Social Media

Strategies for

Small Businesses

D r i v e C u s t o m e r s

w w w . D r i v e C u s t o m e r s . c o m

( 4 0 1 ) 4 0 0 - 0 4 5 0

Thomas DiSanto

Learn what consumers, who “Like” your brand really

want, create the most engaging posts and keep them

coming back for more.

1 | P a g e B y T h o m a s D i S a n t o

w w w . d r i v e C U S T O M E R S . C O M

Contents:

Chapter 1: What Consumers Who “Like”

Your Brand Really Want

Chapter 2: How to Keep Your Fans &

Followers Coming Back for More!

Chapter 3: Strategies for Creating the Most

Engaging Facebook Posts

2 | P a g e B y T h o m a s D i S a n t o

w w w . d r i v e C U S T O M E R S . C O M

What Consumers Who “Like” Your Brand

Really Want

According to a survey conducted by social media marketing agency Cone Inc, free products or

services, coupons and discounts continue to be the best way to build fans and followers and keep

them engaged. Consumers who “Like” or “Follow” an online brand expect to receive

promotional incentives, but are also looking for brands to help “solve their problems” as well as

acknowledge their important feedback.

What are US Social Media Users Looking for When Engaging with Companies/Brands

Online?

It is also important to consider what Fans and Followers aren‟t looking for. When social media

users were asked why they stopped following an online brand respondents overwhelming said:

The brand sent out too many messages (spammy) and/or acted in an irresponsible manner. The

majority of respondents also complained about the content being irrelevant.

3 | P a g e B y T h o m a s D i S a n t o

w w w . d r i v e C U S T O M E R S . C O M

Top Reasons Why US Social Media Users Stop Following Companies/Brands Online 2010:

These findings further confirmed another recent study conducted by DDB Worldwide and

Opinionway Research of Facebook brand fans worldwide.

4 | P a g e B y T h o m a s D i S a n t o

w w w . d r i v e C U S T O M E R S . C O M

In the preceding study, the top reason for unsubscribing was a „lack of‟ or „losing interest‟ in the

brand, followed closely by complaints about being frequently bombarded with information and

content. Both studies suggest that having too much content, the wrong kind of content, and

communicating too frequently will surely drive consumers away.

While brands who publish too infrequently seem problematic for some fans, it is not necessarily

a mitigating factor when fans chose to unsubscribe from a page. With the same token, if efforts

are made to improve content and enhance engagement, fans and followers will surely still be

there to see it. It’s a fine line isn’t it?

5 | P a g e B y T h o m a s D i S a n t o

w w w . d r i v e C U S T O M E R S . C O M

How to Keep Your Fans & Followers Coming

Back for More!

ComBlu has just released their annual “State of Online Branded Communities” report. Buried

inside the report were some really great nuggets of information about what is working for brands

on the cutting edge of social media engagement.

Though the report is centered on “Branded” online communities as opposed to other social

networking venues such as Facebook and Twitter, there were some formalized „best practices‟

that can easily apply to all.

Here is a mash-up of some of the key components from that report and my own suggestions for

keeping social followers engaged.

Create a profile for a designated online social „manager‟. 50% of online branded social

communities/pages do not have an active „manager‟. There is no one to represent the face of the

brand. This is a missed opportunity to „humanize‟ your brand and/or products and services.

People are more considerate when they know they‟re communicating with a „real‟ person and not

the austere „corporate‟ image. Give your online brand manger a face!

Send Welcome message to all of your new followers! Make them feel appreciated and also

orientate them to the key benefits of your community/page/brand. This will ensure a return visit.

Only 50% of online communities/pages do this.

Less than 20% have a brand advocates program. “Micro-fame” is a one of the key drivers behind

sustained participation. Recognizing „key influencers‟ is essential as these deeply engaged

members represent the voice of the customer and possess a deep affinity for the brand. „Key

Influencers‟ will actively recruit others, accelerate engagement and are typically prolific

contributors. Recognize and reward these important brand advocates!

Fewer than 40 percent of communities have a rewards and recognition program. Why not reward

followers for their participation, whether it‟s a $5 gift card to Starbucks or new Porsche 911

GT3. This can be formalized into a points system, or it could be random. It doesn‟t even have to

be monetary. Establish a points system with cool badges. We can all be micro-famous! Think

“Foursquare”. For businesses who do not offer Foursquare incentives other than being the

“Mayor” or getting a cool badge…what real value is there in Foursquare check-ins?

About 60% of brands have integrated the Facebook “Like” button as well as a “share” button that

allows users to more easily promote your content to their friends. This helps attract new

members as well as syndicates your rich content throughout the web.

6 | P a g e B y T h o m a s D i S a n t o

w w w . d r i v e C U S T O M E R S . C O M

Consistency matters! Sporadic posts and updates do not encourage other members to contribute.

Make time to engage with your Fans and Followers on a regular basis. Answer all inquiries. The

“Face” of your social presence must be accessible and approachable for maximum engagement.

Put the primary focus on your members. Inevitably, the conversation must always come back to

the customer and the customer experience. People don‟t care about products and services;

ultimately, they care about themselves and their problems and concerns. Keep this in mind

before you trumpet the virtues of your newest product release.

Polling your Fans and Followers can yield greater engagement if it is relevant to your brand, or if

it just plain strikes a chord. One of the best off-topic strings I ever saw was post that asked “Did

your parent‟s make you take piano lessons and did they make you happier?” Be a conversation

starter!

Witty comments on the news of the day will always get a little attention, as long as the viewpoint

it might express will appeal to your members. Topical is fine, as long as it does not offend or

alienate anyone.

Along the same line as topical, expressing some good vibrations is a wonder to behold, and will

have members “liking” your comment almost instantly. So, say something positive! The sun is

shining, the birds are chirping, the children are singing! Try and inject a little positivity in

everything you do and say! Your warmth will attract and encourage others.

Comment on the status of others! Show your support and commitment to engaging with them. It

can be as simple as: “Hey! Thanks for posting! That was really cool!” Connect with other

HUMAN beings and show your eagerness to be a part of the conversation.

Sincere expressions of support for a worthy charitable cause will always be viewed as a positive.

Support a worthy cause, not because it makes you look good, but because it‟s the right thing to

do. Good things come back to you! (If you‟re looking for a great cause, please check out:

www.donorschoose.org)

The most influential content you have in your arsenal is the reviews and ratings from real

customers. It is perfectly acceptable for you to post excerpts and links to customer reviews, as

the vast majority of customers want to hear about the experiences of others.

Share Your Valuable Expertise: Answer questions, write content laden articles. You are the

expert and the authority! Take it to a new level by creating pod casts and “How To” videos. Be

generous with your knowledge and you will find that others are most willing to reciprocate.

Turn your employees into ROCK STARS! Your employees are the greatest asset you have! Talk

about why and how they‟re great at their jobs! Talk about what it is that they do. Post pictures of

employees, your office building, your equipment, the view from the roof of your building. Put a

face and place in your posts!

7 | P a g e B y T h o m a s D i S a n t o

w w w . d r i v e C U S T O M E R S . C O M

Promote your presence in social media. Include it in your advertising. Encourage others to „join

you on Facebook‟. Demonstrate and emphasize the diverse ways in which consumers can

connect with your brand.

Take it offline! Only 20% of brands do this. Throw a party for your fans & followers, invite them

to kibitz and have a good time. Make yourself accessible, have face to face conversations with

your customers, fans and followers. Personal relationships are what make a difference! This will

grow your reputation and your business in ways that you could have never anticipated! This is

truly an opportunity to create lifelong brand evangelists!

3 Very Important Key Take-Aways:

1. Demonstrate to members the ways in which they can participate; 2. Reward them when they do participate; 3. Showcase the accomplishments of high-performing members;

“Y’all come back now, ya’ hear?”

8 | P a g e B y T h o m a s D i S a n t o

w w w . d r i v e C U S T O M E R S . C O M

Strategies for Creating the Most Engaging

Facebook Posts

Kudos to Buddy Media for their insightful new report based on analysis conducted among a

sample size of 200 clients who are using the Buddy Media Platform to post on Facebook. The

analysis represents data from some of the world‟s largest brands crossing many industries

including entertainment, media, retail, automotive, business & finance, fashion, sports, travel &

hospitality, food & beverage, and health-care & beauty.

Here are a few crucial findings:

Posts 80 characters or less in length have 27% higher engagement rates;

Engagement rates are 3 times higher for posts that used a „full length‟ URL;

Brands that posted outside of business hours had 20% higher engagement rates;

Engagement rates on Thursday and Friday are 18% higher than any other day of the

week;

Posts that end with a question have a 15% higher engagement rate;

Don‟t ask “why”! “Why” questions had the lowest number of „Likes‟ and „Comments‟ as they

are perceived as intrusive and challenging. The 5 interrogative keywords that drove the highest

engagement were: “Where”, “When”, “Would”, “Should”, and “How”.

Fans follow simple instructions well; asking them to „Like‟ a post is the easiest. If you want

users to take action, you must tell them. Asking fans outright to “Like”, “Post”, “Take”,

“Submit” or “Watch” something will drive the greatest level of engagement. Fans will listen and

respond.

Fans are happy to engage with “Events” and “Winning” offers. Stick with this type of „softer‟

language, as opposed to more direct language such as “contest” or “promotion”. The 5 best

performing keywords for consumer engagement were: “Event”, “Winner”, “Offer”, “New”,

and “Win”. Keywords such as „save‟, „free shipping‟ and „exclusive‟ scored the absolute lowest.

THANK YOU!