By: Lindsey Andrick Sanders, Account Coordinator

Don’t the days of having a company website with only basic contact information seem far away? In fact, the days of MySpace and Facebook are even beginning to seem archaic. If you flip through the apps on your smartphone, you will probably find several social networking apps in addition to the once-revolutionary text messaging service. Chances are, your customers are flipping through these same apps – presenting you with both a challenge and an opportunity for endless communication.

Today, a multitude of social networking platforms facilitate virtual communication. This is definitely something for professionals to be thankful for, as each platform provides a unique opportunity to enhance engagement with both clients and peers.

At first, the sheer number of social media sites might seem daunting, especially if you do not use social media frequently. However, with a little research and practice, you will have a greater grasp on how to compose posts and slowly gain confidence in the endless possibilities provided by these communication tools. Here are a few things you can do to ease your company’s transition into social media:

  • Reassess who your target audiences are and what they are likely to respond to, so you can tailor messages to their preferences in order to motivate them to connect with you online.
  • Consider the most important facets of your business so that you can promote them and remain focused.
  • Be strategic, and make sure every post is aligned with your business’ ultimate objectives.

For those of you who are social media sages, you always can find ways to up your game! Take a step back and evaluate your social networking critically. Here are a few tips on what to look for during your review:

  • Look beyond the statistics and get a qualitative perspective. Are your posts receiving substantial feedback? Are people just browsing through your posts, or are they inspired to comment and share with their friends?
  • Determine where your target audiences are networking in order to best reach them. Pinterest might be the ideal platform for some businesses, but is it the right place for you to focus your efforts and limited resources?
  • Relish in the successful communicating your company does through social media. Find what works best and come up with a plan to augment that success; then transfer those techniques to your other social media accounts if possible. Maybe your company’s LinkedIn group has thousands of members while its Twitter has fewer than 50 followers. Do some sleuthing and discover why that platform is resonating so well with that particular audience.

Regardless of your social media prowess, this is an exciting time to be in business. Social media platforms enable businesses to extend their reach like never before –across industries, countries and the rest of the world. This endless reach can yield considerable profits and growth prospects. This year, be thankful for all the ways we can communicate!