How Social Media Impacts Every Part of Your Business

Social media can undeniably impact modern business strategy powerfully, especially when it comes to companies interacting with their customers. Before social media, we thought of advertising as billboards or magazines, which didn’t allow for the immediate consumer response like social media does. Social media has affected businesses, ranging from customer engagement to product development. Professionals highlight that social media’s influence on society is as fundamental as gravity’s pull on Earth. It has evolved from a mere luxury to an essential pillar of modern business. It is crucial for brands to harness what social media has to offer.

Customer Engagement and Brand Awareness

Today, businesses have unprecedented access to their target audience thanks to social media. Whether it be LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, or X (formerly Twitter), these apps allow companies to contact their consumers directly. This access has opened new doors for things like brand loyalty, addressing concerns, sharing updates, and showcasing new products straight to the customer’s phone screen. The key to letting these facets improve your business is utilizing them authentically. Gone are the days of faceless corporations; today’s consumers crave genuine interactions with brands, which is simpler than you think. By humanizing your company’s online presence, you can create meaningful connections with your audience. It takes creativity and originality.

An excellent example is the skincare and beauty brand “Glossier.” Part of the brand’s rise to fame was because it used real people and customers in its advertisements to showcase its products. They didn’t use beauty models with professional lighting or airbrushed technology like many competitors in the industry. This image gave them the reputation of being “real and down to earth,” making them more authentic, likable, and profitable. Other forms of “realness” can include sharing behind-the-scenes content or even humorous posts to allow audiences to feel like they have a closer affiliation with the brand.

Influencer Marketing

One of the most significant developments in the social media marketing landscape has been the rise of influencer partnerships. These collaborations leverage the trust and following that influencers have already built with their audiences. It’s a modern form of word-of-mouth marketing. Consumers grow to trust influencers like their friends- they believe their testimonies. Influencer marketing can take many forms, from sponsored posts to product reviews or long-term brand ambassadorships. The key is to find influencers whose values and audience align with your brand. These partnerships can significantly boost brand awareness and credibility and drive direct sales when done right.

An example would be an influencer, Sarah, who gives her followers a unique discount code, “SARAHFIT20,” for 20% off their first FitFlex purchase. Sarah’s posts reach 400,000 followers, and 40,000 users visit FitFlex’s website using Sarah’s custom link. 4,000 people use the discount code to make a purchase. If the average order value is $80, the total sales generated is $320,000. This partnership drives immediate sales and increases brand awareness and credibility for FitFlex among Sarah’s engaged fitness-focused audience. New customers unlocked.

In contrast, the 2023 collaboration of transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney and Bud Light proved a different outcome regarding influencer partnerships. This collaboration angered the far-right conservatives so much that they decided to boycott the brand. Two weeks later, their sales were down by 17%. Their parent company (BUD) fell 20% because of investor fears. To anticipate such outcomes, Wall Street investors and analysts must monitor successful and problematic trends.

Refining Product Development

Valuable insights can be gained from social media and directly inform your product development process. Customer feedback, both positive and negative, highlights areas for improvement and can inspire new features. Some companies even use social media polls or surveys to gauge interest in potential new products before committing to full-scale development.

This can be super helpful in creating products that better meet customer needs and foster a sense of involvement among your audience. Many consumers now prefer to reach out to brands via social media rather than traditional channels like phone or email. When customers feel their voices are heard and valued, it strengthens their connection to your brand. Listen to them; social media makes it easy.

However, careful management is required to address potentially harmful situations in a public setting. By handling customer service issues effectively on social media, you can turn potentially harmful experiences into positive ones, demonstrating your company’s responsiveness and dedication to customer care. Doing this will give your brand a great look and help it gain respect.

Recruitment and Employer Branding

Beyond customer-facing applications, social media is crucial in recruitment and employer branding. Platforms like LinkedIn are obvious choices for professional networking and job postings, but even more casual platforms can be leveraged to showcase your company culture and attract top talent.

By sharing content that highlights your workplace environment, employee success stories, and company values, you will build a strong employer brand that attracts like-minded individuals to your organization.

Measuring ROI and Performance

One of the most significant advantages of social media marketing is the ability to measure and analyze performance in real-time. Unlike traditional marketing channels, social media provides detailed metrics on engagement, reach, conversions, and more.

This wealth of data allows businesses to continuously refine their strategies, allocate resources more effectively, and demonstrate the ROI of their social media efforts. By setting clear goals and KPIs, you can track your progress and make data-driven decisions to improve your social media performance over time.

Bright Age

Partnering with a dedicated agency like Bright Age Creative can make a significant difference. With our specialized expertise and up-to-date knowledge of platform algorithms, trends, and best practices, Bright Age can help businesses harness social media’s full potential.

From developing a comprehensive social media strategy tailored to your unique business goals to creating engaging content, managing influencer partnerships, and analyzing performance metrics, Bright Age offers the tools and insights needed to elevate your social media presence. Our team can help you cut through the noise, reach your target audience more effectively, and translate social media engagement into tangible business results.