Earn your social currency

In a world where social media marketing gains power by the minute, earning “social currency” for your local business is critical to success. In short, social currency is what your business earns when customers and prospects share information about you via social media. That might be a recommendation, review, blog post, tweet, photo, video or just a thought.
Whatever it is, it helps put your name and your “brand” (got one?) in front of potential buyers. The point is that they are sharing something about you, and that’s (almost) like money in the bank. It helps you develop a unique identity for your business, yourself or your brand and creates more opportunities to interact with customers and prospects and develop the all-important relationships that lead to repeat customers and referrals.
Earning social currency for your business is one of the most important value-building marketing moves you can make today. And it doesn’t have to cost you money.
Vivaldi Partners, a large brand-management and consulting company, recently conducted a study to identify how the most successful businesses are building social currency. The study identified crucial factors that determine social media currency-building success – the “social six”:
&#8226 Affiliation. What your business does in social media helps people feel like they are part of a community of some kind.
&#8226 Ideas. You provide valuable information that people can share with others.
&#8226 Utility. Your social media initiatives help people get more value from what you offer.
&#8226 Conversation. Your approach gets people talking about your business or brand.
&#8226 Identity. Your efforts help people express part of themselves to others through whatever products, services or brands you offer.
&#8226 Advocacy. You motivate customers and prospects to speak positively about your business and recommend it to others.
The more of the “social six” you accomplish, the more social currency you earn to drive and grow your business. To earn it, you may find yourself interacting with customers in new ways. For example, granting customers access to special information or inside knowledge is a powerful way to connect. And once you do, you’ve essentially gained permission to interact further with those customers or prospects.
Remember that earning social currency is not an end in itself – you can’t use it to make a payroll. But it’s currency that will buy you more customers and loyalty. &#8226


Daniel Kehrer can be reached at editor@bizbest.com.

No posts to display