As a Social Media Manager of around 7 years one of the biggest frustrations which I continue to endure is Explaining Social Media … To People Who Don’t Understand Social Media! If you work in online marketing or specifically social media you may be familiar with this frustration yourself. The problem usually comes from non- marketing people who work within your organization which can make it tricky to address… because we all want the same thing right? Definitely but if you are an experienced social media manager you will know that it is not always about pleasing your fellow coworkers – it’s about producing results and pleasing clients.
So with that in mind read the top three social media objections I receive and how I address them.
#1 Your Post Is Not Promoting Our Product!
A common misconception is that corporate social media is there to constantly promote your product. Of course you can do this but you will swiftly lose followers and interaction. Take the recent viral follow up video by Budweiser. The video shows a lost puppy finding his way home. Is it about beer? No, Is it about Budweiser as a company? No, Did it attract millions of views and increase their revenue? Yes indeed it did. My response to anyone raising this question is simple… “Social media is a platform for human, social interaction. People do not log on to their Facebook, Twitter or Tumblr accounts to be bombarded with corporate sales messages. Learn to be human and understand your audience and your product will sell itself.”
#2 Your Social Content Should Mirror Our Website!
Another classic comment I have heard many times, again by non-marketing people reflects the idea that everything you post on the website (product information, corporate news, education etc) should end up on your social media pages. This is not correct at all. When social media users visit a company’s page they do not want to see a carbon copy of the website- otherwise they would have gone there in the first place. Sure, you can selectively share website news, particularly pieces which will have a good social response but not everything will. My response to that comment is simply “Social media users have different expectations to internet users visiting a company’s web page. Additionally they may have visited the company’s website first and then connected with it on social media so they expect to see different content on the brands social media channels. A brand can be consistent without copying the same information from one channel to another.”
#3 Tell The Customer To Call Us!
When you are successfully managing a social media page you will find that customer interactions increase. This could be private messages on Facebook about your product or a tweet asking for help with an order. Either way, the client has reached out to you on social media and expects a response on social media. It is amazing to me that many brands still think it is ok to ignore social media questions from clients or simply tell them to visit the website for answers. My response to this one would be “social media users are just as entitled to a response as anyone hitting the “live chat” button on your website. By responding in a prompt, friendly and informative manner on social media you are delighting your clients and showcasing your brand as a modern and responsive one. If it seems like you are getting too many social enquiries for your marketing team to handle then transfer one of your customer service members over to handle them. It’s that simple.”
Can you identify with any of these commonly raised objections? Tweet me @charli_says and share your experiences!