To have a worthwhile social networking presence, you need to create a constant dialogue, whether it’s sharing information, exchanging ideas or creating engaging content. This is what builds social communities and interest in your business.

Approach

Companies must define their approach to social media by establishing a strategic and sustainable plan that creates two-way communication and engagement. To begin, the following questions must be addressed:

1) What are the social networking goals for the enterprise?

2) What are the social media guidelines and policies for the organization?

3) Who will manage and be accountable for the companies’ social voice?

4) What is the plan to sustain and grow our social media presence?

5) How do we ensure that our company’s image, management style and culture are properly represented?

6) Who is responsible for monitoring our social media communities and what procedures do we put in place for timely and proper response.

Along with these initial steps, the enterprise must also define stakeholders and assign accountability for its social networking efforts. Establishing a social media manager with credentials and decision-making abilities is a good idea. After all, the person managing this position represents the company’s customer service, sales, and management teams.

Many companies turn to third parties to consult and lead these efforts. A good social media firm will suggest best practices, develop a sustainable plan, manage initiatives and monitor social conversations. However, it’s most important that the company itself be involved and dedicated to the process.

Communication  

Social media is a valuable and unique two-way communication vehicle. It establishes a companies’ online image and can highlight its product and service offerings in a non-intrusive manner – while at the same time providing insights to the personality and culture of the enterprise. Most importantly, social networking is about relationship building… gaining loyalty and trust with your customers. This can be done through communication, response, and candor – some personality helps as well.

Social media is a powerful tool and companies should not overlook its importance. Taking time to understand these communication platforms, create a strategy and develop a sustainable approach can be a difference maker for your enterprise.

Social media can change the buyer-seller dynamic. Of all the purchases a consumer makes, buying an automobile is one in which a high level of trust during the transaction process seems to be the exception, not the rule. Social media presents forward-thinking auto dealers a way to change this perception.  

Social Media Can Be the Difference

Today’s savvy consumers do their homework online prior to shopping. This is particularly true when it comes to shopping for a car. Buyers are learning about new and redesigned models, dashboard technologies, cool gadgets, fuel efficiencies, hybrids, and of course pricing. However gathering information about an important product is one thing, deciding where to purchase it is another. In the end, people buy cars from local dealerships not automakers. It is here that the engagement process becomes most important. It is here at the dealer level that social networking can be the difference.

Building Relationships

Social media provides auto dealers a platform to begin the relationship building process before a customer picks up the phone or enters the showroom. When done properly, social media allows dealers to engage customers in two-way conversations by providing relevant and timely information, offering ideas and solutions, highlighting community and charity involvement, creating fun and engaging contests, as well as giving a glimpse into the people and culture of the dealership. It is this type of transparency that helps build confidence between a business and its customer base.

Further, auto dealers can use social media communities to enhance relationships with their current customers. Special offers, incentives, contests, employee and customer recognitions as well as car care and maintenance tips can all represent added value to their clients.

Refreshing Approach

As businesses from many industries use social media to engage their customers, auto buyers may find this approach from dealers to be a refreshing change to the relationship dynamic. The Internet has created an educated consumer – social media provides the platform to build relationships with them.

Which Companies Take The Lead When Recovery Kicks In?

Certainly there is history to remember, but today’s consumers want more than just intrusive advertising. There are emerging trends in the way we communicate which may reveal the answers.

New Media, New Audience, New Technologies, New Brands

The incredible growth of the Internet and Social Media cannot be ignored by any business in any industry. To do so will be at the risk of your own demise. Don’t agree – look at the facts.

• Over 80% of Americans use the Internet today
• People now spend as much time online as they do watching television
• Facebook has more than 300 million active users
• President Obama used social media to spread his message, gain followers and ultimately win an election (let’s not forget Twitter’s impact in Iran)
• Google is #7 Ranked Brand Name in the World

Stay Relevant With Customers Or Die

Stay quiet during this down time – good luck! Slash marketing budgets, yet do nothing in its place to stay in touch with your customers – who are you again?  However, it’s not about maintaining your advertising – there’s more to it this time.

We Will Do Business With Those We Trust

With the meltdown of the banking and automobile industries, loss of jobs and overall job security as well as the enormous hit to 401k plans, home values and net worth – Americans are reevaluating which businesses they will trust going forward.

Today’s information evolution driven mainly by the Internet and social media has created a media savvy and educated consumer. People want to make up their own mind about what they need. They want to form their own opinions on products and services – and they will express those feelings with others.

The Internet and social media is changing the way we share, exchange and connect with each other. Companies who embrace these new communication platforms to provide relevant and transparent information, share their expertise, exchange ideas, offer solutions and answer questions will gain credibility and build relationships with customers.

So, Which Companies Take The Lead When Recovery Kicks In?

The ones we trust – because there’s more to it this time.

How about you? What do you think will shape the companies that will take the lead?

With ROI as a constant focal point, business owners must implement strategies which accomplish multiple objectives.  However how many have considered this approach with their customer retention and new business marketing efforts?

Combine Customer Retention and New Business Strategies

According to a recent study, 41% of small business owners said their top short-term priority is maintaining their current customers. While 26% say they are focused on growing their business. These statistics come from OPEN Small Business Monitor, the semi-annual survey of small business owners conducted by American Express.

That’s two-thirds of all small business owners surveyed that identified satisfying current customers and new business development as their top priorities. I must admit to being surprised the percentage isn’t higher. After all, not many priorities would be more important to any size business. The question that comes to mind though is how many companies actually combine these efforts under one strategic approach?

The Internet and Social Media platforms provide businesses with unique opportunities to combine customer retention efforts with business development initiatives. When a company provides relevant and compelling information, shares its expertise, exchanges ideas, offers solutions and answers questions to consumers it allows itself to build relationships with both current and potential customers.

Companies which maintain an active and evolving digital presence create a consultative approach with their current and potential customers – one that they actually learn to appreciate. It provides an opportunity to communicate with customers during all phases of the sales cycle – without being intrusive. When done properly, it’s an approach that provides transparency, gains credibility and builds trust with your target customers. It serves multiple needs for a business including the important areas of customer service and lead generation.

Does your company incorporate strategies which connect simultaneously with your current customer base and your target market? I’d be interested in hearing your thoughts.

Regardless if you are communicating in person, online or through other mediums, building credibility with clients takes time and effort. When communicating with a potential client in person, the objective should be to discover and understand that client’s specific needs. Once understood, your goal is to provide information or advice on solutions that best meet those needs. Depending on the business, product and service this process can take several days, weeks or even months. It’s a consultative approach which I believe works best.

The online approach should be the same. I recently wrote that sharing expertise, exchanging ideas, providing solutions and answering questions allows for building lasting client relationships. Brands and companies that provide useful, transparent information become relevant and credible. Again this takes time and some commitment.

Providing compelling content to your prospects via your website, blog, eNewsletters and other communications increases the ability to influence the perception of your company, and ultimately the behavior of your target customers.

How are you developing creditility with your clients online?

Digital and social media’s level playing field does not however ensure victory – they simply allow you to compete. Those of us who participate in or follow competitive sports know that talent, decision making, execution, and desire to win all make the difference once the game is on.

In today’s information age, relevant and compelling content is the key to engaging target customers and thus becomes the talent in our sports metaphor. Creating original content on your website and increasing online visibility via inbound marketing strategies all contribute to establishing your company’s digital presence.

Choosing media channels and topics of conversations to connect with your target customers are significant components in the decision making process. Writing blogs and e-Newsletters, using Twitter, Facebook or other social media networks all can be effective tools for small businesses to compete if used in proper context.

Frequency of producing content becomes the execution piece to the equation. How often you update content on your company’s website and chosen media vehicles is essential to managing your online presence, maintaining the interest of your customers and maximizing SEO.

Small businesses that provide useful, transparent information become relevant and credible. This increases their ability to influence perception, and ultimately the behavior of target customers – the obvious desire to win reference.

Many small businesses possess the expertise of their products and services as well as the passion for providing solutions to their customers. This is the beauty of doing business with these organizations. The small business challenge however, is how to participate competitively on this newly created level playing field of connecting with target customers.

Is the talent within your company to communicate effectively? Can you afford to assign someone the time to focus on the marketing strategy? Can you afford not to?

The game is on – is your company participating?