With the rules of social media changing as quickly as they do, how can marketers expect to ever keep up with the latest trends? It’s no exaggeration to say that managing social media is a full-time job and then some when you consider the fact that there is always something new popping up and grabbing the attention of online consumers. Now, according to Mark Zuckerberg, he is planning on moving the platforms under the Facebook umbrella into the direction of messaging being the primary use for each service. This means a major shift from the “town hall” way of sharing content to a more private conversation. What does this mean for businesses, and how do you prepare for such a shift?
Social Media by the Numbers
To give you an idea of the amount of influence that social media services have consider these numbers.
With numbers like those, it’s important to pay attention to the rules of how social media works for businesses. There is a lot of opportunity to reach the right consumers when companies use social media in the right ways.
Social Media Usage is Changing
With privacy scares and fake news being commonplace online now, many consumers are moving toward messaging as their primary purpose on social media. It’s easy to see how there is information overload in newsfeeds, so people are looking for a more intimate and authentic way to communicate. Many brands are already using messaging services as a way to communicate with customers on a more one-on-one basis, but this marketing method may become more mainstream in the near future.
What are the New Rules of Social Media?
There are a few new features on social media that are growing substantially in popularity among users and shouldn’t be ignored by marketers. One of those features is “stories” on both Facebook and Instagram.
The Stories feature allows companies and brands to post content that is only available for 24 hours unless it is saved as a highlight on the page. Stories are best for content that needs immediate action, such as a sale, or for behind-the-scenes content. As consumers are searching more and more for authenticity from brands, they are turning to stories where they can see pieces of brand personality. Gone are the days when picture-perfect content ruled; nowadays, consumers want to interact with businesses that are keeping it real with what they are posting online.
When it comes to messaging, many companies are using chatbots and other ways to communicate with those who visit their Facebook pages. This gives the consumer a direct line to chat with the brand and ask any questions they may have. The brand, in turn, should have the answers easily available either by automation or by contact with a human behind the screen. If businesses are not using messaging correctly, they may turn off potential customers, so it’s imperative that a business has a messaging strategy in place before using the service as a primary source of communication with your customers.
Shifting Strategies
As brands prepare to shift their social media marketing strategies, remember that this will be a gradual shift, and companies shouldn’t plan on complete overhauls of their digital marketing strategy yet. However, there are things that you can do to begin to shift the way you communicate with customers on your social media platforms.
Businesses can begin to use their messaging services as inbound marketing for customer inquiries and concerns. Ensure that you can handle requests that come in as messages and then advertise to your customers that they may send you a private message. Customers want more personal interaction with brands, and this is one way that you can begin to shift your focus to a more personalized approach.
Brands should continue to be transparent and show value, but this can also be in the way that you communicate privately with customers. Make sure that every message you send is clear in the reason why you are sending and is providing value to your customer. It’s a very fine line between value-added marketing and spam, so it’s important that companies are paying close attention to what they are sending to consumers online.
Use the Stories feature on both Instagram and Facebook to showcase your company authentically. Aesthetically pleasing photos are great, as long as there is some authenticity included in your online strategy. The Stories feature is a great place to showcase the people behind the brand.
Enlist automation sooner rather than later, as this type of technology will help you in the future where messaging rules social media. Start to program your messaging automation to respond to common FAQs. Your brand will be ahead of the curve if it is prepared for a shift in the social media user experience.
Contact Miss Ink to Help with Social Media
Our job as digital marketing specialists is to stay ahead of the curve on social media changes. If you are having trouble keeping up, it may be time to contact Miss Ink for a marketing audit of your current efforts. We can help you get on track to a better digital marketing strategy and help you prepare for any upcoming changes in social media marketing rules.
References:
Holmes, R. (2019, April 17). The Rules Of Social Media Just Changed. Here’s How To Keep Up. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/ryanholmes/2019/04/17/the-rules-of-social-media-just-changed-heres-how-to-keep-up/#2936f09e731d
Facebook.com/jefferson.graham. (2019, January 31). Merged Messenger, WhatsApp and Instagram messages will be more private: Facebook. Retrieved from
https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/talkingtech/2019/01/30/facebook-confirms-plans-merge-messenger-whatsapp-instagram-messages/2727200002/
Todd. (2019, March 12). 22 Instagram Statistics That Matter to Marketers in 2019. Retrieved from https://blog.hootsuite.com/instagram-statistics/
