From Followers to Customers

Social media is a great way to reach out to potential customers as well as advertise your products or services. As it stands, global social marketing commerce earnings are expected to reach an estimated $30 billion by 2015. In the United States alone, 50 percent of businesses use social media to connect with customers or build revenue.

But what if your business already has a substantial amount of followers? How do you turn followers into customers?

How to turn followers to customers with social media marketing

1.       Diversify

If a business has a large following on Twitter, but their Facebook is lacking, or if pictures on an Instagram account gain multiple “likes” but no outside links, it may be a good idea to implement a marketing campaign that is spread across multiple platforms. Some followers, for example, may use Twitter for news only and won’t take the time to follow through on links posted to connect the account with the business webpage. And with Twitter’s 140 character limit, it may be difficult to provide concise information when a business has a newsworthy event. In this case, it would be wise to also create a Facebook account to reach those who a spend time scrolling through their feed, or to reach those who simply don’t have a Twitter. Putting a picture on Instagram as well as Pinterest will reach a wider audience of potential customers, thereby increasing the odds of gaining new patrons.

2.       Create a dialogue

Businesses should not forget the “social” in social media. While putting up pictures and writing small blurbs every now and again is better than nothing, it is not enough to entice new customers. Creating an active social media account not only shows that the business is amicable, but also reassures customers that the business is willing to put forth time and effort to make sure they are satisfied with their product or service. And it is of course especially helpful in answering questions or addressing issues that customers may have.

It may also be advantageous to be the one asking questions relevant to the business. Asking for an open dialogue of opinions or prompting followers to share their own pictures or stories creates a connection between business and follower.

Being timely and engaging may take a bit of extra time and effort, but it may certainly be well worth it in the long run. Dialogue is at the core of social media marketing.

3.       Create a schedule and adhere to it

However well worth the effort creating a dialogue may be, added to that is the idea of scheduling timeframes for events like Q&A sessions or promoting specific products or services at a specific time. This ensures that followers know when to “tune in” and can share these events with others. And if a business’s services or products correlate to seasonal, holiday, news, or the like, generate an extra promotional boost during those times to spread the word.