Social media marketing has a great effect on brand loyalty in today’s world. With millions of people logging into their online accounts every day, social media tools offer businesses the opportunity to create personal connections with their customers and gain trust. So, why do some companies fail to engage with customers on social media? What do you think is the biggest potential mistake in trying to utilize the world of social media marketing? Would you say it’s posting so often that you annoy your followers? Or-not posting enough and being easily forgotten? Well, you may be surprised that the biggest mistake a company can make on social media is not engaging enough with their followers. Now, when you think about it, not enough social engagement is the obvious response since we’re discussing SOCIAL media. Indeed, many businesses fail to engage on social media because they are concerned about annoying their customers, and all too often— it affects their brand more than they might think. Engaging with customers is extremely vital to your company’s success in the realm of social media marketing, but this doesn’t mean that you should just post to your accounts without a comprehensive plan in place. When I say social media engagement, I mean you should be responding directly to customers’ questions, concerns, and suggestions, especially when those customers are unhappy with any aspect of your brand. Social media allows customers to interact with one another, share opinions on products and services, and learn from one another. Because customers trust the testimonials of other customers like themselves, it is important to build strong relationships with your followers through social media engagement. If a customer leaves a poor review about your company, social media tools allow your company the opportunity to make things right in the eyes of the consumer. In fact, according to RightNow Customer Experience Impact Report, a whopping 50 percent of customers will stop doing business with a company that doesn’t respond to them following a report of poor service. This shows how important it is to maintain social engagement with your customers, and if the possibility of losing 50 percent of your customers doesn’t scare you, think about this: according to the same report, 89 percent of customers begin doing business with a competitor after receiving poor service. What might surprise you more than any of these statistics is that an average of 80 percent of these customers’ complaints are left unanswered! With a simple response many of these losses could be avoided. The possibilities for a brand are endless with the help of social media as a marketing tool, but only when used correctly. Marketing includes gaining the business of potential customers while continuing to serve current customers. Although gaining new customers is a great accomplishment, keeping current customers is more profitable in the long run. Your current customers need to feel that they are receiving the best possible customer service in order to stick with your brand. Learning how to engage with your customers properly is vital to keeping their business. Customers want to feel that their opinion matters and that a real person is reviewing their compliments or criticisms. Social media marketing allows you to not only promote your brands, but also to engage with your customers on a personal level. Responding to customer reviews (good or bad) demonstrates to customers that your company is attentive, engaged, and genuinely cares about what they think. One way to take this relationship even further is to communicate with the customer on a first-name basis, and let them know that you are there to help them in any way possible. Making your brand more personable and amiable will help you in gaining the trust of your customers, even if they are only able to interact with you through a computer screen. Another way to promote your brand in a more personable way through social media marketing is to create a blog. Blogging shows customers another side to company employees that customers might not have seen otherwise. Conversations are sparked through blogs, and it is just as important to respond to these comments as it is to respond to product or service reviews. Customers looking to open the lines of communication with your company are the key to your success on social media. Social engagement with present customers and future customers on social media platforms strengthen your relationship with those that are most important to the success of your business overall. With the help of social media, engagement with customers has never been easier. Social media engagement will result in better communication with your customers and leave them more satisfied with your service. What social media tools do you use to engage with clients on social media? Do you use a social media marketing company? Please share your story below.

ABOUT CATMEDIA:

CATMEDIA is an award-winning Inc. 500 company based in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1997, the company specializes in advertising, creative services, media production, program management, training, and human resource management. As a Women Owned Small Business (WOSB), CATMEDIA provides world-class customer service and innovative solutions to government and commercial clients. Current CATMEDIA clients include Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

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