5 Strategies to Fill the Digital Gap with Social Media

 Each month, over three billion people use social media, where these platforms double as a crystal ball, revealing insights into consumer behavior, acting as a virtual stage for captivating potential customers, and working overtime to inflate brand awareness.  

 

In the past decade, it's as if social media and digital marketing have become conjoined twins, with CMOs pouring their budgetary affections into social media like never before. Social media is basically like a cool kid in the modern business strategy.  

 

Nonetheless, as social platforms progress and consumer expectations rise, a digital divide has emerged between brands and consumers. 

 

What Business Experience Digital Gap?  

 

Well, picture this: social media platforms are like chameleons, always changing colors. Consumer behavior? That's like trying to predict the weather – one day it's sunny, the next it's raining cats and dogs. And the emergence of disruptive competitors, flipping and somersaulting their way to success with innovative social media stunts. 

 

So, what's the deal? Social management companies want businesses to a social media fortune-tellers, predicting where the digital winds are blowing. They should master the art of achieving consumer satisfaction, armed with the right tools and a sixth sense for trends and challenges in social media. In this digital game, it's not survival of the fittest; it's survival of the wittiest! 

 

How Social Media Can Fill the Digital Gap? 

 

In the era of the social media-savvy consumer, we've all become quite the aficionados, generously dedicating a princely 2 hours and 22 minutes of our daily lives to scrolling, liking, and sharing. While it's evident that the majority of top-level executives acknowledge the importance of social media, many still maintain a rudimentary perspective, viewing it merely as a channel for marketing distribution. 

 

Meanwhile, we on the other side of the screen? We expect a lot more from brands in the social sphere. Social media isn't just a tool for throwing marketing messages; it's a treasure of potential waiting to be unlocked. 

 

Unfortunately, most digital marketing agencies notice that brands are falling short in five pivotal areas and to fill the gap business owners must step up their game in these five social spheres. 

 

Social Media Market Research 

Social media offers a unique opportunity to tap into genuine consumer sentiments regarding your products, brand, and industry. In offline conversations, individuals tend to discuss themselves around 30-40% of the time. However, when it comes to social media posts, this percentage skyrockets to 80%. Online, people express their opinions without the constraints or biases of a traditional focus group setting. This grants you access to unfiltered consumer viewpoints and invaluable insights into their preferences and behaviors. 

 

While consumers are more inclined to interact with brands on social media compared to other communication channels, market research doesn't necessarily require active engagement. Through social media listening, businesses can continuously monitor trends, issues, and preferences, thereby identifying fresh growth opportunities and avenues for product development. 

 

Social Media Marketing 

Social media platforms provide a valuable avenue for engaging with your audience. Despite the decline in organic reach, social media advertising platforms provide precise targeting options to ensure that sponsored posts and advertisements reach the most relevant viewers. An increasing number of companies are embracing social media advertising to broaden their reach and enhance their brand's visibility. 

 

By gaining a deep understanding of your audience and creating detailed buyer personas, you can identify the content that will generate engagement and boost your organic reach. Social media empowers brands to enhance the return on investment (ROI) of their campaigns by pinpointing consumers based on their demographic and behavioral data. 

 

Social Media Communication 

Social media provides a platform for companies to engage directly with their consumers, facilitating both public and private interactions. Consumers use social media to share their experiences with a brand, whether positive or negative, creating an opportunity for brands to engage in direct communication. 

 

When encountering negative mentions of their brand, companies have the capability to reach out to the customer and endeavor to resolve the issue promptly. By employing the right personalized approach, even a negative customer experience can be transformed into a positive outcome for the brand. Addressing negative issues posted on social media can yield up to three times the revenue compared to the revenue generated from a positive social media comment. 

 

Additionally, social media plays a vital role in crisis management for businesses. 

 

Social Media Collaboration 

In response to the growing prevalence of ad blockers and a decline in consumer trust towards brands, marketers have increasingly adopted more cooperative approaches to engage potential customers. One effective strategy that has emerged is the practice of collaboratively creating content with influencers and customers. This method proves to be a valuable means of breaking through the clutter, conveying brand narratives, and expanding reach to new audiences. 

 

Social media platforms play a pivotal role in fostering this collaborative relationship with consumers, a factor of particular significance for brands aiming to capture the Millennial demographic. Recent research findings indicate that 84% of Millennials harbor aversions to or doubts about conventional advertising methods, while 90% of consumers prioritize authenticity when making decisions about which brands to favor. Content co-creation represents a shift away from simply marketing to consumers; instead, it centers around involving consumers in the marketing process itself. 

 

Social Media Customer Service 

As consumers increasingly utilize social media to engage with brands, it's unsurprising that 54% of customers favor social messaging platforms for customer support, as opposed to traditional phone or email communication. People anticipate brands to maintain a presence on social media for assistance when they opt to reach out. 

 

According to research from Harvard Business Review, brands that do not meet customer expectations on social media face financial repercussions. Social media grants consumers the ability to not only share positive interactions with brands but also to voice complaints when things go awry. The potential to establish personal connections with customers is matched only by the risk of failing to meet their expectations, which can lead to amplified negative feedback on social platforms. 

 

When a consumer makes the effort to contact your company through social media, they anticipate a prompt response. The challenge for brands lies in meeting the rising expectations of consumers and bridging the digital divide. 

 

Conclusion  

Social media has revolutionized how consumers find and buy products, express their viewpoints, and engage with brands, ushering in a significant shift of power towards the consumer. Digital marketing companies in India suggest that brands must respond to and evolve with this new consumer landscape. 

 

Nevertheless, numerous brands continue to employ an inconsistent and isolated strategy when it comes to leveraging social media. Exclsior can help you narrow the digital gap, and implement a transparent and collaborative approach to connect you to your customers. The brands that excel in the realm of social media will be the ones that thrive in the digital era.