Companies Need a Strategy

What is your businesses social media plan?

“Instead of researching the best ways to engage, many businesses create accounts across multiple social networks and publish content without a plan or purpose. However, businesses that conduct research will find a rewarding array of options and opportunities.”

—Brian Solis, founder and principal, FutureWorks, in a blog post on Mashable, January 11, 2010

Social media does create a means for some powerful marketing, but finding the way to channel your message is very important.  With so many different profile sites to choose from and with each one giving a different benefit, the clear path is to decide what your business plans to gain out of social media.

Everyone wants a strong ROI, that is what we hear from all clients.   What will be my return on investment?  Don’t get me wrong, this is very important.  I just believe the approach is wrong, especially in the bar, club and restaurant industry.  You need a different approach to make you stand out from the crowd and be more than just a return on investment.  Social Media should bring more benefit to your location.

Chicago, being the third largest metropolitan city in the United States, has more restaurants, bars and clubs per capita than New York city.  Chicago still stands to be the largest beer & wine consuming city in the country, according to Anheuser Busch.

So if you are competing in one of the largest markets, what makes you stand out above the rest?  So lets build a solid campaign to create brand awareness, put creative strategies in place to build a “Buzz” about your bar, but first what we need is a direction.  So lets start here first, as reported in eMarketer.com, business owners are using social media for:

• Brand Building
• Networking
• Customer Service
• Research
• Competitive Monitoring
• Sales Prospecting

What stands out in my mind is, Networking and Customer Service!  This, I believe, is more about social media than any other segment.   It’s the direct connection a customer has with the people and/or owners behind the business.  The relationships and friendships you build with your customers are more important than any other part of your business, no matter what your product might be.

I think about this before I head out to a bar or restaurant; don’t you?  I head down to see Jon and Steve at The Stretch Bar in Wrigleyville before a Cubs Game because they shake your hand, ask how you are and pour you some crazy ass drink mixture to make the walk to the field more than a challenge.  It’s the personal relationship that keeps you coming back and back again!

What will be your strategy with your locations social media plan?  Will you concentrate just on brand and logo awareness, tag lines or how the food is great?  Or will you create a direct connection with your customers that make them patronize your location due to relationships and friendships.

If you would like to learn more on how to improve your social media campaign and create relationships with customers, you can email me direct at mjohnson@conciergepreferred.com.

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