Social Media websites such as Twitter, Facebook, and Blogger, are being used more and more by companies that want to venture into the online community. Although this is an important tactic for Social Media Marketing, it is crucial to keep in mind who is managing these accounts. The employees who are managing those accounts are the ones building the relationship so it is imperative that those employees understand how to build a relationship and develop respect with the online community. The relationship they build with the online community can strengthen or weaken the company’s image.
As we said before, Google is developing a new algorithm in which Twitter, Facebook, etc. will be heavily indexed. So it is imperative for companies to involve themselves and invest in social media.
Respect and relationship building require a long term commitment and dedication. And this is where the problem lies. Although companies want to rush and venture into the online community by discussing their products using Twitter, Facebook, and forums, the key to earning respect through online communities is to learn and listen to what online communities may want, need, or even discuss. This is also where companies can develop their relationship with the online community.
Another important tip is to make sure that the employees mention that they are a representative of the company. They are building a relationship between the client and the company, not themselves. If the employee has the option to write personal information/biography, let them know that they focus more about the company rather than intimate details about themselves. With this being said, let them be a little creative because the online world would like to know that they are interacting with a real person.
As I mentioned in my previous post on Tony Hsieh, the CEO of Zappos, it could also be beneficial for a company’s owner to get involved with the online community. Remember the old saying, “Two heads are better than one”? Well in this case, the more people involved with Social Media Marketing tools, the more insight a company can gain because everyone sees, reads, and hears different perspectives.
Written by Chris C.