Social media is a powerful tool which can convert your followers and fans into loyal and paying customers.
Detailed below are 5 simple ways of ensuring your social media leads will lead to increased sales.
Use the herd mentality and convey a sense of urgency:
New news very quickly becomes old news on social media due to the ever changing statuses and tweets of users. After approximately 7 hours, your status update has reached 90% of its total reach.
To instantly capture the attention of both your existing and potential audience, use words and phrases such as, “For a limited time only”, “While stock lasts”, or, “on sale today only”, These phrases will gain the attention of customers as well as conveying a sense of urgency which will encourage consumers to purchase your goods or services instantly, rather than delaying the purchase until a different time.
Offering incentives for the purchasing or booking of goods or services immediately will also encourage customers to act now instead of later. For example, “The next 5 people who retweet this will receive free shipping”.
Offer Exclusive deals to Fans and Followers
Create a loyal online community and build dedicated brand advocates by offering deals and incentives which are similar to the previous section, but which are exclusively available to certain networks, which customers have already subscribed to. The reasoning behind this is to encourage your customers to return to your pages to keep an eye out for special deals and offers, while boosting positive peer-to-peer word of mouth advertising
Encourage Sharing
Ask your fans to retweet, share or repin your updates. Great content can go viral exceptionally quickly, which could potentially provide you with an unlimited new customer base. For example, if you are running a Facebook contests, let your fans know that if they share your competition on their page, that they will get an extra chance to win.
Keep all of your social media profiles up to date and fresh.
Potential customers who arrive on your social media page should have a clear idea of what your business or brand is all about. You can include price or purchase information on a Facebook cover photo and you can include phrases such as, “Sign up to our Webinar here”, or, “Download our new brochure here”. The main image should also give existing and prospective customers insights regarding your business and brand.
Always ensure that all of your contact details and information required by the customer is visible and easily accessible.
Always include a Clear Call to Action.
Customers and fans will visit your page for a variety of reasons; however, generally they are there for a specific reason or purpose.
Some may be looking for additional information on your company, while others are looking for details regarding your products, or some may want access to exclusive deals and offers or to enter into any competitions which you may have running. Very often the time you have to engage your fan or potential customer is extremely limited. This is where clear ‘Call to Actions’, comes into play. By telling your fan what to do and how to do it, you can influence their online behaviour in your favour and encourage them to do what you want them to do, such as signing up to a newsletter, downloading a brochure, or availing of a special offer.
Regardless of your business or industry, social media is a powerful sales tool which many small and larger businesses in Ireland are under-utilising. Whether you think they are or not, the fact is, your customers are online and your customers are social. The question is are you?