It’s relatively easy to put up a Facebook “like” page for a business. Just about everyone can do it. The same amount of effort is required whether you’re a major brand or a local business. However few of the brands that actually do so are pulling off their social media marketing effectively.

Marketing to individuals isn’t an easy thing to do for anyone because you have to understand what messages will stand out. Conversational marketing to real people, where full engagement is required, is even harder – especially on the individual level.

So how do you break down your social media marketing so it’s not as broad and far more targeted to the individual?

Showcase Personality:

Not just any personality mind you, but a compelling personality that people can relate to. A good speaker can make most (if not all) of the people in a room feel as if they’re being spoken to directly, as individuals. A good campaign concept should take the same form and be delivered in a voice that people can relate to.

Invest In That Voice:

The last thing you need at the forefront of your social media marketing is just another talking head. The person handling that conversations and engagement should be a guru or a master conversationalist. Conversation = engagement and interactivity. Those are ingredients that can’t be bargained away or neglected.

Broaden Your Voice:

If possible add voices to broaden the individuality of the company voice. You don’t need to have a sole individual acting like a talking head. Develop community managers and support reps that can engage the community. A call center doesn’t operate with one person tackling all the issues and queries, your social media marketing efforts shouldn’t either.

Inspire Evangelism:

Your fans have a stronger voice than your own, encourage them to speak out regardless of how much they like or dislike you. Recognize who they are and showcase their interactions and efforts. You should thank them for what they do and inspire them to continue their engagement.

Invest In Technology:

No gadget is going to inspire the same feelings as direct human interaction, even on the web. What it can do however is inspire a deeper and more enjoyable experience for the customer. Apps, graphs, supplemental media, etc all make the marketing process more appealing as they inspire the interactivity that fans crave on the web.

While there are no set ways to market your company, as techniques and what works will obviously differ from market to market and person to person, companies need to bring their marketing down to a more personal level.

With companies like Papa John’s, Toys R Us, Starbucks and Casual MaleXL directly engaging their followers in deeper conversation there’s no excuse for any other brand to cop out and continue with broad, impersonal marketing.

One Response to “Marketing To Thousands Of Followers… One At A Time”