Erik Qualman's Blog, page 510

How To Connect With Your Social Media Followers

Connecting with your social media followers is something that is really important because this is what actually brings in more followers on the long run. If you cannot establish a connection with the follower, you can be sure that the results you will get will not be as great.

Many social media managers do not know much about what they have to do. They will just promote information about the company and about the services that are offered, without taking any step towards establishing a connection.

The big problem is that many of those that manage social media pages do not actually know what to do in order to connect with the followers. If that is your case, here are the facts that you have to remember:

Share Articles That Are Helpful For The Target Audience

If you want new followers and you want to establish a good connection with the people that already follow you, it is vital that you share content that is valuable for them. For instance, let’s say that you run pages that service a spiritual website. In this case, a focus put just on the services offered would be a bad idea. You can share topics of great interest like the top 11 spiritual books to read in 2015 or tutorials about how to achieve spirituality. Whatever your business posting quality content rather than just your service alone will gain you more hype, and build trust with your followers.

Start Conversations

One of the best ways in which you can show that you value your audience is to talk to the people that follow you on social pages. They can so easily end up feeling valued when you simply ask questions and look for genuine feedback. At the same time, conversations will bring in data that you can use in order to offer better services. Smart internet marketers start polls, ask questions and always answer any question that a follower may have. That is what would help to establish a connection that is not possible in a different way.

Use Photographs

We do not say that you should use photos that include motivational quotes or funny pictures. This is what most social media managers do in an attempt to create a connection. Something like this does not actually create a connection. What it does is get more likes or shares. It is not something that is in your best interest when the motive for liking is the fact that the follower is amused or likes a quote.

The trick in using photographs is to brand them and to make them connected to the industry you are in. For instance, in the event that we have a page like the example above, we can add a passage from a book that is sold by the site and link the actual book for more information.

Keep in mind that it is really important to have patience and truly understand what the target audience is looking for. You want to establish a good conversation with those that are much more likely to buy something from you instead of simply aiming for conversations with whoever you want.

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Social Media Is the King of Customer Service – and Here’s Why.

Social media use by businesses is now more popular than ever, and it gets more widespread every day. As a customer, it offers a great way to contact a company, with your complaint in the public eye and therefore guaranteed to be a priority for the company. As a business, however, the benefits of canny social media use are even more pronounced.

Social media is instantaneous, and the conversation is in the public domain

Social media allows customers to type out a message to a company in a few seconds, then send it and go about their lives while the company speedily composes their reply. The company has a vested interest in dealing with the question quickly and efficiently, since every moment that a complaint sits unanswered on their Facebook wall or Twitter feed is more bad publicity – and a well-managed customer service interaction on social media can be an invaluable piece of marketing. Companies like Zappos and Littlewoods that exist purely online use these customer service interactions to fuel their reputations and generate word-of-mouth advertising that keeps customers coming back, time and again.

The public nature of social media does make this approach a double-edged sword, however. If the company handles the complaint badly, their failure is out in the open for the world to see, and will impact them negatively. While a risk for the company, it benefits the customer, as the company is more likely to go out of their way to ensure a good outcome to the complaint – far more so than when those same conversations are carried out in private over the phone or by email.

Customers are more likely to recommend the company afterwards

Customers are four times more likely to talk about their experiences with the business if they use social media, reports have shown. The reasoning for this is obvious – they are already on social media when they conclude their business with the company! They’re in the perfect position to quickly tell a huge number of people what happened, as opposed to people on the other end of a phone line or an email chain. Their share or retweet will reach many times more people than those that can be told by conventional means, with the possibility of reaching exponentially more if the post goes viral.

For this reason, a single well-handled customer service encounter can be worth more than any amount of marketing for a business.

It eliminates the funnel

The main reason why so many people love using social media for their customer service needs is only partly about speed and efficiency – it’s about the funnel. “The funnel” is the sorting process that companies use to box up customer service calls for processing – it is the robotic phone trees, the endless hold lines and the infinite transfers that plague any caller to a customer service department, as they are passed from department to department looking for one that can deal with their problem.

Social media eliminates this completely. When a customer tweets at a company, their complaint is always handled by a human being, and usually can be immediately addressed without the need to “transfer you to tech support”. The funnel is gone, and all that’s left is immediate, excellent customer service.

Win-win.

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Yahoo And Google Become BFFs

Yahoo And Google Become BFFs

Yahoo isn’t doing too hot and called in for some help. Yahoo made a deal with Google that lasts from this month until 2018, so it’s a pretty long-term relationship. The deal is that Google will provide Yahoo with search ads, algorithmic search and image search for desktop and mobile. Yahoo hopes that by partnering with their much cooler competition they will be able to get more revenue and more efficient search. Remember that Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer used to lead search at Google so it’s kinda like dating an old boyfriend. Maybe a new soap opera – “As Silicon Valley Turns?!” (Source The Verge)

Trouble in Electric Paradise

On Tuesday, Consumer Reports took away their Telsa Model S recommendation. Consumer Reports said that this Tesla model had “too many problems to recommend”. Some problems they noted were body and sunroof rattles, leaks and squeaks, power and charging equipment and its drivetrain.  But isn’t Tesla supposed to be the best car in the world? We thought so too. Tesla is taking quite the hit not only in reports but their shares went down 10 percent. (Source The New York Times)

What To Say When Your Favorite Song Comes On The Radio

Apple is winning again. Apple Music has 15 million subscribers with 6.5 million of them paying for the service. The remaining 8.5 are still soaking up their free three month trial. The 6.5 million who are playing to stream their favorite songs are paying $10 a month. 6.5 million paying $10 a month = a lot of profit for Apple…$780 million a year. Who knows what Apple will do next. (Source CNN)

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Social Media Statistics That Will Be Important In 2016

Social media in 2015 was all about small-scale solutions getting more popular and more involved with advertising – everything from Snapchat to Whatsapp became fair game for capturing audiences. As the third quarter ends, though, it’s time to look ahead and start keeping in mind what will be important to watch in 2016. Lots of trends and strategies will stay the same for businesses, but there are several statistics that help give us a clue into what may change.

Social Media Statistics Give Us a Look Into Strategies for 2016

Below are several different lessons we can learn from some of the social statistics from 2015:

Mobile Grows – Again

It’s safe to say that mobile popularity will only increase in future years. Nearly all social media users visit and monitor profiles from their mobile devices in some way. Keeping track of how your audience uses mobile can help you cater the content you post on your social media sites.

People who are clicking links from a social media page are looking for short and sweet pieces that can be completely read and digested in less than 10 minutes. Take a look at how your users are accessing your site. If most are accessing through mobile devices, it is a good choice to start tailoring the information you post to that crowd.

Think Global

While social media use is leveling off in the United States in terms of new users, there is an explosion in other countries. India, Indonesia and Mexico are seeing unprecedented growth in social media usage. Pay close attention to your global statistic in 2016 – where are most of your users from?

It may suit your site to start a global campaign targeting the countries where new social media users are aplenty. These new users will be hungry for content, so it makes sense to get your message out there and ready for them.

The Facebook Factor

Facebook’s demographics will continue to change in 2016. As the bread and butter of social media, it is becoming so mainstream that the 65+ crowd is jumping on board in numbers never seen before.  The younger crowd (mainly 24 and younger) is moving to more mobile-based social media options like Snapchat, Instagram and Whatsapp.

Monitoring your target age demographic will be especially important in determining which kinds of campaigns you send out through Facebook. What has worked for you in the past will likely not work in 2016, but Facebook will continue to be the giant in terms of social media usage. Your Facebook click rates and number of users will be just as important in 2016 as it was this year.

Increasing Popularity of the Underdogs

Pinterest is primed to boom in 2016. It is widely popular, especially with women, and will likely continue to tap into the advertising market next year. More and more companies are realizing the power of pinning and often push new products out through pins. Buzzfeed, Etsy, Poshmark and Wayfair.com have all become commonly seen companies on Pinterest boards.

The expansion of the Pinterest for Business program over the past year has further bolstered the notion that business will continue to harness the advertising power of the site in a new way next year. Monitoring your number of following and how often your items are pinned will help ensure higher click-through rates.

The Power of Politics

With a U.S. presidential race looming for 2016, you can expect to see not only an increased use of social media by politicians, but an overall increase of political-based content. If politics is in anyway relevant to your content, you will want to keep track of the following information for users: Location, Political affiliation, Age.

While useful for other areas of social media, knowing these specific statistics for your audience throughout 2016 will help you relate better and reduce the risk of alienating – or worse, losing – followers.

The Continued Rise of Video

While YouTube still remains highly relevant, newer video platforms like Snapchat, Vine and even Instagram are quickly becoming go-to places for short, funny clips. Users of these applications are mainly younger Millennials, so if you are targeting that audience, video may be an appropriate way to go in 2016. Through monitoring click and watch rates, you may be better off using a platform like Vine rather than YouTube.

If you are targeting a mixed group in terms of age range, however, YouTube will continue to be the best option, as it has retained appeal to most generations.

Focus on Content

If 2015 taught us anything, it’s that users want to click on engaging headlines that lead to well-written and meaningful content. This trend will continue in 2016, which means that in addition to monitoring click-through rates, you will need to monitor how long people are staying on your site. It’s no longer enough to capture a user through a link posted with a photo on Instagram – they will not return to your site unless you provide engaging content.

Research shows that measuring web traffic is a better indicator of success over measuring social media engagement. This is not to say social media engagement doesn’t matter – it does – but you should be measuring the success of your website or product through actual web traffic. Social media is important, but it is essential to remember that its purpose is to drive people back to your site.

Are there any cool social statistics you’ve seen this year that give us a look into what to expect in the industry next year? Do you agree with the analysis above? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.

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Students and Faculty Learning Benefits of Text Messaging

Although many in the academic world consider text messaging a distraction, texting can actually be very beneficial for both students and professors.

From last-minute curriculum updates to on-campus emergency messages, texting is changing academia for the better.

Here are just a few ways universities are taking advantage of text messaging:

Teacher/Class Communications

No matter how thorough professors are with their daily curriculums, it’s still easy to overlook talking points and facts during class.

Fortunately, text messaging gives professors the opportunity to reach out to their classes with additional information even after class is over.

Whether it’s a last-minute homework assignment or an important reminder about an upcoming exam, more and more professors are using text messaging to send bulk messages to their classes.

In addition, students are also reaching out to their professors with any number of class-related questions.

Text messaging is the quickest, most direct form of written communication available, which is why it’s gaining popularity with universities across the globe.

On-Campus Emergency Announcements

With the rise in public shootings and on-campus violence, a growing number of universities are using text messaging to alert students when emergencies take place.

In fact, as part of the enrollment process, universities all over the world are requiring that new students provide their mobile phone numbers for emergency purposes.

When an emergency or dangerous situation takes place on campus, the entire student body receives a text alerting them of where the situation is taking place. Mobile outreach like this is helping to keep faculty, staff, and students safe.

Class Schedule Updates

Class schedules aren’t always easy to maintain, especially when it comes to the size of the campus, the student body, and the number of classes each professor teaches on a daily basis.

The article “Can Your University Benefit from Text Messages?” mentions the importance of connecting with students quickly and efficiently.

Reaching students no matter where they are or what they’re doing is extremely beneficial when class schedule changes and updates take place.

Most university students carry their smart phones with them wherever they go, which makes texting last-minute schedule changes a fast and efficient way for professors to send updates.

Silent Communications

One point that’s overlooked in terms of text messaging in the collegiate environment is the fact that texting is relatively noise-free.

As long as students and staff have their text notifications set to silent or vibrate, texts generally don’t distract from the learning atmosphere.

There’s no talking involved with a text and universities can send a large amount of information within one text, which helps reduce the number of texts sent. With text messaging, faculty, staff, and students can communicate without saying a word.

Universities Embracing Mobile Technology

Universities in Europe, Asia, North America and every spot in between are beginning to embrace mobile technology.

From text messages to mobile-friendly social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, mobile technology is changing the way faculties and staffs interact with students.

Thanks to mobile technology and text messaging, the collegiate world is becoming that much more unified and in sync.

Photo credit: BigStockPhoto.com

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What Happens When you Selfie & Drive…

Virginia Tech is all smiles..

A big shoutout and congratulations goes to Virginia Tech Transportation Institute. So what’s all the ruckus about?  Well, history was made when the first fully automated self-driving car hit the Interstate 395 pavement. The expressway is known as one of the nation’s most saturated, and congested highways. And this marks the first time Virginia Tech’s  technology was tested on an open track.  A special section of the Interstate was chosen with a driver in the front, but the computer doing all the steering, accelerating, and legwork (haha kind of). We wonder when we’ll finally be able to sleep in the driver seat.? As you may recall on the other coast in Google-land they are starting to test autonomous trucks and buses. (Source WDBJ7)

 

When You’re Caught Taking Ugly Selfies…

 

By this time all of us should know that you can screenshot your friends ugly Ssnapchat pics.  But what if we told you that Android users specifically can record Snapchat videos. Yup that’s right, videos are not safe anymore.  The app AZ Screen Recorder allows users unlimited power.  Simply download it from the Google Play Store, start recording, open SnapChat & wallah! Your friends won’t be happy we shared this, but we’re sure you’ll get some laughs. Also folks this is a reminder; BE CAREFUL what you send, post, & share.  You can never be sure who will save what you send. (Source Huffington Post) And, yes we have a book for that: What Happens in Vegas Stays on YouTube.

 

It’s About Time We Caught on

 

A recent study conducted by CTIA ( The Wireless Association) revealed that Americans’ have increased their security measures on their smartphones, & tablets. People are increasing the use of pin numbers, passwords, and anti-virus apps.

In 2012 only half of Americans secured their smartphones which has now jumped to 61%. As for tablets it has increased to 58% from 48%. This is good news but we should all spread the word and watch out for hackers. (Source MSN)

Remember to smile today and share The Skinny Dip.

 

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The Unique Advantage You Can Get From a Smart Social Media Campaign

While social media is an integral part of any marketing campaign, you might want to know about the advantage of a SMART social media campaign. Gaining fans, retweets, and Facebook shares isn’t exactly the GOAL of a campaign, but the means to reach the goal. What then is the goal of a social media campaign? In smart social media campaigns the major goal is to touch the hearts of the target audience. It is important to invoke some type of emotional bond between the fans and the brand. Besides this, many other things can be brought to the table when using smart social media campaigns. We will now focus on the main advantages that you have to consider.

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It can bring down your overall marketing costs

Social media is basically free. Yes, you would need to pay social media companies for their active involvement, but it’s much cheaper than traditional sources of marketing such as TV and radio ads. Tweeting something doesn’t cost money. Social media is inexpensive and brings down the overall cost of your marketing efforts.

It connects with the audience

Smart social media often focuses on a connection that is established with the audience. It is important to highlight that the brand cares for the audience. Social media is an open platform where anyone can get in touch with your brand. All the communication is in open and there is a lot of transparency. This makes social the best platform to connect with people. Managers hear them out – their feedback, ideas, and concerns – and provide a human touch to campaigns.

It helps the organic search

With the recent Google updates (such as the Google-Twitter deal), more social media posts will show up when people try to find your brand online. If you’re active on Twitter, your tweets will show up in the Google search results, leading people to your social media pages. Make sure you hire a social media agency that is updated with the latest trends so that they can offer you the maximum advantage.

It is easier and faster

Every marketer wants their content to reach the audience in the shortest possible time. With social media, it’s as fast as it can get. You just have to post your content on the platform, and that’s it. Although it will take time to build an audience, as this happens it will work for you, liking and sharing content with others. And for that, you need to make sure that your content is relevant and interesting to your audience. This is the trickiest part and your social media company can help you out here.

It increases brand awareness and generates leads

These are the two advantages that no business can ignore. You need more people to be aware of your brand. This can be done by connecting with the audience and letting them know that you care. Smart internet marketers add a humane touch to the brand. That helps in generating leads. Brand awareness is generated through many different strategies but there is no way to deny the fact that social media helps.

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Social Media Mistakes Startups Make When Using Facebook

Many start-ups believe that using Facebook is basically a sure solution that can lead towards so many successes. There is this belief that all that a company needs to do is start posting on the social network and a huge following is going to appear. That is definitely not the case. In fact, one of the main reasons why a startup fails is a failure to understand social media marketing.

It is true that social media marketing is a great weapon that a smart startup can use in order to increase brand awareness and ultimately sales. However, this has to be done properly.

We are going to mention some of the really common mistakes that we see when dealing with start-ups and Facebook marketing. Avoiding them will get you closer to social media success.

Only Sharing Articles about the Company

This is a huge mistake since it basically shows the followers that you do not actually offer good content and you only talk about your products. Why would the people follow you if you only talk about yourself?

Make sure that you always talk about things that are of interest for your target audience. For instance, if your start-ups offer training programs, tell people how to build their own programs. Then use that quality information to showcase how you can help them if you want to. This is a much better approach than just highlighting your services.

Only Sharing Links

This is the common approach that appears with so many start-ups because of the simplicity that is associated with the process. Obviously, sharing only links is really simple since it will help the manager to do his job in a really short period of time. The problem is that links are not that popular on Facebook.

If you want to drastically increase the possibility of having good engagement, you have to take advantage of all the tools that the social network offers. This means that you need to focus on sharing images, videos and even status updates that do not feature any link. Compare engagement and see what option is the very best one for you.

Not Posting At Appropriate Times

That is especially true when faced with a social media manager that is outsourced and that works in a different time zone. You have to follow the insights section of your Facebook page. That is going to show you when your current audience is most active on the social network. You can thus post at hours when people would actually interact with the business.

Not Communicating With the Followers

There is nothing worse for social media marketing than not to have conversations with the followers that you have. This is what makes them come back and remain interested in the information that you offer. You can easily create polls or you can ask questions directly. One of the really great ways in which you could easily start a communication is to ask information about the experience that followers have. They will be happy to share and will keep coming back when you talk with them as a brand.

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So You’ve Started A Small Business…What Social Platforms Should You Be On?

If you have a small or medium sized business, but you’re not on social media, there are huge sales opportunities you’re missing out on. Maybe you chose not to do any social marketing on purpose. Maybe you thought it was too time consuming, or that your business wasn’t right for social media. It might be that you thought you had nothing meaningful to share. At one time or another those might have been reasonable objections, but now they just don’t apply. If you choose the right platforms, and think carefully about your strategy, social marketing doesn’t have to be time consuming. It’s also a really effective (and free) way to generate new leads, build awareness, and spread your message. Getting started is easy.

Take a good look at your existing (or non-existent) social presence. Now look at a big brand’s presence, or maybe your biggest competitor. It’s more than likely that they’re sharing often and sharing well, and have a decent sized group of followers. You’ve got some catching up to do, and you might not ever get to their level, but you can certainly win some hearts and wallets on the way.

Despite what other people might say, you don’t have to be on all the social platforms. There are a great many to choose from, and they all have very different interaction models. Whilst some encourage longer posts and more gradual interaction, some are all about the right here and right now. Think carefully about which platforms suit your business best, and start with just a couple of them.

Facebook

Of all the networks to be on, this is it. If you only choose one platform, choose Facebook. You should absolutely choose the platform where your audience is, but the chances are they’re all on Facebook anyway. With an average of 968 million daily active users, the odds are in your favour.

Facebook suits all kind of industries and businesses, precisely because it has such a broad range of people as active users. If you run a tool hire warehouse, for instance, you’ll be able to reach potentially thousands of tradesmen and DIY enthusiasts. If you run a small bakery, then you can reach a huge chunk of the people in your area and entice them with cake.

For  small businesses, opening hours, maps, and offers mean more customers and more traffic. Alongside all the information about your business, you can inject a bit of its personality into proceedings, too, which is something you could never do in the Yellow Pages. Make sure that you accompany all of your content with links to relevant parts of your website, and you should see a noticeable uptake in the number of people visiting your site. More visitors means more sales.

There are so many options for content sharing on Facebook that your strategy can be immensely nuanced and varied. If you want to post a video guide to your store or product, accompanied with product images and blog-length entries about the goings-on at your business, feel free to do all three. You can provoke discussion through questions or polls, and get really valuable insights into what your customers want. Imagine being able to install a microphone on a billboard and record people’s conversations about it. That’s the power of Facebook, and social media marketing in general.

Over time, you can build up a sizeable band of likers. Out of those people, you turn some into absolute brand evangelists, who are likely to share your content and talk to their friends about it. We’ll say it again, if you only choose one platform, choose Facebook.

Twitter

If you’re looking for more immediacy, then consider Twitter. Twitter’s user base is younger, more trend aware, and they’re mostly on mobile. So much of its traffic is mobile that you’ll want to tailor your strategy to it. Think brief, shareable insights into your brand and its offerings. You can share photos, but it’s best to fire off single images that you’ve selected carefully.

Users will be searching for specific hashtags and topics, so make sure that you’re onboard with the relevant ones. Everything you tweet has to offer some kind of value to a user, whether that’s an offer, information, or entertainment. You absolutely cannot just tweet product photos and prices. In the long term, this is likely to irritate your followers. Tweet well, and you can recruit some well-earned brand evangelists.

Twitter is a fantastic place to show off your brand’s personality. If a user mentions you, reply. They’ll feel a connection to your brand, even if they’ve complained and you’ve answered. Actively look for mentions of your brand, not just @ replies or hashtags, and start a conversation. The more you’re seen to engage with your audience, the more willing people will be to tweet about your business.

LinkedIn

Not all social media is about entertainment and trends. LinkedIn is arguably the world’s most powerful business networking tool, but you can use it to promote your brand in much the same way as other networks. Start a page for your business, figure out what you can offer other business-types, and give it to them. A word of caution: your cupcake business doesn’t have much to offer. On LinkedIn, what works is thought-leadership and advice for particular kinds of industries. If you offer a service that benefits businesses particularly, then you’re in the right place. Offer a guide, a whitepaper or a research report, and you’ll soon gain traction as a valuable source of information. From there, you can start to attract new leads and build relationships.

Google+

People often neglect Google’s offering because they haven’t used it, and they haven’t seen people they know use it. Nevertheless, your presence on Google+ is worth revisiting. First and foremost, people searching for small businesses in a given area might be offered results on a map, with locations and opening times. You should make sure that all your business information on Google+ is up-to-date, so that these people know where you are, what you do, when you’re open, and why they should use you instead of a competitor. Google+ doesn’t have the same kind of user base as Facebook and Twitter, with people actively sharing content and posting regularly, and it probably won’t for a long time to come. Even so, it’s worth making sure that you’ve got your presence in order.

Tumblr

It’s a popular misconception that Tumblr is full of angsty teenagers and really weird blogs. It has those things in spades, but there’s a lot more to it than that. Tumblr is a diverse and vocal community of bloggers, and there are sections of that community who have very specific interests. If you have a particularly visual offering, for instance a catering business, floristry or events company, then Tumblr is perfect. By curating images and thoughts from Tumblr and around the web, you’ll be doing two things at once. Firstly, you’ll be providing interested Tumblr users with a wealth of content, all curated by you, the expert. Secondly, you’ll be building up a picture of your industry, its customers, its successes and its challenges — very useful stuff.

Your Tumblr might not get huge volumes of traffic if it’s particularly niche, but if you can capture those more vociferous bloggers in that niche and get them to share your content, you can extend beyond your niche and reach new, dedicated consumers.

YouTube

Copy is a good way to win over customers. Add images, and you’ll do even better. To really, powerfully engage an audience, you should use video. Trades and specialists can do particularly well by producing videos. If somebody needs to know how to fix something, and your brand has been the one to show them (and shown them they need professional help), then they’re likely to associate you with the problem. That’s a good thing. In essence, YouTube allows your brand to speak directly to its audience, with authority and meaning. It’s one of the most immediate ways to connect to an audience, and video is extremely shareable. Making a quality video is difficult, however, and may involve some costly initial outlay. Video that is lacking in sheen or executed poorly will reflect as such on your company. Consider investing in one or two professional videos. For shorter clips, consider the video functionality of other sites like Vine or Instagram, which brings us neatly to our next platform…

Instagram

After Facebook and Twitter, Instagram is a strong contender for the next huge social media phenomenon. It’s already a very popular service, but it might just explode into the mainstream any day now. Part of its appeal is that it only does one thing, but it does that thing extremely well: sharing photos. For brands, this is absolutely invaluable. People log on expecting attractive and interesting imagery, and will reward you handsomely when given it.

If you have a variety of products, pick one each day to showcase to your audience. This works especially well if you have unusual gifts to offer.

Expect lots of interaction and likes when you post well, and more than a few new followers. Instagram is great for all kinds of businesses, provided you can give users attractive, original images on a fairly regular basis.

Now that you’ve got a grasp of how each platform might work for you, it’s time to start using them. Pick one or two to start with, and come up with a strategy for a month or two. You don’t need to devote much time to it, just enough to get it off the ground. Remember, too, that it’s all free marketing. Get social media right from the start, and you’ll have a much easier time growing as you devote more time to it.

Photo Credit: Jason Howle

 

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Take a Cut Out of Social Media

If you’re a hair stylist, then you already know how important customer outreach is to your success.

Fortunately, social media can help you cultivate customer relationships and build a social presence.

Here are just a few ways you can use social media to connect with customers and gain some attention for your hair styling services:

Pictures Say it All

One of the best ways to build a social presence for your hairstyling services is by putting your product in the spotlight.

Since your product is your customers’ hair, make sure you post plenty of hairstyle pictures on photo-friendly social sites like Facebook and Instagram.

To grab even more attention, you can encourage your customers to post their own pictures of your hairstyles.

Before posting any pictures of your customers’ hair, make sure you ask for permission first because not all customers want their picture on social media.

Likewise, make sure you mention the services you provide with each photo you post.

A random hairstyle photo without any details doesn’t give your social audience much information to go by.

Share Hair Care Tips

The best kind of social content is the kind that not only engages readers, but also provides them helpful information. That’s why sharing hair care tips through your social channels is such an effective way to grab attention for your hairstyling services.

There are a number of ways you can share hair care and hair styling tips online.

You can dedicate a weekly Facebook post to sharing hair care advice.

Likewise, the article “Thought Leader Series: How Hair Stylists Can Grow Their Social Followings” mentions the benefits of posting YouTube hairstyling tutorials.

Whichever route you take, make sure you offer something new and different each time you share your hair care tips.

Additionally, if certain hair style tips seem to get more attention than others, consider expanding on that topic with future social posts.

Create a Professional Blog

Sharing hairstyle advice and hair care tips one post at a time is effective, but if you really want to amass a social following, you should start a professional blog.

Blogging is one of the best ways to provide your social followers with continuous information and updates on your hairstyling services.

If you’re an independent hairstylist, you can create a blog that goes along with your existing website and share posts on other social sites.

Similarly, if you work for a salon, ask permission to start a salon blog. Either option will help you grab the attention of the social masses.

Respond to Comments

As your social presence grows, there’s a good chance you’ll begin receiving comments through your social posts and blogs.

To keep your social audiences coming back for more, it’s important to respond to each and every comment you receive.

Whether it’s a question about your hairstyling tutorial or a general comment on one of your hair care advice posts, responding to comments will show your followers that you’re available, involved, and care about what they think.

When it comes to taking your hairstyling services to the next level, take advantage of the social media advice above.

Photo credit: BigStockPhoto.com

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