The Social Media Marketing Series

How Does People’s Use of Social Media Help Your Business?

I recently asked my friends and followers a single question: “Why do you use Social Media?” and though all answers were interesting in their own right or had additional sentences that I found telling (“Partly because I want to. Partly because I have to.” – Rachel F. ; “Social Media keeps us connected to each other and can also distract us.” – Justin H. ; “No other way to stay in touch.” –Ricky T.) the answer was pretty much unanimous:

“To stay in contact with friends & family.”

Every single person had this sentence in one way or another embedded into their answer, and this is probably the most important lesson to business owners using social media marketing for their product or service.

If most Social Networkers are using Social Media to stay in contact with loved ones, then why are 95% of adult users (aged 18-34) most likely to follow a brand via social networking? (MarketingSherpa.com : https://www.marketingsherpa.com/article/chart/demographics-why-customer-follow-brands-social-media)

…and why, as of 2015, did Facebook influence a whopping 52% of consumers’ online and offline purchases? (TheDrum.com : http://www.thedrum.com/news/2015/04/24/facebook-influences-over-half-shoppers-says-digitaslbi-s-connected-commerce-report)

It is because they keyword of Social Networking is SOCIAL. Brands that are seeing the highest rate of success understand that people are on sites like Facebook to keep up with friends and family, share funny cat videos, and get their daily meme fill – not to be solicited. Therefore, to achieve the most success online, you must become a page that people want to keep up with. Join the social world by sharing funny memes that relate to your industry/product, share industry related news stories that show how someone’s life may be directly affected by changes or forthcoming implementations, and most of all, interact with your audience. If they comment on your photo, respond! If they share your post, be sure to “like” it! Become the friend they joined Social Media to connect with, and they’ll be more likely to trust you when the need to purchase rolls around.

Has a company’s Facebook page ever influenced your purchasing decision? Let us know in the comments below!