Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much!
Well, extra time (possibly the biggest barrier), money (but really not much) and people. With social media being so time intensive, and best results coming from directly being involved, the barriers to entry get higher as a business gets smaller, but not insurmountable for those willing to put in the time, especially since it can be done at all hours, and some of the most effective times to connect via social media are very early in the morning and very late at night.
When you’re looking for social influencers in your niche to connect with and engage, where do you start? Most people make a beeline for the flashy, neon lights of the follower count. While that mayseem a logical place to start, it’s really a flawed metric.
What excites you about customer experience?
It is not customer experience that excites me, it is the customer herself who excites me, and the relationship that will develop and lead to trust and loyalty.
—–Whether you’re building your personal brand, your business brand or both, one thing remains true: You need content to help you build trust and followers.
Many women pride themselves on being savvy consumers who can sniff out a poseur brand. Brands need to be the conduit for information to women from other women and from experts, but be wary of star power – celebrities don’t cut it. Marketers that have a woman’s trust have worked to earn it, by making good products, offering relevant advice and engaging those women. All peers have influence to some degree, especially when marketing to women so the more you understand and relate to the community the better off the brand. If you market to women. recognize and benefit from the value women place on authenticity. Women are busy with multiple responsibilities so keep your site’s navigation intuitive and simple, and keep your message clear and concise.
I’ve said before that business and war have much in common. Entrenched companies keep doing what got them there, just as victors in war tend to fight subsequent battles with the same tried-and-true tactics.
—–“Now that you’ve taken the time to create targeted content for your audience, learn how to share it over and over again to build a loyal following.”
There are some great marketing lessons to be taken from fishing, and I’m not talking about the “ph-” variety. If you’ve ever been fishing with an expert, on that expert’s home turf, you know that it can be an almost artistic experience. Before your boat even hits the water, your expert companion tells you where the fish will be, when they’ll be there, the bait or equipment most likely to appeal to those fish, and the techniques you’ll need to land them. It can all seem a bit much to the uninitiated, until you reach the fishing spot and the expert is either proven correct, or ready to adjust on the fly to the day’s conditions. Either way, you’ll soon be catching fish.
What the heck does this have to do with marketing? People are much more sophisticated than fish, of course, but otherwise many of the same principles apply to marketing on social. The best way to catch fish is to give them what they want. The easiest way to find out what they want is to study them intently. In this way, people and fish are not so different.
Finding the Perfect Fishing Hole
It all starts with knowing what you’re looking for, and learning where to find it. Fortunately for us, social sites don’t guard that information like fishing experts do. You can find solid, if imperfect, demographic information about most social sites. Before you start dropping lines in the water, visit the most promising sites and listen to the discussions. It’s a bit like detective work. Follow the best leads, and eventually you’ll find the people you’re seeking.
Selecting the Right Bait
Once you find what you’re looking for, listen some more. Pay attention to what people post and how they interact with one another. Get involved in the conversation, and make note of what you learn as you go. Always remember to be courteous, listen intently, and respond in a personal, meaningful way. All of these techniques will help you find the perfect bait to reel in new customers. In order to land them, first you need to understand them.
As you continue to listen, you’ll also learn why people congregate in a given place. Learning where to find the fish might lead to a banner day. Learning why they congregate where they do will keep those banner days rolling well into the future.
Landing the Prize
You know where to find your audience, and you know what they want. Now all you need to do is go out there and make the catch. If you’ve done your homework, you’ll be in great position to succeed. You can’t expect things to go perfectly every time, though. A fishing expert is defined as much by their ability to adapt as their ability to plan.
If your plan falls to pieces, listen some more. Learn all that you can, as you go. Expect the unpredictable, and be prepared to move on to another plan when the time is right. You can’t learn everything about fishing overnight, and the same is true of social. The more you listen and learn, the more prepared you’ll be to adapt when an unexpected outside influence forces you to change course.
Sustaining Success
People are much more willing to be “caught” than fish, as long as you offer value for their attention and loyalty. Once more, it all comes back to listening. Build your buyers’ personas with the same zeal the fishing expert shows in profiling fish. The medium and methods may change over time, but as long as you know your audience, treat them with respect, and build relationships, you’ll be ready for anything.
Originally posted at InsideCXM AUGUST 18, 2014 BY
We’ve all seen cringe-worthy moments on social, when someone says the exact wrong thing and doesn’t even realize what they’ve done. It happens in debates over hot-button issues, comment threads on brand pages and everywhere in between. Even well-meaning comments can be hurtful when context is ignored.
