If your company is considering using social media to attract new customers and communicate with your established base, you quickly realize that it’s not as easy as it may first appear. There are actually a surprising number of elements to consider before you even take the first tentative steps down this particular road. Below, we’ll talk about some of the more important ones.

Understand Why Your Customers Use Social Media

The sooner you realize that users of social media engage on the various platforms primarily to keep in touch with friends and family and to explore making new connections the better. About a third of regular social media use is to find out about new products and read reviews, but this is typically through links their friends, family and coworkers are posting on their own social media pages.

This is why the best strategy to get your current and potential customers interested in your company social media is to engage current customers and count on them to contact their friends about your products and services when they find them useful, interesting and trend setting. If someone on social media has a good experience with your service or products social media friends will hear and see about it because of the positive emotions it engenders.

Win Over Potential Customers by Meeting Their Needs and Preferences

Find out what a targeted groups wants or needs and then do what you can to give it to them. Empty promises will make most social media savvy individuals walk away. Make sure the content you generate is mobile friendly and take care to deliver what you said you would. If occasionally a mistake is made or pledge not kept hop right on the social media platforms used and make it right. Apologize and explain your plan to avoid this issue arising again.

Be Sure to Have Both an Online and an Offline Presence

Anywhere a potential customer encounters you and your brand, it must correlate with your social media presence. If you create a dissonance most people will doubt your sincerity, and then no amount of energy and emotional connection you try to generate on social media will sway the public. Other advertising you do must be consistent and if you have a physical presence in any markets what you promise on social media must be the experience in your stores, offices or other outlets.

Pinpoint and Focus On What You Bring to Your Audience for Your Social Media Posts

Determine what problems your services solve, or needs your products meet and emphasize your customer's peace of mind and happiness. Offer alternatives to their fears and wants if they contact you but do not give a hard sell for what you have for purchase. For example if you offer lawn services do not post a list of quotes for various sized yards, instead share before and after pictures of a landscape that was tamed and invite them to contact you to explore their needs for their own lawn care needs.