What Your Customers Really Think About Your Social Media

The overwhelming majority of businesses now have a social media presence in one form or another, yet it is still undervalued as a tool for generating business. In small businesses especially, time spent promoting your services via social media is often seen as time wasted, and it's hard to avoid the temptation to palm social media off on a junior employee, or even forget about it altogether.

However, social media is a seriously viable marketing tool, and you can rest assured that it's here to stay. 78% of small businesses attract new customers through social media, and that's despite 80% not having clear links back to their website. What's just as staggering though is that 95% of Facebook wall posts to brands are left unanswered, and over 50% of consumers say they have stopped following a brand on social media due to dull and repetitive posts.

If you try to use social media as an active lead generation tool, yet have had no success whatsoever, or even if your social media accounts became overrun with tumbleweed long ago, it begs the question "what did I do wrong?" It's time to put yourself in your customer's shoes, and ask yourself: "What do my customers really think about my social media?"

Here are 5 perceived social media problems I have come across while talking to business owners:

1. "I used to post every day, but stopped because it wasn't getting me anywhere"

I'm sure we're all familiar with the old "quality over quantity" cliche, but it really does ring true with social media. If you're posting the same old uninspiring posts day in, day out, is it really any surprise your customers and potential clients aren't getting turned on. You don't need to post on social media every day, but make sure that when you do what you are posting is interesting, relevant and shareable.

2. "I just don't have the time"

Probably the most common issue with social media is the amount of time it is perceived to take up. Sure, small business owners are busy people and don't want to spend all day on social media, but statistics show that as little as 6 hours a week - about an hour a working day -spent on social media can account for 66% more lead generation.

What's more, tools like Hootsuite enable you to schedule a weeks worth of social media posts in one go, and this literally takes minutes. Lack of time is no longer an excuse, and your customers certainly won't buy it. If that fails, remember there are a wealth of highly experienced agencies who will happily take on your social media.

3. "I've got nothing to say"

This is another excuse I really don't buy into. I've never met a business owner who hasn't been able to talk passionately for hours about their business, and it's this level of enthusiasm and passion that is going to generate a buzz and drum up those leads. If you're not conveying this over social media, you only have yourself to blame.

4. "It's impossible to position myself in front of potential customers"

This can particularly be an issue with businesses that are just starting up and don't have an active bank of social media followers to market to. However, this should never hold you back. Social media is constantly evolving, and it is now possible to micro-target your posts to ensure they are reaching the right people.

Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter all have a micro-targeting feature, and implementing it is easy and cost-effective. Done properly, you can pretty much guarantee ROI. Take note, however, that you need to put yourself in your customers shoes before running this sort of campaign. I would suggest putting together some buyer personas to ensure you are reaching the right people on the right channels.

5. "Everybody knows social media doesn't really work"

Remember that statistic at the start of the article? 78% of small business attract new customers through social media, and 23% of all consumers spend the majority of their time online looking at social media and blogs. Social media represents a vast oasis of potential business that will stay untapped unless you up your game.

It's time to up your game

By paying attention to your metrics and looking at how your posts are performing, it is pretty easy to gauge exactly what your customers really think about your social media. If you are posting regularly but seeing little engagement, shake up what you are putting on social media. If you rarely post anything, if at all, do something about it and if you still can't see the value in social media marketing for your business, why not take advantage of WOW Consulting's Free Pro Consultation to see just how much it could do for you.

For more information on the Pro Consultation, click this link and fill in the form. Alternatively, you can give WOW Consulting a call on 0208 257 3592 or drop us an email on [email protected].

There are countless great customers out there just waiting for you to engage them on social media. What are you waiting for?