Are You a Deer in Headlights When You Get a Social Media Comment?

Are you a deer in headlights when it comes to that social media comment'? Or, are you just dumbfounded when you get an inquiry on one of your social media channels?

Most B2C brands' get it' when it comes to social media engagement. However, I have found that many B2B brands do not.

What's Your Social Media Engagement Plan?

Most B2B organizations want their customers to engage with their social media channels. It's the popular metric that the CMO tells the CEO, so the CEO thinks the CMO 'gets it.' But, unfortunately, too many of those brands don't know what to do when their audience responds — with a question, comment, or share.

I've been a part of many, let's say, 'interesting' conversations over the years regarding engagement. Some say, "talk to the social media department." Some CEOs say "delete it" if the attention is not complementary. Some brands forget to observe the post.

Most CMOs or leadership are thinking ahead and working with their teams to establish an engagement plan. A set of rules of engagement that shows what needs to be done if a comment or KPI is triggered.

Having a Social Media Engagement Plan is Important

31% of clients and consumers say they've increased their use of social media compared to last year to interact with brands and companies. 

I have found that many execs, sales professionals, and leaders aren't quite sure what to do when someone engages with the brand. Sometimes, they don't understand how a brand engages with its audience as a part of its brand. An essential part. The social media channels are the 1-1 communication channel.

If your customers are engaging, you need to have a clear operating model and response plan to address this opportunity, right? Otherwise, you are maximizing that investment you made in your social media team. 

Here's What Happens When You Don't Address Your Social Media Engagement

When you don't have an engagement plan, it can have a detrimental impact on your brand. You could miss:

1. A trend that could impact sales. You might spot that your service or product is not as exciting as you think it is. 
2. A sales inquiry or social selling trigger. A late-night comment on a thought leadership post might ask for a 1-1 follow-up.
3. An opportunity to nurture a new or current client. You might have a chance to leverage an exuberant comment.
4. A chance to redeem a poor customer experience. Sometimes underwhelmed clients just take their displeasure to social media. 
5. An angry or off-brand employee. One that is just dragging a company, CEO, and hiring manager through the virtual streets of social media. You know, the one just got laid off or hadn't received a raise in years.

Too many of these indicators are left to an inexperienced or understaffed social media program or team. This lack of response is where the whole program blows up.

The Basics of How to Establish Your Engagement Plan

1. Review your social media channels over the past year. Then, bucket each of the types of engagement opportunities to identify the types of responses you need. The snarky comment. The angry influencer. The off-the-wall employee.
2. Create a set of responses to address each bucket of engagement.
3. Create a two-tier response plan — address the engagement immediately on social media and establish an escalation plan.

Do You Need Help With Your Engagement Plan?

If you need help thinking through how to create an engagement plan, contact me at [email protected]. I've spent over ten years building and running SAP's and Cognizant's social media operating model. As a result, I can offer you concrete recommendations for your individual needs.

Please visit us at marketingthink.com to see what other services we provide. Or follow us on LinkedIn at https://www.dhirubhai.net/company/marketingthink-consulting-llc.

More of your clients are engaging on social, so have a plan to make the most of it!