Summer has arrived. It's time to cue up the yacht rock by the pool and relax with a tasty, tasty beverage. The days are easygoing. No one is working. Summer is the best. This scenario sounds amazing, plus or minus the yacht rock depending on your tastes (Ambrosia rules!), but it's not based in reality.
A more common scenario, especially for businesses, is that summer brings on the slow season. Between people taking vacations and the heat, businesses can take a major ding to their profits. When money is tight and business is slow, the first thing that tends to get cut is the marketing budget. When you slash your marketing budget, one of the key components you may be getting rid of is social media management. This is a huge mistake.
I'm going to be blunt: Not updating and maintaining your presence on social media is tantamount to dying. It's dramatic, but in a sense it is very true. People who actually appreciate and enjoy your presence look forward to hearing from you daily, especially if you have provided them with content they love. If your business is B2C, social media is indispensible when it comes to reaching your customers. A survey conducted by Empathica Consumer Insights Panel found that 55 percent of Facebook users liked a brand on the site and that 73 percent of shoppers said Facebook influenced a recent store visit.
After maintaining a solid social media presence, it can be odd when your business seemingly drops off the face of the planet. Here are some reasons why going rogue on social media is one of the biggest mistakes you could make for your business.
Lack of Consistency
It seems silly, but when you have a really strong presence, go quiet and then post at random, it can put a bad taste in the mouths of your followers. They liked you for a reason and want to hear from you. It's also just plain bad use of your time to post once in a while, or worse, to post a bunch all in one day and then go silent again for months. Users might visit your page, see your erratic use and choose not to do business with you.
It is completely understandable that you might be too busy to post every day. One thing you can do to keep your posts rolling out even after you have left your desk for the day is to schedule them out. There is an innumerable amount of apps and sites you can use to do this. Hootsuite is super easy to manage for first-timers and Facebook makes it easy to schedule posts right on the page. Keeping your posts consistent is a great way to keep your current followers and draw additional traffic.
Bad Customer Service
Not all of your clients or customers live near your business, so an easy way for people to get a hold of you is through social media. This can be anything from a question they have about your services, to a product you provide, down to your telephone number. When a users asks a question and goes more than a week without a response, you can kiss them goodbye. As far as they are concerned, you could care less for your online customer. At best they find another company that will solve their problem and at worst they will leave a negative review for the public to see. One negative review is one too many, and that includes reviews left online.
Maintaining a presence on social media takes time and effort, but it is completely doable. By going silent, you are showing your followers that you simply don't care to be in touch with them. Finding a way to make it work for you and your business will ultimately help your bottom line.
The post Where Did You Go? The Effects of Going Silent on Social Media appeared first on What She Said.