genuine and sound authentic to your audience.
Internet users are by and large, quite savvy about the media they consume, especially the younger generations, so they can spot a phoney when they see one. Prompt and engage in honest conversations with your customers to get them talking about the product in a way that is meaningful. Also, don’t dismiss any complaints or respond in a way that is argumentative and negative, take on board their feedback and respond in a way that solves the problem, you want to retain your customers and gain new ones, negative attention will only repel them.
Maintain the relevance of your brand; no matter what the topic is at the moment and how far removed from the subject you may seem, including “trending” topics into your discussion will engage customers who are consuming this information from all corners of the Internet.
You should also check on how often your messages are getting out, time your posts so they reach your audience when they are most likely to check their Facebook or Twitter feeds, attend to their questions and concerns in a timely manner. Know your customers, if your customers feel they can trust you, you’ve won them over. Loyalty is the ultimate goal here; you want to encourage your audience to trust your brand.
When communicating on social media, use the same voice and tone across all platforms and adhere to your own company’s values when presenting your brand, this is particularly relevant to my previous point regarding responding to customers. It may seem like a little work, but it really isn’t that complex of a procedure to follow if you make it your routine approach.
To help you get started or even maintain your social networking profile, you can even hire professionals to take care of it for you. Optimising is just one online marketing company that help brands market themselves in the best way possible through their social networking profiles.
Are you already using social media to build your brand? Share with us in the comment section your own approach and also, if you have any question (s) regarding this topic, i will be happy to hear it too.
If you enjoyed my post, please help spread the word by tweeting and sharing it with your friends and families :).
Ivy Delfin works in marketing, helping brands achieve their full potential every day.
Photo Credit: Freedigitalphotos.net
Harleena Singh says
Hi Ivy & Theodore,
Well, I don’t know about brands, but I do know that social media IS important, and every blogger must be a part of all the social media networks at least. However, it does take a lot of time and effort to get things started and keep growing your fans and readers on those platforms.
I think what matters most is how you interact with them and relate to them. It surely is a full time job, and not easy at all. I do wish it was a little easier for us. But as they say, the final choice always does lie in hand. Everything in moderation is good, isn’t it? I’ve never hired any professionals so far for managing my accounts and I wonder how trusthworthy they are, and I think they might be like virtual assistants, isn’t it?
Thanks for sharing. Have a nice week ahead, both of you 🙂
Theodore Nwangene says
Hello Harleena,
Social media alone is really a full time job and, it consumes a lot of time and like you, I also wish it was a little easier for us 🙂 but, we have to take it as it is. Hiring a someone to manage your account for you is all about getting the right person, I believe that there are still some good ones out there whom we can trust but, its all about finding them.
Thanks for sharing your own view with us and, do enjoy your weekend.
Obasi Miracle says
Hi Theodore,
This is definitely a great tip for bloggers and brands to build on the vast positives that comes with social media.
I have personally grabbed few ideas from this guest post.
Here is one thing I would have loved to point out in your blog, there isn’t any title in your blog. Is this deliberate or is it a bug?
Theodore Nwangene says
Thanks Miracle,
I’m happy you enjoyed the post. The no title thing is not a bug but, I will correct it. Thanks
Debasmita says
Hey Theodore,
I don’t have much knowledge about business brand promotion online. But yes social media is very much required for the success of your blog I believe.
As you said its very important to know your customers or viewers opinion. And nothing can be be better than social networking sites in promoting your work and getting fast review of the customers.
Thanks for sharing the great tips! 🙂
Theodore Nwangene says
Thanks Dabasmita,
Social media is really a good place to promote any business and, its good to learn as much as you can about it. Thanks for sharing your own view us 🙂
Ivy says
Hi guys the title is actually “Ultimate Guide on Using Social Media to Build your Business Brand” Its appearing for me.
Yes I agree everything in moderation is good although it would be a great idea to leave the social to an organisation who specialise in this. We know social is a big impact for major as well as smaller brands.
Obasi Miracle says
Hi Ivy, I actually mean the homepage title, not this post. The homepage actually displays the blog url instead of the title, I was just wondering if the blog admin was aware of that
Theodore Nwangene says
Thanks Miracle,
I’m aware of that and, there is not issues at all regards it. Thanks for letting me know
Adam Dukes says
I am in B2B (social media agency) and know Facebook isn’t the best B2B tool. I created a community page (4k locals) and am branding myself as the go to Facebook guy in Las Vegas. Social takes time, most business owners don’t want to hear that.
Theodore Nwangene says
Hey Adam,
You wanna be the go to facebook guy in L.V? That will be awesome man yea, social takes a lot of time and, its not everyone that can have the patient to wait. Thanks for coming over to my blog mate, hope to see you again :).
Steve Freeman says
It has taken me a long time to understand the proper use of Social Media. There are so many “shiny object” programs out there telling us how to kill it on social with one hour a week. Who the hell are they kidding, well, me at first.
It’s not about automation instead it’s about engagement, building influencer connections, and plain mind numbing hard work!
Thanks for the post!
Theodore Nwangene says
You’re on point Steve,
Social media should be all about engagement and building some great connection with the influencers in your niche and, should not be about automation at all. Thanks for coming man.
Adrienne says
Hi Ivy,
Very popular topic I might add, social media can make or break you. We all have to be careful how we come across whether it’s through our personal accounts or building a business which is what you’re speaking of here.
I read a post earlier today that spoke about ignoring your prospects and clients and not interacting with them on the social sites. Just putting up content and expecting results without doing anything on your part. You are your brand so decide how you want to be known and be true to yourself. Help those when they need it and come to their aide as well.
Never for one minute think that you can have a successful business and leave these main ingredients out. That will end up being a business that won’t be getting off the ground.
Thank you both and enjoy your weekend.
~Adrienne
Theodore Nwangene says
Hi Adrienne,
I agree with you. Those are the little things that matters a lot in any business and, if you ignored them, you will be sure to fail. Thanks a lot for stopping by and, have a fabulous weekend.
Jeevan Jacob John says
Hey Ivy (and Theodore),
The most important part is the customer experience – how do we want our customers to feel? We have to take control of that, provide a great and memorable experience for our customers, listen to their suggestions and complaints (Customers are always happy to work with people who are willing to listen to them, people who care about them (Faking it isn’t going to work. We have to care about our customers).
I do agree with your other point about timing our posts. We have experiment and find the best times for us (it won’t be the same for everyone, so experimentation is required). I am experimenting with my activity times, spreading out my tweets and shares over 24 hours instead of 4-5 hrs (So far, it has been working well. I don’t have enough data to say that this approach works better than focusing our social media efforts into a few hours. So, I am still experimenting).
Anyways, thank you for sharing your thoughts 🙂 Hope you are having a great weekend!
Theodore Nwangene says
Great points Jeevan,
You’ve really said it all and, I agree with your points. Thanks a lot for adding to the discursion, really appreciate 🙂
Amiti says
Social media is only as effective as its content. I do think however that changing your “brands”/”blogs” voice from media venue to venue can be a good thing, so that those that like a certain type of voice/style/ or info can visit more often the one that they like.
Social media is an art form that needs to be perfected.
Theodore Nwangene says
You’re right Amiti and, I very much agree with your points. Thanks for coming
Ivy says
Hi guys, for companies that have never implemented a social media strategy, I understand it may be daunting and the whole concept of social media marketing might sound useless. I like to see social media marketing through a totally different lens.
A killer social media strategy might not necessarily be the backbone or foundation of your business, but there’s no doubt that it can play a very critical role in supporting your business.
Mr Free Things says
I do wish it was a little easier for us. But as they say, the final choice always does lie in hand.I have personally grabbed few ideas from this guest post.nothing can be be better than social networking sites in promoting your work and getting fast review of the customers.