Social media is a great opportunity to communicate and engage with your audience and should be an important part of any retailer’s digital marketing strategy. The right content is a key part of engaging with your audience but what should you be creating so that you get the most out of your social media?
Contents
Be A Problem Solver
Make a note of all the questions that your customers ask and use them as a basis for creating content. Short videos that show customers how to use your products or a Twitter hour where your customers can ask you questions could help your customer solve a problem and they are much more likely to come back to a helpful company. Don’t be tempted to just sell your products though. A “Top 5 list of gifts for the man who has everything” will engage much more than 5 posts that sell the same products.
Get Your Customers To Create Great Content For You
Recommendations are still marketing gold and getting your customers to show themselves using your products is a great way for them to showcase your products for you and let everyone know how great they are. Ask for photos or a video of them using their favourite items and share it across your platforms. Lingerie retailer Bravissimo have run an engaging summer campaign asking their customers to share photos of them wearing their swimwear using the hashtag #BravissimoGirlsCan. This campaign has engaged with their existing audience but they have also received lots of positive comments and praise for the quality and design of their swimwear which appeals to new customers.
Make Your Customers Feel Loved
In a digital world, it is very easy to forget that there is a real person on the other side. Just because customers aren’t physically with you doesn’t mean that they deserve any less in terms of attention. Make sure that notifications are set up for messages and monitor them regularly for questions and queries. You wouldn’t ignore a customer who asked you a question in store so don’t ignore them online either. On top of this think about how can you make them feel special? Is it exclusive offers or early access to promotions? Or sneak peeks of your new products? The right content can also make your customers feel loved. Content that appeals to them and engages them shows that you understand them and want them as your customers.
Ask Questions
Businesses can sometimes be reluctant to ask questions as they are frightened of what answers they may get but questions are a great way to engage with your customers. Whether it’s a choice between their favourite colour handbag for the new season or simply asking your customers what they are doing for a bank holiday weekend, asking your customers questions is a great way to get them to engage with you. The more they engage the more likely you are to appear in their feeds but it can also give you a better understanding of them. A recent Facebook pinned post from Pret a Manger asked a fairly simple question but the video of their customer’s response has had over 33,000 views.
Introduce Yourself
Even with an increase in e-commerce and digital purchasing, people still like to do business with people. Share behind the scenes footage of you and your team and show them off so that your audience know who they are ordering from. Introduce new staff on your social media pages and highlight any expertise they have which adds to both their and your credibility. Becky Higgins of Project Life does this particularly well on Instagram where she regularly shares behind the scenes photos, team and personal achievements as well the blogs of her team which highlights their creativity and personalities.
