Maximize your Social Media and Connect With Your Customers

 Big companies are not only using social media as a tool to know more about their external clients but are using the tool to connect more with their internal clientele. I suppose, a customer-centric Business needs to consider the client needs and regard them as part of their duty to counter that and that social media is one basic way to do it.

Social Media marketing is the solution you need

Case in point is the Safaricom - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Safaricom/178680998439 Twitter Account, we see that the company has created a direct client solution and support through this social network. This has demonstrated an innovative approach to customer care.

Social media is enabling a new kind of customer service, bypassing social barriers and hierarchies and created a community of interest. Facilitating more natural communication, it has allowed people to connect using their inner voice. And with so many ways for customers to connect, tone of voice has become a major differentiation.

Although this is a tool many companies use to reach out to their clients, there may arise bad or angry posts on your products. As for the case with Safaricom, anytime there is a system upgrade possibly interfering with their signal, you will see such  angry tweets as Arrg!!! Safaricom!, even the common KPLC - Kenya Power and Lighting Company- case, where people will curse the energy provider whenever they have no power.

Someone made a joke on the same – sasa unalalamika na ni wewe hujalipia stima!- (you complain yet it is you who hasn’t paid your bills.) Looking at this case scenario, the KPLC social media manager- http://www.facebook.com/groups/269311656498353/ could react to the same, ask for their location, then check on the possible cause for alarm in the region then advice.

In essence, as a company, you can use these angry posts as a step up. You can build your business by solving these problems and letting your social media do the marketing for you. Another case in hand is, during the Soko Ugali Campaign where people participated in a certain competition running on Citizen TV,http://www.facebook.com/pages/Citizen-TV-Kenya/261061365404 won and maybe we not provisioned with their awards.

I saw them complain on the Soko Ugali Facebook pagehttp://www.facebook.com/sokougali raging with anger. This information was received and immediately acted on it. Once they were paid, the Facebook manager for the Soko Ugali facebook page asked them to confirm receipt. This turned out as well since they heaped praise on the service. This acted as a marketing tool since, I included, had no interest in the campaign but once I saw this, I also took part in the competitions. Talk of referrals.

Many firms in the country have taken to social media marketing and if used wisely, this will save them a lot on marketing costs since social media is more direct, cheap and interactive. As opposed to the mainstream where you have to come up with expensive material, pay hefty amounts for only seconds, this is a catch. Problem is, how do you go about setting up and running an effective social media marketing strategy?

It’s no coincidence that those seeing the greatest impact have invested in community management as well as Small Business empowerment. Online business Solutions and marketing Company Kuzabiashara, - www.kuzabiashara.co.ke winner of the Visoion 2030 Innovaton Award, recruited a dedicated Social Media Manager to increase its Twitter and LinkedIn activities while at the same time boosting its presence on Facebook. The result has been a substantial increase in referred traffic.

Some companies are taking this to new levels by using social media to pre-qualify customers for random acts of kindness and turn them into brand advocates in the long run. If this strategy is working for them, why don’t you embrace it as well? You have the idea… make it practical and eat its fruit.

Entreprenuers pick.

Social media marketing id one practical marketing tool owing to confessions from firms that have already taken up the act. You need to make your social media activities intense, active and upto date by responding to your clients cries and suggestions.

 Think!!!

Do you reallyknow enough about your customers compared to your competitors?