Arment Dietrich SmartTalk eNewsletter

Many CEOs, business executives, and small business owners already know the power of social media for communication and generating new business. We use social media for many different purposes and train our clients on how to use these tools appropriately and effectively. Though you can use social media to accomplish just about anything, we'll focus on three areas vital to business growth.

Brand awareness and thought leadership
Unlike building your brand through traditional methods, which can take years to accomplish and cost millions of dollars, building brand awareness online is easy, inexpensive (free in most cases), and provides instant results. However, simply starting a Facebook page or creating a Twitter handle isn't enough. It is going to take some diligence on your part.

Social media is international and a great way to build brand awareness around the globe. Experiment with different types of social media and develop online campaigns; such as tweeting about your Web site or blog to drive traffic. We constantly experiment with different social mediums to build the Arment Dietrich brand. For example, we will often post a colleagues F.A.D.S. article on our Facebook page to provide numerous forums for our followers to converse with each other. These conversations engage our fans and followers with the Arment Dietrich brand and allow them to be involved in the conversation, and spread our brand message to their own networks.

Building your brand is also about positioning yourself as a thought leader. In today's tech-savvy environment, people have access to lots of information online, and they often look there first when shopping around for potential partners or clients. Just like you, they want to work with the best. It is important, then, to position yourself as an expert. Search Twitter for keywords related to your industry and offer advice to people looking for help. But also listen, engage with like-minded people, and develop relationships without being selfish.

Try a couple of different thought leadership tactics such as, record a seminar where you are the keynote speaker or a series of "how to" videos and post them on YouTube. Don't forget to drive interested parties back to your Web site.

Prospecting for business and generating sales
People may not be open and honest when you ask them to fill out a comment card or participate in a survey, but they aren't shy about sharing their opinions through social media. Everyday, thousands, if not millions, of people are online blasting CEOs in the financial sector, touting the actions of green companies, or railroading a former favorite hang out. Whatever your business, having this kind of customer feedback readily available at your fingertips is incredibly handy when building your business. You can research what is working and change what isn't instantaneously.

Twitter allows you to search key terms and set up RSS feeds. We recommend using this tool to conduct research on yourself and your business to see what the public is saying about your brand and your industry. Use this information to reach new audiences. Engage with them. Talk to them about your business and your philosophy. Create opportunities to build relationships and partnerships, and develop them into potential new business opportunities for your organization.

You already know that generating sales is all about creating buzz. In order to do so, you are going to need active bloggers, Tweeters, and dedicated Facebookers to help spread your message. Chances are good there are already some people singing your praises; give them an incentive to continue. Provide them with information a little earlier than the general public so they feel like they are receiving exclusive info. These days, you're only as good as the word on the street. Pay attention to what is written about your brand beyond the traditional media borders, and make sure you build the buzz online as well as offline.

Brand loyalty through constant engagement
Social media, no doubt, is an excellent tool to build brand loyalty and engage with your customers because most of them are already online. In fact, Facebook's fastest growing demographic is the 30 plus crowd. Take advantage of this fast-growing medium and reach your existing customers with social media. Tweet a link to your followers containing a coupon or discount, or hold a contest on Facebook and invite the winners to take a tour of your business. Your followers and fans will welcome your involvement and appreciation.

Social media is also a great place to put out (or even start) fires. Domino's Pizza learned the hard way when two of its employees videotaped themselves adding questionable ingredients to customer orders and then posted the video on YouTube. Domino's was slow to react, but quickly redeemed itself with effective crisis management using social media. They engaged their audience, and helped build brand loyalty by providing an apology and connecting with their customers on a personal level. (Check out our take on the events in the June/July issue of Franchise Times.)

Creating brand loyalty doesn't happen overnight. But, creating various forums for your customers to engage with your brand, such as starting a blog, reaching out to your potential audience on Twitter, or building an interactive fan base on Facebook gives your customers a reason to come back and encourages potential customers to check you out.