Social Media: Content that Builds Relationships
Posted by Beth Hrusch on Wed, Dec 09, 2009
As a business owner, it can be easy to get caught up the "media" part of social media. Just take a look around Twitter, and you'll see tons of business owners talking up their products - without a thought as to whether anyone is actually listening. For social media content to be successful, it needs to be solid, actionable, and applicable.
Solid content is direct, to the point, and fluff-free. No empty promises, no talking up the latest affiliate product that you've never even tried, and no blindly promoting the newest launch to your email list. While it may sound drastic, a funny thing happens when you cut to the chase and drop the hype from your marketing...
People start to trust you.
Potential customers who trust you don't have far to go to become buyers, or even to become regular customers. After all, they already know what you stand for, so they know if you're selling it, it's got to be good.
High quality content is actionable. Once your customers know you can be trusted, they're far more willing to act when you tell them to act. This means that your social media content should contain action verbs - buy, go, click - that mention what you'd like your readers to do. Keep it friendly and casual, while reminding your reader of their existing relationship with you.
Good content is applicable. That means no marketing to your friends and family on Facebook - they'll just get annoyed. Instead, put social media content to work for you by setting up separate accounts for your business niches. Then build targeted lists of leads that you can market to again and again. This process takes time, but is so worth it as you develop a list of potential customers who actually want to hear what you have to say.
For social media content that builds relationships, be sure your words are solid, actionable, and applicable. Your readers will thank you.