By Don Kyle
Several months ago, I posed the question, “Is social media right for my business?” As more and more business owners answer this question “Yes,” the next logical question has to be, “How is it working for you?”
I constantly receive requests to “like” business Facebook pages. When I get these requests, I wonder what good my “liking” a particular page does, other than perhaps allowing special naming privileges for the page.
The most important question that should come to mind related to business social media pages is, “Is it generating (or going to generate) business for me, or am I simply entertaining my fans?” As more business owners become convinced that they MUST participate in social media, the overall results may not be supported by increases in customers, revenues and profits.
To analyze the effectiveness of your social media strategy, I suggest taking a hard look at what you are currently doing. Several specific areas you should address include:
I constantly receive requests to “like” business Facebook pages. When I get these requests, I wonder what good my “liking” a particular page does, other than perhaps allowing special naming privileges for the page.
The most important question that should come to mind related to business social media pages is, “Is it generating (or going to generate) business for me, or am I simply entertaining my fans?” As more business owners become convinced that they MUST participate in social media, the overall results may not be supported by increases in customers, revenues and profits.
To analyze the effectiveness of your social media strategy, I suggest taking a hard look at what you are currently doing. Several specific areas you should address include:
- Am I generating more business and making a profit on it, and are the profits generated from it greater than the amount of time and money spent on it?
- Is my content interesting and attractive and do I have the most effective “call to action” tools on my pages? (If not, how do you expect to drive new business to your website or physical location?)
- Is my social media strategy consistent with and working hand in hand with my overall marketing strategy? (In other words, does one strategy conflict with another for your business?)
- If applicable, is my outsourced social media support company performing effectively and as promised? If not, why not? (Anyone can claim to be a social media expert, but only a few truly are. So you must perform due diligence, including assessing the experience and knowledge level of those who will be maintaining your social media sites and responding to fans on your behalf, before deciding to commit to any contracts. Make sure you can cancel if you’re not satisfied.)
These issues, along with any others you identify, should be addressed fully. Then, modifications should be made, as necessary, to your social media strategy.
Please feel free to contact me with any questions about growing your business.
Please feel free to contact me with any questions about growing your business.
Don Kyle is the CEO and Founder of Small Bizz MBA, a company which assists businesses with their marketing, branding and advertising needs. (404) 580-6331, dkyle@smallbizzmba.com
