I notice that many companies use Facebook regularly and are saying all the right things – “engaging” their customers with personable comments, providing them with information about what’s happening (“Come on in We’re Open”) – but this sort of marketing message doesn’t quite “cut it” anymore in today’s information overload/cluttered marketplace.
Here’s where they are missing out – they are treating Facebook as a standalone marketing communication channel. They are treating this social media channel as marketing only and missing the bigger picture…
Sound familiar? then consider this:
Integrate and Link
You have the opportunity to integrate your social media channels into your business by providing a link back to your website (or better still, your Blog) to entice the reader to click through, visit your website and maybe even “share” that content with their friends.
Provide additional helpful information
Once your reader arrives at your website, you provide them with more… interesting and helpful content.
Engage your Customer and Sell
The result of this is extra traffic to your website, but even more than that, an interactive visit, thereby engaging your customer and adding value. Ultimately this leads to trust and that potential customer is on track to become a true customer
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MARKETING MESSAGES and lost opportunities
Outlined below are some common Facebook posts, the consumer behaviour that can incur, leading to a lost opportunity to drive traffic to your OWN website, remembering that you do not “own” or control the Facebook platform (case in point AirNZ’s recent hiccups with a Facebook-only promotion) :
“Our new winter stock is in-store now”
Sometimes a photo is included (why wouldn’t you attach a photo?!).
Great, that’s told me something, got me interested. I am already are a fan because I’ve liked the page, but … what next? Maybe I would take the extra step and go and look for the website address and then type it in the browser and check out that new range.
That’s making it quite hard for me, so maybe I would just move onto the next facebook post in my Wall, file that piece of info away in my brain and make a mental note: “must drive to that store one day when I have time to check out that new winter stock”… sadly, a lost opportunity to engage me there and then.
“March specials out now” with a jpeg image of the company’s flyer
Once again, that’s great, at least there is a photo (so the Post can be shared by its fans) – I now know the special offers they have and I can call up and make an appointment… Do I have to look far on the FB Page to find your phone number, will I even take that step of phoning? Lost opportunity …
Flavours of the Day – written out
Ok that’s very appealing; sometimes a photo is attached, so that’s even better. All good, brand awareness increased, but still I read it and move on to the next wall post. What more could I have found out if directed with a link straight through to their website? A lost opportunity…
Providing a link through to a video clip on a third-party website which features you and your product
This is great as it shows credibility and brand exposure. But how much better would that have been if the company had embedded that video clip into their own website or blog, instead of directing me to a different website altogether.
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engaging the customer – how to give your customer more
Taking Example 1 above: “Our new winter stock is in-store now”, here are some ideas to take Customer Engagement a step further:
- Announce New Winter Stock in-store now via a Post in FB
- Click a link to go straight to the website and view the full range in images.
- Link from here to a blog to read all about the winter fashion trends
- Perhaps another blog article that’s a personal journey story about how the company came to design this range, share the overseas trip photos, the stories behind the designs, stories about the fabric choice, etc
- Share the benefits about that particular product, not to mention the different categories of product range that you could focus on individually, profile your stockists etc etc …
Wow, the ideas are endless and in fact could be blog content for months!
Each article representing a new reason to communicate with your customer, a reason for them to visit your website, a reason for them to share via social media or old-fashioned word of mouth, and most importantly a reason to visit your shop, enlist your services or buy from you online!
Do this, and you have extended your reach well beyond your local shop’s location or an announcement of new stock arrival.
And the best thing…. It’s essentially all at no-cost EXCEPT time.
In the words of Michael A. Stelzner, in his just-released book “Launch”:
“People want valuable insight, access to great people, and re- cognition before they want products and services. If you can keep your eyes fixed on people and their desires, half your mission will be achieved before you begin”
My hope is that this article has given you some insight on how you can move away from traditional marketing messages towards adding additional value to your customer. This is definately a Big Topic and I will share further thoughts in future articles.
