Why Social Media Integration is Necessary in 2016

Trusting a brand is one of the most important constants. Regardless of how technology evolves over the years, consumers will often side with a name they trust. Part of the importance of social media marketing centers around cultivating that trust on a more personal level.

The Impact of Online Reputation

Online reputation is where many companies have the most impact from customers. Social engagement, customer reviews and other aspects contribute to someone’s decision to make that initial purchase.

Driving Traffic through Social Media

Facebook reported that it had almost 1.5 billion users who log in at least once in any given month. This number doesn’t even count any of the other social media platforms around. You can begin to understand the importance of social media marketing to engage a vast target audience.

With each post that is shared or interacted with on Facebook, there is potential to drive traffic to your website. Whether you’re offering free information or selling goods through eCommerce, the results could be incredible. Instead of relying on ad-sharing networks, connecting with consumers in this fashion has potential to be more productive. This is especially true when it comes to creating a trustworthy brand. People are more likely to buy from a company that is interactive on social media.

Social profiles can also play a role in exposure on sites such as Google. These profiles are appearing in search results when consumers are looking for brands or products. Developing a social presence may serve to improve your placement in these results as content is crawled by the search engines.

Cost Efficiency

One of the key components that drive companies to use social media marketing is the overall cost for upkeep. As most profiles on these sites are free, engaging potential consumers has no expense other than time. It takes less than a minute to respond to an individual or post a link to new content on your website.

Advertising campaigns on social media sites may also be more cost efficient than methods you may be using today. For example, a retail store in New York can use pay-per-click ads in Facebook to target only those users in the immediate area. This has potential to increase the return-on-investment as people in Miami wouldn’t see the ad and click on it.

Social Search Engine Algorithms

Some social media sites have been toying with the idea of developing their own search engine algorithms. As Facebook handles more than 1.5 billion searches every day, the social company has spent time fine-tuning the results. By putting effort into building your online presence, users are capable of finding your company and content when searching this continuously growing database.

Be Conversational, Not Promotional

It’s been found that people on social networks are more receptive to posts that are more conversational in origin. Promoting a product seems too much like an advertisement, and the masses could ignore the post. Create a more personal message regarding your content to attract more consumers.

Interact With Fans and Followers

Interacting with people who comment or otherwise follow the business can build strong ties. It makes the situation seem less forced and more organic. In other words, people are more likely to trust a company that offers insights and communicates with them.