Low hanging fruit. Every business wants to capitalize on revenue that can be more easily generated from a large common denominator of consumers. Too many are unnecessarily missing a golden opportunity to leverage Social Media as a very effective way to capture this low hanging fruit.
If your company sells directly to consumers (B2C) and has an e-commerce website, -but isn’t leveraging it through social media – you may be leaving important new business on the table! If so, are you likely missing a critical opportunity to drive revenue to dedicated buying pages on your e-commerce website! You are also missing a mechanism to develop and grow the customer base that may otherwise follow your company. You can then create Facebook specific offers for both existing and new followers. Your website becomes the-spider-in-your-web of on-line marketing. The various social networks become the sticky “spider web”, serving to extend a wider net driving traffic to your website. You also have the opportunity of maintaining a relationship with your new consumer and influencing their next purchase by offering Facebook specific offers while maintaining a “top of mind” relationship with your Facebook Friend that even extends to their friends.
Is your company B2C, but without e-commerce capability? Well, even if you don’t transact online, you should be making use of Social Media as an important lead generating tool. Facebook affords you the opportunity to build a community and to influence prospects to transact their upcoming purchase at particular retail locations by supplying them with content such as value added offers. It’s a win/win! You generate revenue and build your community. The consumer receives an incentive to purchase your products. You then can benefit from the newly offered opportunity to follow consumers interested in your products throughout their purchasing life cycle.
Are you a business that sells to other businesses (B2B)? In most cases, a Facebook presence can generate revenue for you too! You likely have no idea of the extent of the business you may have been losing! As a product manufacturer or distributor, once your merchandise had left your doors you historically had little opportunity to enjoy feedback about how consumers used them and what they thought about them. Well now you can educate them as to your products and services and continue to engage them throughout their buying life cycle.
Regardless of whether you manufacture garments or shower doors the opportunity to drive consumers to retail locations where you’ve influenced them to purchase your products creates a true win/win/win. The consumer can receive an incentive to buy your product that they are looking for. Your retailer is happy because you’ve driven business to their location with the opportunity to generate incremental purchases from that consumer. You’ve made a consumer happy because they bought what they wanted… your product. Your win is that you’ve supported your brand, built your customer community and generated a sale. Moreover, you now have the opportunity to create brand loyalty by continuing your relationship with consumers of your product in a way you could not before Social Media. And you can further develop specific programs to reward customers to promote your company or product through viral word of mouth.
There are very few companies that are not suited to Social Media as virtually all consumers now look for their products or services online, read reviews online, or verify with friends on Facebook to inquire about their purchase experiences. Consult with your Social Media consultant (hi there!) to find out how to best leverage Social Media for your company and begin to generate new revenue that is presently there on the table for the taking.
Not sure about any of this? Challenge me about YOUR business situation. What are your businesses products or services? Let me help you understand not simply what you’re missing, but how to get a bigger piece of the purchasing action! Take the money from the top of table, and put it in your pocket….where it rightfully belongs!