Producing brand personality is not always an easy task. Brand personality is the way a brand makes you feel and consists of numerous elements including logo, signature colors, taglines, web site and so on. When all of these elements are in sync your business will have a brand personality which makes you instantly recognizable and identifiable.
How better to inject and reinforce a brand and its personality? Social Media — where your clients can invite your company into their lives.
As a small business there are a vast array of options for social media platforms. In order to determine which platform you should choose, decide what you want from your social media and match the platform to achieve those goals.
Do you want to find new customers? Run contests or post coupons on Facebook or Twitter.
Want to promote a specific product? Upload photos to Instagram or Pinterest.
Social media can be used to influence, motivate and morph customer’s actions and opinions about a company.
Here are a few facts about the leading social media platforms.
FACEBOOK FACTS:
• Facebook’s social network has over 1 billion active monthly users
• Members tend to be older and wealthier than users of competing networks AND since 2012 (in two (2) short years) the number of Facebook users ages 45 – 54 increased 45 percent.
• 73 percent of users in the US have incomes of more than $75,000
Basic Tutorial for Facebook:
Create a Business Facebook page with MONTHLY customized cover graphics, 2 – 3 posts each week and at least one customized graphic which is themed to your brand personality. Your posts should be 100 – 250 characters long.
Each month write posts around specific content … that could include photos and videos, coupons, company events; however, it MUST be current and topical! But, what is really important is to infuse the company culture and personality into the posts. Keep it engaging and fun (they don’t all have to be industry or company facts).
LinkedIn FACTS:
• Business owners interested in a professional demographic almost universally use LinkedIn.
• 30 percent of US business owners report using LinkedIn regularly … 41 per cent say the network is the “most valuable agent for growth”
• Heavily male … 61 percent male vs. 39 percent female
• One of five online adults is on the platform AND students and recent college graduates make up LinkedIn’s fastest growing demographic … sounds Ripe for recruitment!
Basic Tutorial for LinkedIn:
Create a Business LinkedIn Page which should include customized company information so that every message a potential customer will see will be consistent with your brand personality and have a similar look and feel.
Join a LinkedIn group for business leaders in your community and start discussions about topics you have expertise in.
As for endorsements or recommendations from those you do business with to build credibility.
Post frequent updates about your business that include recent awards and certifications, new hires and anything that proves credibility and growth.
Now, what’s POWERFUL about all this? It is when all of these elements are combined, have a similar look and feel AND they all work together strategically. All this being said … social media is SOCIAL and should be FUN while informing and engaging to consumer. It is considered “FREE” media; however, you as a business owner need to have sufficient time to interact with your social media platforms. Venture into only one platform that fits your business at a time and build upon that. You will see that social media when combined with traditional media can be a game changer for your business.
