Is your social media package disruptive?

As an industry matures, there are a lot of changes which happen internally as well as in the external environment. Social media has brought the following changes to our online behavior:

• Conventional search has been replaced by friends. People now ask their friends on Google+ or Facebook rather than search for things they need.
• Emails are slowly getting redundant thanks to Facebook messaging. It's ridiculously easy sending your friend a Facebook message rather than scampering for his email address.
• Who listens to radio these days? Podcasts are the audio fixations.

According to a McKinsey and Nielsen survey, close to 80% people feel better when they use social media to network. This explains why users are so obsessed with social media.

Your social media marketing plan helps you “connect”

A social media marketing plan not only lays down where you want to be but also tells you how you can get there with minimum fuss. The route you take should help you connect with people; make them your fans and advocators. “Connection” is a social jargon we all are familiar with. But the trick is to know how.

You can connect by relating and identifying with people which, in turn, amplify your influence. The key is to give something of value in return for better social connections – and giving it quickly, without making people wait too long will definitely power-up your marketing campaign and get you to your destination faster. A social media expert can make the job easier for you to reach out and connect by:

• identifying and knowing what's important to your target audience
• assisting them in achieving it
• becoming the value-creator by helping people, ideas and resources relate with other one another
• building authentic, long-lasting relationships with others and
• staying in the loop with systematic follow-ups

The secret recipe to great online connections is giving more: give, and give early to get back more in return. You may not get instant gratification but if you keep at it, you won't be disappointed. Remember, it isn't a barter economy. So, don't think you are losing out by giving away more than what you get.

A negative comment isn't the end of the world for your brand

Lastly, keep in mind things get blown out of proportion in social media. No matter how effective your social media package is, it cannot guarantee an occasional complaint, negative post or tweet. The key is not to panic. An unflattering comment or mention can't tarnish your brand forever. In reality, there's no dearth of detractors: they seek attention by creating and spreading negative content. Unless there's a real crisis, don't waste time reacting to such publicity stunts. Use these guidelines to judge whether you should bother:

• has been gaining momentum over a period of time
• affects your image/reputation, existing clients and prospects
• doesn't have prompt remedy

Author Bio: Henry Smith has more than three decades of marketing and communications experience. For the last ten years, he has been helping start-ups as well as blue chip companies attain their social goals with customized social media packages.

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