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How Does a Business Generate Traffic from Social Media

  • Ann Smarty

    • Websites live and die by the amount of traffic that they get. Until recently SEO seemed the only way a business could get traffic and the SEO company that could get a front page listing for a highly competitive term could write their own paycheck.

    Until now. We are now in the social media era and traffic can be highly targeted and driven back to our websites, that’s highly relevant and interested customers dropping by and sharing our offers.

    Sound interesting? So how does a business generate traffic from social media and use it to its advantage?

    Build your following

    A business should first start with one social media tool at a time and build its following in order to generate traffic. Search down your target market and the people that influence your target market. Follow them, see what they are sharing, see what interests them, and see how they interact with each other. By observing and following your target market you get to know them better and know what they really want.

    Some companies use social enticements such as samples and discounts to encourage following, others create competitions. Unless you are involved directly with your target market, both can stay flat on their face.

    Look at your existing customer base and see if you can entice them into joining you on Twitter or Facebook. Work with what you have already and grow it. Make sure to set up a social media landing pages using services like Linkpop to build your following.

    Listening

    Businesses that use social media tools to listen and interact have the advantage over every other business – especially their competition.

    What does listening mean?

    The first three are self-explanatory, but the 4th option, developing a thick skin needs more explanation. Sometimes we hear things that are not nice and they are upsetting. It may be a product we’ve sold has developed a fault, it may be a product not living up to expectations it may just be a person who is unhappy. 

    It’s not negativity when a person who is not your target market buys something and doesn’t like it. It’s a mismatch and it happens. Getting snotty or ignoring the person isn’t going to do you any favors so let the person sound off. 

    Handle it diplomatically and remember this has always happened but now you have the opportunity to deal with it. Before social media, you really had to upset a customer before they would make a complaint in writing and the word of mouth may not have reached you. Listening means you can show that you care and you engage and the act of showing this will drive people back to your site.

    Building your following and listening are just the first stages.

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    Ann Smarty

    Brand and Community Manager at Internet Marketing Ninjas
    Ann Smarty is the Community and Brand Manager at Internet Marketing Ninjas. She is also a host of two weekly Twitter chats (#VCBuzz on Tuesdays and #MYBlogU on Thursdays) and a regular speaker at the largest marketing conference Pubcon