Who doesn’t want to be liked? Just don’t be hung out to dry.
The real value of social media in business continues to be a hot debate.
Engagement with customers and fans is important, sure, but does the ROI really stack-up? Does having staff members dedicated to feeding the beast of vanity actually result in commercial outcomes for companies not directly involved in ecommerce conversions?
Who knows?
There’s been a lot of hand-wringing in marketing circles trying to assign a monetary unit against the value of a ‘like’ or a ‘retweet’ for example but to this day, there is no universally accepted metric.
Perhaps there’s a better way to look at the equation?
Rather than focus on re-posting user-generated content and pushing your own content into the void, should social be used as a way to refine your business strategy by asking customers to have a say in it.
Authenticity is key once you decide to jump boots and all into social media and even then, expect to cop a few slaps in the face along the way as adrenaline-charged keyboard warriors attack you for very little or no reason but that’s another story …
If you AUTHENTICALLY seek advice, feedback, ideas, commentary and suggestions from the people who love your brand the most, you will end with a very, very powerful level of insight that could profoundly impact the direction of your business. You’ll never get that though if your idea of a “social media strategy” is volleying around everyone else’s Instagram pics, crazy cat videos and Facebook memes.
