Today's social media is a crucial tool for business, Companies that use Twitter, Facebook and other tools in an organised and efficient manner can achieve incredible engagement for relatively little cost, and (with a healthy dose of good fortune) a strong social media campaign can take off around the world and do more for brand recognition than traditional advertising. The key is finding the right balance between informal spontaneity and well-planned company output, and it’s a balance a huge number of businesses are finding hard to get right.
Engaging with customers and listening to constant online "chatter" can be a major operational headache for businesses, particularly for a smaller business without the resources for specialized social media editors. A poorly written social media feed can be more damaging than no feed at all, and it’s all too easy to mismanage complaints when you only have 140 characters to address them. The last few years have seen all kinds of disastrous attempts at humour, promotion and crisis management, and the negative effects can be long-lasting.
Running campaigns, pouncing on promotional opportunities, chatting with customers, responding to often abusive complaints – it might all seem like a bit of a minefield, with the potential for disaster lurking on every page. Thankfully, there are some simple guidelines for effectively running your business’s social media feeds, as Charlie Treadwell, Director of Social Marketing at Symantec, explains in his three tips below.
Three top tips for social media security in business:
Tip 1: Set a social media policy for your company and employees. Active social employees can be your greatest ambassadors or your next public relations nightmare. Use a clearly stated social media policy to educate employees in proper use of social media at work, promoting the business, and examples of what you expect them not to do.
Tip 2: Actively moderate customer comments on your social profiles, whether that’s your business’s Facebook page or reviews you receive on websites like Yelp or Google Places. The worst mistake a business can make is not listening to customer feedback. Be clear that you are representing your business when replying to comments, whether it’s from your business account or personal account. Transparency and authenticity are key to great customer service through social media. Don’t be afraid to engage with negative comments and attempt to resolve or win back unhappy customers. Listening and replying to negative reviews can have a massive positive impact on current and potential new customers.
Tip 3: Secure your social profiles with strong passwords and, whenever possible, two-step authentication. A compromised account can become a major public relations or customer service nightmare. In addition, only provide posting access to employees you trust to represent your business. Having the intern run your Facebook page or moderate reviews of your business is similar to allowing the intern to be interviewed by a member of the press. Manage your online reputation and brand closely though social media.
As Charlie’s tips show, a good social media strategy means being secure, being organised and – most of all – being active. Customers respond to engagement and good service, and the number one social media goal for any business is to offer those two things. That’s how you build a loyal social media following.