With 59% of the UK population (LinkedIn Pulse: 2015) active on social media, it is no surprise that businesses are turning to these platforms in order to generate leads.
Know your audience
The most important step in generating leads through social media, is knowing your audience and what platforms they use. LinkedIn is better for B2B as it is a network purely intended for professional use. Business and employees post about their work, and their professional connections – they do not post about their personal life. Whereas Facebook is better for B2C because it is more sociable and personal and where consumers show off and review their purchases.
Here are some statistics (Artillery Marketing: 2015) to help you understand which platform you should be using:
- Pinterest is 82% women. 88% of those women purchase a product they have pinned
- 56% of LinkedIn users are male
- 91% of B2B marketers use LinkedIn and 85% use Twitter
- 53% of internet users aged 18-29 use Instagram
- 64% of Facebook users are women
Stay connected
Whether you are B2B or B2C it is crucial you only create social media sites that you intend to frequently update and that are specific for your audience. A neglected social media network can cause damage to your brand’s credibility and your lead generation.
Social media accounts require interaction, affection and most of all time. Follow prospects, answer questions, let your audience know there is a need out there that your business can fix. By staying on top of your pages and monitoring your feeds for mentions, groups, chats or retweets you will be able to quickly respond to leads.
By including key phrases and key words in your social media posts, your accounts will be easier to locate and your SEO increased. You can also do this by displaying your social media sites together on your website.
Targeted advertising
71% of consumers (LinkedIn Pulse: 2015) will buy a product based on social media reviews. As a B2C company, social media advertising and reviews are key in generating leads. Social media networks offer a range of advertising promotions and campaigns that allow you to set a budget and choose your specific target audience through age, gender, interests and location.
Customer service
Social networking sites are a low cost and highly responsive customer service tool and if your product receives a negative review on a social media platform, be sure to quickly respond with a solution. This shows other potential leads that you care about your customers experience with your product, and will be friendly and efficient when dealing with complaints.
Social media acts as another platform where consumers can ask questions, find out more information about the product, but most importantly it is where they can advertise your product for you. The majority of customers take to social media to show off their new purchase, so make sure you check mentions and hashtags frequently.
Waypoint is a Winchester marketing company specialising in delivering marketing strategy, content development and lead generation.
If you need help with your social media marketing or any aspect of your lead generation please call Waypoint on 01962 862760 or email info@waypointdigitalmarketing.com
