Social media is starting to become the main focus of companies. The everyday obligation of promoting, engaging and answering consumers questions/inquires are starting to become time consuming. With daily meetings, client calls, new visits and much more when do you have time to manage your social media? Most might say that it is a waste of time and not worth it. Others say that they just plainly don’t have time. Let me reassure you that by you dedicating and focusing your time on social media it can bring you in customers/clients. Yes it might take a bit longer, but now a days everyone is on Twitter, Facebook etc. If you’re not where the people are, where are you then?
Like every company, you want your business to have the best customer service out there. Whether it be someone calling your business or someone asking you a question through Twitter, Facebook etc. you want your company to be known as a good business, responsive, willing to help and most importantly make you feel special.
The solution to your social media problems stops here! Assign/hire a specific person to manage your social media accounts. I have listed three reasons why you need a Social Media Community Manager.
What is a Social Media Community Manager?
This person is dedicated to everything that happens on your social media sites. Just as the title says they are engaging with the community, your community. They are available to answer questions, promote your brand, plan and execute contests/giveaways and more. Their main focus is to keep a constant communication with your followers and provide varies needs. The ever evolving and growing network is definite and going at rapid pace! This, as I mentioned before, can be very time consuming. Your best bet is to have someone JUST focused on social media.
I would highly recommend not having an intern handle your accounts. There has been many cases where interns don’t fully comprehend a company’s service or main objective. This can cause problems as for the Social Media Community Manager is the VOICE of your business.
1. Keep an eye on your brand.
Everyone wants to know what others are saying about themselves whether it be good or bad. Hiring a community manager will make it easy for you yo know what others are saying. Having a designated person watch over your brand the easier it is to address any issues that may occur. Having a set of approved responses you can quickly reply and have time to consult with coworkers or bosses. This will spare you some time and determine how you would want to handle the situation.
Timeliness is vital. Constantly monitoring your accounts will make it easier if a crisis occurs or make a difference between success and failure according to 5 Ways to Make Your Business More Transparent from Mashable.
2. Keep your followers updated and develop transparency.
People are nosy and they want to know what’s going on. The more information you are able to provide to your followers the better relationship you will have. You can only schedule updates for so long, so engaging with others about company news, third party articles and sometimes local new is key. Being open and providing information will develop a great bond of trust between consumers and your business. There is no other way to build trust unless you have a transparent business relationship.
Your followers are listening to what you have to say and depending on that information they will ultimately form a conclusion about your business. Keep in mind your Social Media Community Manager will need to learn how to be honest, open and most importantly take responsibilities with your updates. Having constant information flowing through your social media sites will then in turn make you authoritative in your niche. Remember too much of something gets old quick, so chose wisely when and what to talk about.
3. Engage, engage, engage and more engaging!
You need to have someone to engage with your followers! The purpose of social media is to be SOCIAL with others. It’s nice when you have followers who answer your questions or recent updates, but you also need to engage in other communities. By providing valid information or answering questions with other followers from different communities, you are able to build trust with an individual. You don’t necessarily have to talk about your company all the time, who likes it when someone is just talking about themselves? Having a variety of topics is helpful. You don’t want to always sale your company to others you want others to know you are human and care about their needs.
People like to feel special, so if you take time out to personally talk to someone they will greatly appreciate it. Here is a great example of a company who provided astonishing customer service via Twitter!! One of the most old fashioned ways to get new consumers is word of mouth. By making someone feel special they will spread the word to their friends.
All in all, you need to have an employee that is dedicated to social media. Someone who patient, passionate about your company and is willing to give detail attention to your followers. These are three simple reasons why you need a Social Media Community Manager, but they are three key reasons whether a business will either grow strongly or fail miserably.
If you need help managing your social media or have questions contact us!
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