We are now a decade and a half into the 21st century and it is time for business to commit to the communication tools of our era…and that is social media. It is no longer an option but requires a strategic commitment. Otherwise, you risk losing the ability to influence your customers, talent, and all key stakeholders in our hyperconnected and interdependent business world.
The reality is many business owners still do not see the benefits of engaging on Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Instagram and other social sites. They consider this “social activity” to a waste of their valuable time asset which can be better invested in other places.
As business owners responsible for so many functions of the business, it can be a daunting to pay enough attention to all aspects of it. You end up leaving certain tasks alone believing them not to be critical, in order to concentrate on prime concerns. But when you leave social media alone, you are damaging your company’s growth. The reality is that social media is now critical to sustaining success.
Here are 5 reasons why it is critical for your business to be active on social platforms today and in 2016:
1.Gain Trust and Credibility
Prospective customers are reluctant to buy from you if they don’t know your firm because they have no motivation to trust you. The more people see your brand on digital and social media, the more relationship capital you will earn through positive perceptions. They are likely to start seeing you as a credible authority or as a thought leader. You become a trusted source of information and knowledge to them. You earn and build trust and relationship capital credibility by sharing your blog posts and other perceptive content on social media.
2. Demonstrated Results
One of the prime reasons you need to generate social profiles is because it gets results. Research from a wide variety of credible sources has positively recognized the business benefits of utilizing social media. The majority of business marketers who invest as little as six hours per week on these social platforms have seen a profound increase in traffic to their websites, leads, and an increase in sales. When a digital and social marketing strategy creates such positive outcomes, you just can no longer disregard it.
3. Generate Brand Awareness
When you have a small business, you need all the publicity that you can muster, so why not obtain without charge from social media? When you consistently post content to your social networking platforms regarding your brand, your products and services, and even your ideas and perceptions, you begin to build brand awareness and a following. It is pretty straightforward, social media has tens of millions of active daily users, worldwide access, and sharing capacities that can be quite favorable for your firm.
4. Open Interaction with Prospects And Customers
It’s never been more simple for your firm to visibly demonstrate to your prospects and prospects that you genuinely care. On social media, you can communicate openly to those who interact with your company. You can simply answer inquiries, assuage concerns, and respond to reviews, which will elevate your customer service.
5. Stay Competitive with Your Competitors
Your competitors are interacting on social media, and if you are not, you’re going to be at a competitive disadvantage. Customers perceive firms that are on their social platforms more positively and are much more likely to purchase from them. You must ask this simple question Do you just want to let your competitors take away your potential sales?
Conclusion
Whether or not you acknowledge it, social media and digital technology are the core enablers of today’s hyperconnected and transparent world. If you’ve been ignoring it or have disregarded it importance to business success, it’s time to rethink and start participating with your prospects and customers. Take advantage of its incredible economic potential and reap the rewards of earning relationship capital by social networking for business. Without a doubt, you will see an increase in business leads that result in increase sales. What can be more important to sustaining a thriving business than increasing growth?