I have been educating myself more and more on the use of social media to grow brand image. It seems that many of us, Business Bulldog included, are using the platforms completely wrong. Yes, there is a wrong way of using something free. And, yes, we are wildly throwing away our brand name to get recognized.
First, let me say that I am recovering from my own poor use of this new media. Is it really “new”? It is since we are still getting new and creative platforms every week that portend to give us the ability to reach anyone anywhere.
Your website is your home base. It is where you have complete control and can give your audience, which sought you out, a clear vision of your company. Everything on your website should relate back to why someone should spend money on your products or services. A clean design that is colorful and has a “Call to Action” will leave your audience with a sense of purpose. Without those elements, you will lose them as soon as the log off. Understand that your website is the final stop and the point where you should be closing the deal. All other media should point to your website.
Facebook is a great example of how you could throw away a chance to make a good impression. I constantly see weird pictures posted to business Facebook pages that have nothing to do with getting to visit your website. Worse yet, I see things that make me want to close my computer and sanitize it. I won’t point you to any of those Facebook pages out of respect to those companies. Often, they hire someone who thinks that any post that they think is funny, intriguing, etc. will bring visitors. They measure success by likes. Likes on Facebook do not necessarily turn into visits to your website. Measure the links to your website for accurate KPIs.
Twitter, as far as I can tell, is useless for businesses. No one is going to Twitter to find a business. Also, no one is going to transition from Twitter to a business website. Twitter users stay on Twitter. Grab your brand name but don’t worry about it as a driving force to bring visitors to you.
LinkedIn works well for developing who you are a pushing people to your website. It is the BEST place on social media to grab customers. Make sure the voice on LinkedIn for your business matches the voice you have on your website. Turning your LinkedIn business page over to someone looking for likes is a recipe for disaster. Again, if you measure the number of times someone found you through LinkedIn instead of likes on LinkedIn, you will have a accurate measurement. Don’t’ get spun around by online marketing that tells you that you need to have followers on LinkedIn. You need paying customers. That happens when you direct them to your call to action.
This is just the tip of the iceberg for social media but it gives you a great idea of what to look for in working on your online presence. Be prepared for slumps. People are looking for distractions until they start looking for resources. I’m sure there is a cycle there. Someone smarter than me can figure that out.
Take a good look at how you look on the web. Let me know what you changed and how it affected your bottom line.
Bob Griffin
Chief Bulldog-in-Charge
Business Bulldog, LLC.
Bgriffin@businessbulldog.com