Which Social Media Channels Should I Use In My Business In 2015?

2015 is going to be all about quality engagement with prospects and current customers. Or as Steve Jobs would say, “connecting the dots”. To achieve sustainable business success, it’s important to build relationships with your target audience – whether prospects or customers. The world is now using social media for interaction in business and personal life, social media continues to grow and grow and doesn't look like it will be slowing down any time soon. This gives your business plenty of opportunities to drive traffic to your website, engage in conversations, and convert prospects into leads. Below are social media areas which your business should focus on in 2015 to help drive traffic to your website and landing pages, with the view to converting prospects into leads.

Facebook

Facebook should be one of the first stops for early adopters. With a user database close to 800 million people worldwide, it’s no surprise that businesses are taking advantage of this opportunistic channel to speak to potential and current customers. One of the simplest ways to capture leads on Facebook, is to design a default tab that welcomes your audience. The "Welcome Tab" should include remarkable copy and illustrations that describe your business, and of course - a lead capturing form.

While you want to promote your product or service awareness on your page, you should take it a step further by constantly interacting and engaging with you audience. Consider asking questions on a regular basis to foster discussions in your industry. Join groups and interact on other business pages to drive traffic to your Facebook page and this will help increase your amount of likes on Facebook. Make sure that any comments, good or bad, are answered quickly on your Facebook page as this will show your business as customer service oriented and trustworthy in the eyes of your target market.

To find out more about Facebook marketing for a business please see this blog post: How To Set Up A Facebook Advertising Campaign: A Step-By-Step Guide

Twitter

Of all the channels, Twitter has the potential to offer you the largest following base. Straight to the point - tweets will attract the interest of your audience and followers - driving leads and increasing brand awareness. Twitter allows you to promote valuable content, engage with your target market, and keep up with industry trends. You should be tracking conversations that reference your organisation and the industries you serve. Monitoring twitter feeds, utilising hashtags, and using URL shorteners can help you set benchmarks, understand consumer needs, and ultimately drive traffic to your website. Software such as Hootsuite and Tweetdeck will aid you in keeping on top of your twitter business profile and enable you quickly to monitor social conversations on twitter.

Find out even more about twitter by reading this JDR blog post: A Beginners Guide To Twitter – Six Frequently Asked Questions

LinkedIn

While LinkedIn is the most buttoned up member of the social media family, it’s an essential element to any inbound marketing plan. In order to maximize this channel, you should have a personal and business page. Your pages should be a straightforward, on-brand destination that provides fundamental information about your company, experience and expertise. The best way to generate leads on LinkedIn is by participating in regular discussions via Groups and Answers. Joining or creating groups allows you to connect within your industry and monitor what other professionals are talking about. The Answers function is a place where you can showcase your knowledge and connect with subject matter experts. By addressing and solving common issues expressed by your prospects, you'll find that your efforts will ultimately result in more leads.

Google+

While Google+ is still moving towards being the next big social platform, you should not be sitting on the fence. Google+ works like a cleaned up version of Facebook. The platform increases the relevancy of search results, honing in on likely customers. Google+ also has business pages, which allow users to +1 your company, add you to their circle, and interact with individuals from your company. You can attract visitors to your page through ongoing efforts (like Facebook and Twitter); to make connections and help develop social media brand awareness. This cross-promotion can help attract new clients to your website and capture leads. Don't forget to add the Google+ button to your website and blog articles!

Blogging

Creating and maintaining a blog is one of the easiest ways for companies to stay relevant and drive traffic to your business. According to HubSpot, companies that blog have 55% more website visitors than those who don’t. By creating original content and using correct optimisation, blogging will differentiate your company in search engines and in social networks. Your blogging frequency will have a direct impact on your lead generation. It has been suggested by experts that you need to be blogging at least once per week. Here at the JDR Group we recommend blogging at least twice a week to reach the required audience and establish your business as the market leader in the industry.

Social Bookmarking Sites

Platforms like Delicious allow users to bookmark their favourite sites and share them online. Social bookmarking is an excellent way to make your content go viral in a short period of time. The key element to this channel is content promotion. The more remarkable your content is, the better chance you have of it getting voted to the front page of a website such as Delicious.

Forums and Blogs

Forums and blogs are great avenues to find relevant conversations and engage with your industry peers. Writing blog articles that address questions in industry specific forums, will help drive prospects to your website and landing pages. By providing relevant and timely content, you will generate leads and build up your brand awareness. Forums also provide a great opportunity to interact with like-minded professionals in your industry and you can contribute or invite special guest bloggers from your industry to discuss certain areas of the industry. This again gives great creditability to your business in the industry and creates great brand awareness.

Article by Dale Bonser