Everyone knows that bad news can tarnish a brand’s name, but fortunately compliments travel just as fast as complaints and can build your brand name tremendously. When a customer interacts with your brand though social media it is important to ensure their experience is as enjoyable and memorable as technologically possible.
While negative feedback on your Facebook page or Twitter may seem counter-productive it’s actually okay as long as you address the issue and handle it appropriately. Knowing what customers are saying about their experiences with your brand can help you manage your company more effectively and ensure a better future interaction. If your company does not have a Facebook page for fear of hearing negative feedback and complaints, you are doing your brand a disservice. It’s important to recognize all the bad and good aspects of your brand and handle negativity in a productive manner. A prime example of how a company was hit hard with negative social media press and turned the crisis into a learning experience and opportunity to leverage their brand is Toyota.
Toyota was pummeled with negative tweets, statuses, testimonials, etc. regarding their global recalls that surfaced last February. Toyota essentially responded to threats and backlash they received from their mass product recalls and used social media effectively to turn the threats into an opportunity of sustainable growth. When the crisis went underway, Toyota immersed their brand in social mediums such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Blog Networks, their company’s main site, Digital Diggs, Flickr, and RSS feeds. More importantly their loyal customers and fans became advocates in this trialing period and began counteracting the negative comments with positive facts, experiences and personal stories with the brand. As a result of the company’s efforts and advocacy of fans Toyota is currently ranked #21 in the top 100 most engaged companies with social media. This is such an inspiring feat and proof that negative feedback doesn’t mean the end of your brand, but can provide other opportunities of positive promotion.
As evident in the Toyota case the upside of using social media services is you can receive positive feedback, comments and gain recommendations. The goal here is to convert your fans into brand advocates. When people do become brand advocates, reward them! Be proactive by monitoring your mentions and reaching out to those with concerns. By interacting with customers and encouraging engagement you will set your brand apart. Much of social marketing has to do with listening. Consciously listening to what your customers have to say will prove to have a significant impact on your marketing efforts, this is something here at King Media we truly strive for and believe we deliver to our patrons and brand advocates.
Most importantly you need to be creating compelling content. Give your customers something of value. An easy and effective way to provide valuable content is to include photos, voice applications, mobile apps and videos into your content. Media is attention grabbing and useful to audiences, moreover, you stand out from others and resonate in consumers’ minds. It is also essential to humanize your content as much as possible. It is often easy to forget this simple rule, but it is one of the most important factors in delivering compelling and memorable social media. Don’t sound like a robot; be personable to your audience!
Here at King Media we know how to deliver compelling content and we want to help your brand do the same. We understand the value media has on your marketing efforts and how to effectively manage social media efforts. Take a look at our own social media efforts and digital campaigns for more insight and to share our blog post. We would love to assist your brand in any way possible. Visit us at http://kingmedianow.com/!
