Social Media: What Does Engaging Your Audience Mean to You?
At a time of physical distancing and fewer face-to-face opportunities, businesses must learn to engage and interact on social media to build trust with their audience.
David Cox | May 25, 2020
The growth in social media usage
According to the Digital 2020 report, more than 4.5 billion people now use the Internet, while social media users have passed the 3.8 billion mark. The growth in social media usage represents a 9% increase over the previous year.
Nearly 60 percent of the world’s population is already online, and the latest trends suggest that more than half of the world’s total population will use social media this year.
It’s time to take social media engagement seriously
The growth in social media participation is something we cannot afford to ignore. For many, it’s their number one place to stay connected with friends, family, colleagues, and news sources.
It’s also one of the most cost-effective approaches to marketing and building your brand.
Moreover, businesses remain severely limited in personal interactions due to physical distancing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is true whether the restrictions are a legal requirement or the personal choice of prospective customers.
Subsequently, social media is an unquestionably essential strategy for your business or organization.
Gone are the days where we blindly advertise and hope for the best. Today, social media provides your company with the opportunity to engage with customers (and potential customers) in real-time. If a customer has a complaint. You can solve it. If a potential customer needs to feel more confident about you, sharing your expertise can ease their concerns.
If you handle these interactions well, you will build a positive reputation. Customers will likely give you a favorable review online. Some prospective customers may decide to buy your products or services.
Trust comes before buying
The traditional idea of setting goals based on sales, or a return on investment is not as applicable in today's social media environment. Expecting to achieve massive amounts of new sales, because of social media posting, is likely to be a waste of your time and money.
Social media marketing is more about engagement, establishing credibility, and building trust. In the final analysis: If someone online chooses to do business with you, they're not going to buy because of your superior marketing strategy. They're going to buy because they trust you.
Unlock Your Potential and Transform Your Life: Reclaim Your Personal Power and Discover how to work less but earn more| Business & Life Strategist | Deep Coaching
4 年Building relationships is key to a sustainable business. The current times are showing us that we need to be more creative on how we engage and find our audience. They have moved from the face to face but are still around. As you said David Trust is vital now more than ever.
★ Consultant Radiologist ★ Director Revise Radiology ★ Productivity Coach ★ Property Investor ★
4 年Thanks, David Cox. Certainly identify with your theory that trust is the key to social media engagement.
Past President, National HBCU Business Deans Roundtable. Ph.D. in Economics, Certified in Immersive Tech. 5+ yrs on Executive Committee, specialized in strategic corporate partnerships and workforce development
4 年David Cox Agreed. Engagement is king... engagement comes with good and consistent content to build the trust before buying. Thanks for the insight
Supporting Overstretched Project Managers to achieve more in less time and with less stress!
4 年David Cox, No matter what the changes in the processes and technologies that we use to build a relationship with clients, in the end of the day we generally will only do business with people that we know like and trust - these are the constants!