1 Minute Marketing: Why E-Marketing Strategies Should Include Responsive Social Media

$\"e-marketing$ “Social media is a conversation.” You\’ve probably heard that more times than you’d care to think about, but that message still hasn\’t sunk in for many companies. They still post all promotional content all the time, to little effect. A strategic e-marketing plan should include engaging and responsive social media, meaning simply that you engage your audience with content and respond to their reactions.

Many businesses treat their Facebook pages and their Twitter feeds as simply free promotional tools for their e-marketing strategies — while social networks are free to use, just posting ads about your business and the products/services you offer isn\’t going to get you many followers. You’ll likely lose the ones you do have instead.

That’s because social media is a two-way conversation. But how do you engage your audience? Ask questions. Post links to articles your audience will find useful and interesting (especially when they’re on your website!). Share fun images with motivational quotes or light-hearted jokes. These are the types of posts that get a response, engage the user and help them take notice of your brand.

And when you do engage users, be sure to respond — that’s what will make your company more than just a brand. Show your business’s human side through social media. “Like” user comments, answer questions, thank users for their praise and respond constructively to their criticisms.

Including promotional posts is expected in business e-marketing strategies, but that can’t be all you offer. It’s an amount of give and take — give thoughtful and useful content and your audience will spread it.