Martin Koss – thinking out loud…

“As almost all big brands embrace Social Media and create a presence for their products and services on Facebook business pages, should small businesses take notice?” Today I was asked that very open question about businesses and social networks…

Of course. But there has to be a strategy; a reason for having a page, a reason to commit the time to building the relationships with past and potentially future customers – and people who are simply interested in what your business does. It is not a “set it and forget it” platform.

One of the big mistakes I see all too often is the small business person who is selective about which questions and comments they respond to – favouring those most likely to buy or those who are already customers. This is a bad thing and sets a negative example!

Social Network Usage by Age Group

There is also, possibly, the added investment in developing custom Facebook pages that invite visitors to take action. What action do you want them to take? Is it good to have a “hard sell” welcome / landing tab that insists the visitor clicks “like” or to take a soft approach with a “welcome – here’s some info” that, possibly, will motivate them to click “like” anyway?

Avoiding Facebook because YOU don’t use it or can’t be bothered with it is also a negative approach made by many businesses. Not having time for all this “social networking” stuff…

All businesses should embrace social platforms like Facebook, but go into it knowing what it will add to your relationship with your marketplace and knowing what you’re going to do with it.

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