After traditional marketing techniques have proved to be unsuccessful, including cold calls and email blasts — which have forced people to mute and block irrelevant information — , no one could deny the importance of social media for businesses today. Innovative and interactive technologies have revolutionized the way brands started operating and provided companies with new tools on how to reach out to new customers, and luckily for the better.
Social media drives business
Social media has offered companies a variety of opportunities and strategies to start marketing their products. Creating business profiles on Facebook, Instagram, and other social networks, putting thought into the design, and sharing brand’s content, case studies or any additional useful information has enabled brands to interact and engage with customers in a new way. The free social media platform has been embraced to the extent that various professions and jobs, including social media directors and managers, had evolved.
Perhaps, one of the most significant and obvious marketing tools that social media has provided brands to connect with their potential customers is being able to show its content and advertising material only to a specific audience — those who would be interested. This technique is primarily used on Facebook; in fact, enhancing business without using Facebook ads has become almost impossible. Indeed, the Pew Research Center’s 2018 study finds that 68% of adults in the United States use this platform and approximately three-quarters of those users do so every day. Additionally, because brands have been generating copy ads that are creative and memorable, it has become much more comfortable to draw customer attention instantly.
Another essential marketing instrument that social media has spurred into the business world is content distribution. Now companies can post and share content directly on various avenues such as LinkedIn and Twitter. But not only brands have become empowered, but social media has also allowed customer problems to be communicated more easily. The social networking websites have given voices to everyone, and modern-day customers can now share their impressions and write reviews — whether positive or negative — about companies via these channels. This produces transparency that sparks motivation for brands to improve.
The new way of doing business
However, limiting social media to spreading brand’s messages only is a huge mistake. Messaging apps are now complementing social media marketing strategies and enhancing more sales. Social media is, of course, incomplete without messaging apps, which are an essential component of this platform. And with the rise of social networks, brands not only began to put out their messages across (e.g., ads) through social channels, but they also started dialogues with their clients, they started participating in the actual conversation, providing excellent assistance and pleasurable customer experience. They began to be available in those place, where customers spend their time. Chatting platform usage has been increase and data proves this. According to Business Insider Intelligence, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Viber, and WeChat have surpassed social networking websites.
The same way as social networks were initially created to connect individuals with family, friends or acquaintances, messaging apps have also been transforming into a useful business tool and has allowed brands to interact with their customers in easy and unique ways. Being there for customers on the channel they use most won’t hurt any business, in fact, embracing Messenger-Based Sales — the new way of doing business — will most likely pick up more heat in the coming years.
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