The Importance of Social Media

It doesn’t seem like very long ago that people mocked social media marketing questioning its importance while of course asking marketers to precisely calculate ROI. For early adopters it was tough because the rise of social media was full of social experimentation. Fast-forward to the present day, and it’s become a part of our everyday lives. But many businesses still struggle to make it a meaningful part of how they connect with people.

Spoiler: Social media can be like a bit of caffeine for your website!

The Importance of Enchantment

A few years ago Guy Kawasaki wrote a wonderful book about the Art of Enchantment. Much of what he said was about how we live in a world so full of false pretenses that being authentic  can easily captivate and fascinate. And this is actually a reason why social media became part our lives; we can avoid pushed messages and better control who we listen to which also changed what it meant to be celebrity. This leads us to the essential component of social media: engagement.

You Need Engagement

Think of Social Media platforms as tools. How can you use one of these platforms to connect with audiences? The days are (thankfully) gone of companies creating presences on Facebook just because they have to be on Facebook, when in reality even though their buyers might have profiles there, they’re not interested in doing business there. And the companies that do have Facebook book pages with incredible followings deliver content that engages often, which focuses on building positive sentiment, keeping top of mind, and building peer to peer awareness.

It’s About the Art of Engagement — It’s Important

What makes you share? What makes you follow? What makes you engage with a brand? Businesses who establish what their buyers want from them in social are the ones who really excel. And this is essential because your website isn’t necessarily your front doorstep anymore. Much of the customer journey may begin in social channels and transition to your website once a decision has been made! And conversely people might find their way to your website via search and then quickly look to social media for more information.

My favorite supermarket brand is very active on Twitter — when something goes wrong, I complain on Twitter. When something goes right, I applaud on Twitter. And so strong is this supermarket’s reputation that my friends have discusses our experiences via Twitter, and we’ve had many funny conversations with the people that operate their Twitter account. They engage us because their voice of Twitter creates a relationship which translates into feeling like your experience is very personal.

Do you remember the Oreo response to the Superbowl blackout? It was hilarious. People loved it because it was fun, such as its more fun to twist open an Oreo cookie and lick the icing than to just eat it.

Embrace the channel and Engage

Social media can be a great way to build relationships with people, and not necessarily through 1-to-1 dialogue but by recognizing how to enchant and engage people with your brand. Experiment and make it easy for people to connect with you between channels. And of course don’t use channels just because they’re there. For your brand, Snapchat might be the only social media channel you need. Wouldn’t that be fun!?

The Final Words:

When you’re planning to update your website, you should keep in mind how you can use social media to create more engagement. And take it from Guy Kawasaki, be enchanting not boring.