DRIVE Your Social Media

A lot of people stall the bus when it comes to Social Media. They are all excited when they get behind the wheel, but give up too easily after a few false starts. No-one was ever an expert at anything worthwhile without practice, so if you find your Social Media vehicle just sitting there, you have to work out how to use it or it can’t take you to the new and exciting places you dreamed of.

In short – you need to learn to  D.R.I.V.E  it!

• D – Declare yourself to your audience. Tell them who you are exactly. Whether you are a product, brand, business owner or customer services professional, you need to make sure that your audience know who it is they are interacting with. Make sure you set up a clear profile and wherever possible – use a personal picture – people like to connect to people.
• R – Respond to your audience. If someone likes, retweets, follows, adds, comments or even emails you – make sure they get a timely response. They have already shown a willingness to be part of something with you – don’t leave ’em hanging! In cases where you cannot provide what they want, a simple “we’ll look into that and get back to you right away” will suffice.
• I – Involve your audience. Social Media is not just there for you to sell, sell, sell or shout about your product or services. It’s there to be, well… social. Think of ways to get people involved with what you do with your events, or their photos – even competitions are a good way to build brand loyalty without the hard sell.
• V – Verify your audience. Once someone has connected with you, their social profile is usually available in one form or another. Check they are not spammers and if they are legit – find out a bit more about them. If you know what they want, need or use – then you have the chance to sell it to them – and the personalised approach works wonders.
• E – Engage your audience. Ok so you have them – now what? Well to maintain your social media you will need to do all of the above – PLUS – come up with new content that is of use or interest to your audience. Please don’t try to hit them with a new offer every day – vary your content. Make it useful by giving them tips, make it funny by sharing the latest viral content, make it about the people behind your business. As long as it all ties in to you or your business in some way – it is all good stuff.

So what are you waiting for?

All aboard the Social Media Fun-Bus and DRIVE, DRIVE, DRIVE!

If you want to know more about social media or social media training, please drop me a line to toby@tobyhewson.com