social media

Social media for business: Your time has come. That’s not to say it wasn’t important before but, during the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, connecting with customers and prospects via a popular platform is essential to maintaining visibility, building goodwill and perhaps even generating a bit of revenue.

What’s challenging is that the social media strategy you deployed before the crisis may no longer be effective or appropriate. Now that businesses have had a couple of months to adjust, some best practices are emerging:

Review your approach. Assuming your company already has an active social media presence, take a measured, objective look at what you do and how you do it. Gather feedback from managers and key employees. If feasible, ask trusted customers if they feel your posts have been in tune with the times. While you recalibrate, don’t hesitate to slow down or even pause your social media efforts.

Look to help, not sell. The drastic economic slowdown has ratcheted up the pressure on everyone. When revenue starts falling off, it’s only natural to want to market aggressively and push sales as hard as possible.

But, on social media, this tactic generally doesn’t play well. Many people are dealing with job losses and financial hardship. They may view hard-sell tactics as insensitive or, worse yet, exploitive of the crisis. Create posts that offer positive messages of empathy and encouragement while also letting friends and followers know that you’re open for business.

Deliver consistency. Although you may need to tweak the content of your posts to avoid appearing out of touch, a national crisis probably isn’t the time to drastically change the look and style of your posts. Customers value brand consistency and may even draw comfort from seeing your business soldier on in a familiar fashion.

Engage with customers. Unlike traditional marketing, social media is designed to be interactive. So, seek out viable opportunities to increase engagement with those who follow your accounts. Many people are feeling isolated and would welcome conversation starters, coping tips, authentic replies to questions and gratitude for compliments.

As always, however, interaction with the public on social media can be fraught with danger. Choose discussion topics carefully, exercise restraint in dealing with criticism, and be on guard for “trolling” or conversations that could get into politics, religion or other sensitive topics.

Social media was once a brave new world for businesses to navigate. For the time being, it may be the only world in which many companies can interact directly with a large number of customers and prospects. Manage your message carefully. We can help you assess the costs and results of your marketing efforts, including on social media, and devise sensible strategies.

To increase brand awareness and influence consumer behavior, businesses of all sizes spend vast amounts on social media marketing. Social media “influencers” can help companies reach and engage customers. But not all influencers operate above board. Here’s how to avoid hiring or associating with a dishonest influencer.

The more, the better

There’s no commonly accepted definition of how many followers an influencer must have to claim such status. But in general, the more, the better. After all, clients want access to as many eyes as possible.

Knowing how important followers, likes and shares are, some influencers find it hard to resist the temptation to inflate their numbers. In general, they can command higher fees and attract bigger brands if their social media accounts appear to be hubs of activity.

Red flags

Fortunately, there are several red flags associated with influencer fraud. Pay attention to influencers that seem to have many followers with skimpy accounts. When you click on them, the accounts may lack bios and other personal details. These accounts may also have few followers and accounts that they follow (other than, of course, that of your influencer). In other words, the accounts don’t look authentic. In such cases, the influencer may have purchased or created followers.

Another potentially suspicious sign is that the influencer’s comments, likes, and shares exceed expectations. Higher than expected levels of engagement may sound like a good thing. However, it may also indicate that the influencer arranged for engagement via a “bot farm.” This automated application can be used to make accounts look more popular than they actually are. Or, the influencer may participate in communities of influencers with reciprocal agreements to like and share each other’s posts.

Check before you commit

Before you enter an agreement with an influencer, scrutinize the service provider’s social media accounts and activity. Also call business references to learn if the influencer’s claims about engagement results are accurate — or exaggerated. If you don’t feel comfortable with what you find, look elsewhere. Contact us for more at 205-345-9898 and info@covenantcpa.com.