Are you seeing results from your social media efforts?

Axia PR can help medium and large businesses better understand social media

Remember when “social media” only referred to Facebook? Now there are new platforms popping up almost every day and the concept has become big business. Unfortunately, many medium and large businesses still aren’t taking advantage of all the available opportunities for using social media to connect with consumers and maximize profits.

You may think that as long as you have social media pages, post to them periodically and provide links on your website, you’re doing fine, but that’s not true. Where, when and how you use social media can mean the difference between it being a source of increased conversions and sales or a complete waste of time. With help from PR, you can learn to use it more effectively and achieve actual, measurable benefits.

What you post matters

No one likes one-sided conversations. Talking only about yourself and what you’ve done is a turn-off. Of course, you want to tell your company’s story, but that can’t be all you have to say.

Today’s consumers expect more for their money. They want a business to show how it’s providing value to their lives. Experts recommend that you should post about yourself approximately 20 percent of the time and use the other 80 percent for something else, such as useful data and content.

You can fill this 80 percent with information that customers actually want to hear. It can be indirectly related to your product or industry but should not be just another sales pitch.

For example, if your company manufactures furniture, you can post tips on how do-it-yourself types can repair damaged wood. If your business is fixing computers, you can post about exciting developments happening in the technological field and how it will impact the lives of your customers in the near future.

It can also be beneficial to solicit feedback and advice from customers using social media. You can ask their opinions about new products you’re considering or for direction on your social responsibility initiatives in your community.

Seeing that your company cares about its customers will make the public start to trust you. When customers see your company as a go-to source for helpful, reliable information, they will remember you.

Getting customers to trust and remember your brand is the first step toward making a sale. Therefore, when they reach the decision-making stage of the sales cycle, you will have already done most of the work in turning the lead into a sale using social media.

When you post matters

Now that you know what to say and why it’s important, you should also be aware of the best times to post on social media. For instance:

More than 80 percent of those who access social media do so from a smart device. Therefore, your information must be designed to be viewed on smaller screens.
Most retweets are sent at night, so schedule your posts with this in mind.
Using photos is the best way to capture attention on Facebook.
Consider the day of the week when posting on Pinterest. Saturdays are best for travel-related information and Tuesdays are tops for fashion.

Why hiring a PR firm matters

This can be a lot for any company to handle alone. Let the social media experts at Axia PR help to manage the task for you. Using our social media reporting, control and structuring tools, we can work to increase your visibility, online reputation and profitability. Contact us today or download our e-book The Essential Social Media Management Guide for more information.

Lisa Goldsberry is a writer for Axia Public Relations with more than 15 years of public relations experience. She specializes in business, higher education and technology PR. Connect with Axia Public Relations on Twitter @axiapr.