7 Basic Social Media Strategies For 2012

Social Media is the new term for socialising online. Social media includes web-based and mobile technologies that allow users to talk, participate, share, bookmark, network and more. It is indeed a social instrument of communication. Forums and Online Communities, Blogs, Facebook, Twitter – all these are called social media. Companies ought to follow consumers where they head to. People read blogs, give comments, share content in various blogs, forums and social networks. The reason why all businesses need to have a social media strategy is because it prevents sending a wrong signal or a mixed signals and emphasizes why social media is relevant to your business’ overall goals. You can have a brand/fan page on almost every popular social network however you also need to keep in mind as to who will be your audience and reach them where they are. It is also important to ensure that these media give a good opportunity for you to connect with your customers and vice versa. Here’s a practical approach to developing a social media strategy for your business for the year 2012.

1. How much is the effect: One brand or fan page in Facebook or a Digg bookmark won’t create a difference so try a combination of tools.

2. Online presence: Today there are a range of platforms like laptops, smartphones, tablets and desktop. Get to know how your consumers are using their mobile phones and its related apps. Also have a check on the online presence you create in these platform for your consumers.

3. Security measure: The Single sign-on, also called convergence has simplified the interaction on social networks. Users now have lesser passwords to remember as they can access websites using Facebook or Twitter. But convergence has paved the way for hacking to hackers as it is easy to get more information with less passwords to get in the way. The same treat poses even for mobile users. You need to earn trust and consistency from your customers and this is a major factor which will influence your business in the e-commerce world.

4. Online sales: Today, in Facebook we can find online shops of so many businesses selling different products and services paving the way for online sales. Keep a watch on the share your consumers make on products they like and purchase. As your online customers participate more, your brand is valued more. Shared experiences can improve your products and services.

5. Establish relationships: When you have an opportunity to attend conferences or events related to your industry, make the best use of it to strengthen existing relationships and also create a new network. There might be people who have hidden their identity with an avatar in social networks and through these events you get a chance to meet in person.

6. Measure Success and Presence: These are the actions which you need to measure like Brand presence.Take a note of the fan count for your Facebook page, follower count on Twitter, comment count in blog and forum. This tells you about your brand presence across various media.

7. Traffic and Response: Take a note of the number of links from other websites to your brand’s URL. Also take care of Comment response for brand. Take a note of the positive and negative feeback about your brand. Both are required for upgrading.

IMAGE CREDIT : DANILO RIZZUTI

This article is written by Linda. She is an active guest blogger who blogs on a variety of topics that include social media, software, technology and mobiles.