3 Ways to Adjust Your Social Strategy Right Now

Most of us are online more than ever right now. We are looking to social media to keep informed on the latest trends and news, share feedback and opinions, and simply for distraction and/or entertainment. According to Sprout Social, 91% of people believe in social media’s power to connect people. With this in mind, it is key for companies to not “go dark” on their social platforms.

Below are some tips to build up your social media strategy during this time:

1. Go Live

Now is the time to get in front of your customers. We have seen the increased popularity of social media live features in the last few years. In 2016, both Facebook and Instagram launched their own live streaming options. In early 2019, LinkedIn began to test its own live feature as well. Now the service is open to all with an approval process. 

Going live allows for brands to create a personality and transparency, while receiving feedback immediately. Many companies are taking this feature by storm with Q&A’s, trade show like “demos” and interviews with experts.

For example, although it is not “live,” Power Integrations is showcasing innovation through its virtual booth to raise awareness of products and or services they intended to showcase at APEC 2020.

2. Join Groups 

Social media Groups are another avenue for brands to market themselves, while inviting users to start a conversation. Facebook and LinkedIn both have Group features. Although both require a request option, users are typically approved within one to two days. 

These Groups help foster a community, attract key customers, enhance or better steer the conversation, and eliminate any intimidation with a business page. Customers want to connect with a person and not a company. Think of Groups as an opportunity for customers to connect with others, while providing valuable input for your business.  

Although it varies by Group, some common discussion points seen are around asking questions or creating polls, updating viewers with the latest news and providing feedback for brands and/or specific experiences. Below is an example from our MassDevice Group on LinkedIn. 

3. Practice Social Listening 

Social listening allows for brands to track and analyze customer feedback and direct mentions in real time. With this data, brands are able to get a sense of who their customers are and how they can assist them with their buying decisions. 

Social listening is best defined as a two-step process. Hootsuite defines this process as monitoring your social channels first for any mentions of your brand, competitors, products, etc. Once this is complete, then analyzing the information found and putting it into action. 

Social listening can help brands engage with customers, monitor conversations, discover new sales leads, and track competitors.

There are a million and one different social listening tools. You can simply view the back-end of your social media data, often under “Analytics” or “Insights”, depending on the platform. Or, use a paid service such as Sprout Social. Sprout allows for you to track direct messages and brand-specific keywords in the same platform as social scheduling. 

When a crisis hits, connecting with others takes on a whole new meaning and the role of social media becomes more critical. Comment below with your social media strategy tips.