Whoever thought we’d be able to measure our branding efforts by tweets and posts? Well, the social media revolution is upon us and it’s the biggest change in the way our world communicates, connects and works since the industrial revolution.
I feel it’s an opportunity to measure the effectiveness of a brand via social media statistics. Before the Internet, if a customer in New York raved about your company, a customer in Los Angeles would never know. Now, thanks to social media sites like Twitter.com, if a customer in New York enjoys your product they can “tweet” and the world will know – in five minutes. Just think of how this instant word-of-mouth advertising can boost your business.
There’s no doubt that social media has become the new tool for effective business marketing and sales. Between Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and many others, the world is instantaneously connected. Traditional advertising models are diminishing as word of mouth becomes as easy as a click. The reason is that people naturally trust someone without a bias rather than a company seeking money. Sure, you might think your product is fantastic, but if three people tweet about how much they dislike it — you’ve got a problem. However, this doesn’t have to be a bad thing. In fact, if you get your company involved, social media can do wonders for your business. Using social media gives your company an identity beyond the capabilities of traditional advertising. In a way, it brings back the nostalgia of wandering into a shop and being greeted by the smiling owner instead of some faceless clerk. Social media allows you to put a face to your company again, which in turn builds customer trust. If a customer trusts you, they’ll do business with you. And now you can easily measure that trust, with numbers.
The old advertising model was to broadcast a signal over and over until it was firmly implanted in the customer’s mind. Social media embraces ever-changing, two-way interaction. Find out what they’re looking for. Engage with them. Effective social media requires that you stop thinking about your customers as wallets and start thinking about them as friends. Or, as we say, HAUS guests. In my 21 years of experience, I have always struggled with how branding can be measured in a way that advertising methods are measured. I think social media is now our solution for measuring the success of a brand. The stats you can track and chart are truly amazing and our word-of-mouth can now be documented – which in turn builds business. The social media revolution is here in full force with more than 400 million active users on Facebook alone. Almost every corporation (big and small) has joined in and set up accounts to converse with customers.
If you stick with the traditional method of advertising, you will find yourself left behind. Joining the revolution will increase your company’s visibility and ensure that you’re around for the long haul. So, start making friends now, because no one can ever have too many friends.