Builder, carpenter, electrician, plumber, gardener... whatever your trade, you are probably aware that the Internet has taken over the world of advertising and marketing in the last few years. Business cards, newspaper adverts and TV commercials all display their website address or email. The phrase "Like us on Facebook" or "Follow us on Twitter" has become common on the high street and in restaurants.
But where do YOU fit in? How do you, as a tradesperson, make use of the Internet to attract new clients? How can you get social media to work for you?
Have faith in the medium
For many of us, the Internet is something we understand and use every day. We search for restaurant offers or movie times, we browse Facebook for pictures of kittens and we tweet about our day. But when it comes to promoting our business, we don't trust it. How many times have you heard these phrases:
- I had a Facebook page but it didn't work, I didn't get any Likes
- I used Twitter occasionally but I didn't have many followers so I stopped bothering
- I got a website but no one visited it and I didn't get any new work
These are things that Bath Business Web hear a lot from tradespeople. The key to all of them is the same. The website, Facebook pages and Twitter profiles are all tools to help you advertise and promote your business. They have to be used to be successful, and used in the right way.
Social media is SOCIAL
The biggest mistake people make with social media is misunderstanding its function. Social media is designed to let people socialise. Businesses can make use of this by interacting with other users, getting their brand known and trusted. They can showcase their work, their offers or promotions and put a personal face and voice to the brand name. Replying to contacts from people, sharing their interests as well as your own and building a relationship that lies between professional and personal are the keys to building a strong social media profile.
Sadly, many businesses ignore this function and instead expect a mere presence on Facebook or Twitter to earn them Likes and Followers. They fail to realise that you must earn your profile strength in this world, by producing great content and interacting with not only your existing fans but all of your potential ones as well.
Paid advertising on platforms like Facebook and Twitter can produce excellent results, getting your company name specifically targeted at people in your area who want your services. This is why social media is powerful for business - all the information Facebook or Google + collects about you as you browse is used to point adverts at you that you'll love. But ultimately if your adverts direct potential clients to an empty Facebook page with no Likes, it's wasted money.
The bottom line
Think of social media as a 24hr business lunch, a way to talk to your clients no matter where you are. When you visit a client you would probably give them a pitch, discuss their expectations from the work and their needs. You'll make sure you are dressed appropriately, maybe in work clothes, maybe in uniform. You'll be honest and open with them, talk about the challenges of the job and probably tell them about yourself, your company and how you've dealt with jobs before.
Social media lets you have those conversations with many potential clients at once and without intruding on the rest of the day. Be accessible, be honest and be professional and you will find that social media is a tool your business will benefit from.
See also:
Social media mistakes you don't want to make
5 Small business secrets
Web design, when you need it - email us and mention "the blog"
Social media is everywhere. Any web page you visit will almost certainly encourage you to tweet, like or pin its content. Companies are creating brand new forms of advertising to cater for the social media networks. Engagement with social media is at an all time high and even countries that have banned certain sites like Facebook are showing massive growth.
Businesses are rapidly finding out that social media can mean increased brand awareness, growth of their client base and relatively low cost yet effective marketing. Clever companies have used social media to launch viral videos, competitions and stunts, driving up their popularity.
There are however, some risks when you introduce social media to your business strategy. A single misstep or innocent blunder can render your brand a laughing stock. So before you dip a toe into social media as a business, read the tips below...
3) Check, check and check again
One of the most attractive parts of social media is the ease of use. Type a short, pithy comment about your business, possibly with a picture attached, click one button and voila! The latest piece of marketing gold has been launched into the twittersphere. The disadvantage of this, however, is that a few moments of not concentrating, a moment of bad judgement and you have launched something that will cripple your reputation and never, ever be lost, because once information is on the world wide web, it is never lost.
Enter American firm KitchenAid, who allowed an astonishingly bad taste joke about the president's deceased relative to find its way onto their twitter feed. A quick fire round of retweets later and the company was in hot water, with many public apologies and hurried denunciations made over the following days. The damage was done however, and despite the company deleting the tweet almost immediately, echos of it will be floating online as a cautionary tale long into the future.
2) You hold your company's reputation in your hands
If you've been in marketing for more than five minutes, you'll know that reputation is everything for a brand. Without a rock solid reputation for honesty, good choices and quality, growing a business is nearly impossible. Throughout your marketing you will have been developing your company's image. Badly thought through social media campaigns can turn all that to ash in a surprisingly short amount of time.
So it was for The Redner Group, who oversaw the launch of much loved shooter Duke Nukem's long awaited new release, 'Duke Nukem Forever'. The PR section posted a public statement on twitter that appeared to threaten to withhold new review copies of titles from outlets who gave the game a poor review. The backlash from fans, reviewers and the larger industry was deafening, leaving the company's reputation for fairness in tatters.
1) You may loose more than you think
Social media mistakes can have wide reaching consequences. A slip up (or gross stupidity) may cost you money, time and possibly your job. Worst cases may even result in legal consequences. Again, this often comes as a result of impulsive posting behaviour, but in some cases what may appear a silly, harmless prank can lead to disaster when they hit the public forum.
Two employees at a New York branch of Domino's Pizza learned this the very hard way when they posted a video they filmed showing various misbehaviours at work on YouTube and the social media networks, quickly coming to the attention of their bosses. The evidence of their antics was slammed as 'disgusting', caused a major dent in Domino's reputation for hygiene and standards and swiftly led to the sacking of both the stars of the show. If that wasn't enough, both of them were brought up on legal charges for various health code violations.
So when you embrace social media for your business, embrace also the lessons to be learned from these and the countless other similar stories on the internet. Remember, with great social media power comes great responsibility...
See also:
5 Small business secrets...
The battle of the browsers...
