GG’s Nisha Gupta reminds corporate businesses that social media matters – and can offer more benefits than you’d think.
As a proud Gen-Zer, I am an avid supporter and participant of social media. There are certainly downsides to social media, but it can also be a wonderful tool for businesses and creatives. The endless opportunities social media offers those in more creative and consumer-oriented industries are fairly obvious, but the opportunities for more traditional businesses and industries are not always as clear (or exciting). This leads some companies to overlook the potential of social media and underutilize what it has to offer. Sure, most companies have a basic presence, but they don’t always invest in this presence as much as they can or should.
Because I’ve had the pleasure to work alongside corporate clients actively working to nurture their social media presence and interactions, I strongly believe others should follow suit—if they haven’t already—for a few key reasons.
Social media offers you real-time, direct communication and interaction with your clients and competitors. You can not only identify and directly communicate with your target audience—whether that is others working in your industry or current/future clients—but you can also do the same with your competitors. Isn’t there a saying about keeping your enemy closer? Social media allows you to do just that, and your business operations will thank you. Staying at the forefront of industry news and trends through your own content and through others’ will cement your brand’s image as a key player in your field. It also informs your internal and external operations and will be paramount to any situations involving crisis management.
Social media gives you control to create your own brand and image. Cultivating your brand not only paints your company in a positive light, but it also builds trust and transparency among your audience of clients, employees, and partners. While branding may seem more relevant to influencers and consumer products, image plays a crucial part to corporate services. Social media provides corporate clients the ability to signal their values and quality with every post, share, or like on their page.
But one of the biggest hurdles I see among corporate clients is trying to come up with interactive content that highlights their services. Unlike consumer brands, you don’t always have a tangible product to market and share in a picture or caption. But don’t fear—that’s why we have thought leadership! Content demonstrating thought leadership is a great way to set a company apart from competitors and enshrine themselves as industry experts. In addition to standard company updates, prioritize posts that share insight on a trending news story or predictions of where your industry will be in the next year.
Another reason—a major reason—I advocate for corporate clients to use social media is the untapped knowledge available through these platforms’ metrics and data. By analyzing your social media data, you will identify areas where your company could improve and where you are doing well. In the case of corporate clients, metrics can tell you what industry topics are most relevant to your audience, what types of services are most popular, who among your team is received well, etc. These measurements matter to companies whose offerings rely on relationships, and the most reliable way to ensure your company is on the right track is if the data backs it up.
These are just a few of the many benefits social media has to offer: the possibilities truly are endless. The best part is that it’s constantly evolving, and there will always be new benefits for companies in every industry of any size. If a company wants to invest in public relations, they must invest in social media. And if you have trouble tapping into your full potential, that’s what firms like ours are here for.
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