How to Use Social Media to Increase Sales

By Jerry Hoekman

People often ask me how best to use Facebook and Instagram to sell more, to which I often answer: don’t ask a marketing guru about social media, ask your grandmother! 

Why not ask a marketing guru?
It's called social media for a reason. People use it because humans have an innate desire and need to be social. We want to communicate with family, friends and peers, and do not want this time infiltrated by marketing messages. Posting too many sales or product-related messages can actually turn people away from your social media account.

Why ask your grandmother?
Your nanna is from a time when shopkeepers knew their clients intimately. They would first chat for a while before something was sold. They would tell her a certain item had arrived, because they knew how much she loved it. They would go out of their way to deliver an excellent service to every one of their clients. This would spread through word of mouth, the most effective mode of advertising.
 
Thus, the best way to use social media is as a channel for customer services and customer relations:

• Be social, interact with your followers and try to make them feel involved with you and your brand.
• Build a strong relationship with your customer and keep them loyal by creating a sense of community.
• Use your account to deliver an excellent service. Show how concerned you are about your clients, and you go out of your way when something with a product or service goes wrong.

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The strategies above will not only increase client loyalty, but can also deliver new customers and clients through word of mouth.
 
So next time you have a question about social media, just ask your grandmother!

Jerry offers one-on-one business consultations in the Peel area, and also hosts workshops on digital marketing regularly. To find out more and book an appointment with Jerry, head here.

Digital Marketing Specialist Jerry Hoekman