All wholesalers and retailers want to build their brand to grow their business. It’s easier than ever before to inform consumers about your brand, thanks to the Internet and social media. Monitoring and responding to user generated content (UGC) allows your brand to engage with customers in a number of web communities. It gives you a chance to find out what customers think and to respond appropriately to all kinds of UGC.
Social Media is a forum for announcing new products finding out what products customers will buy. It can provide a direct line to what customers think in the here and now. And social media engagement is correlated to higher search engine rankings. What a fantastic new tool. But how do you get started and where should you go? Below are a few places wholesalers and retailers can visit to engage customers and build their brand through social media networking.
Social Networking Sites. These are the kind of sites commonly associated with social media. The usual suspects are Twitter and Facebook. MySpace was big when it first started, but not so much now. LiveJournal is new one you might try. These are sites where people post personal and family information for friends. Wholesalers and small retailers can create personal relationships that can be leveraged in future connections. Facebook and Twitter are also used for posting business articles, making business connections and advertising. You can put up a Facebook company page, advertise, conduct a contest and conduct a lot of business on Facebook.
Business Networking Sites. Sites like LinkedIn and Plaxo can give wholesalers and retailers the opportunity to brand themselves as business professionals. It’s a place where you can connect with colleagues from past and present to create future partnerships. You can ask and answer business questions, recommend people you’ve worked with and even find new employees or partners to collaborate with.
Review Sites. As a retailer, you probably know about review sites. You might be able to get some good testimonials and drive some traffic to your site as a result of good reviews. Most reviewers go to sites like Yelp, TripAdvisor and Google Places. You might also find some industry-specific review sites.
Video/Photo Sites. Establishing a presence on sites like Flickr, YouTube and Vimeo can give your content visibility in the SERPs, providing potential customers with exposure to your brand.
Content-Sharing Sites. Sites like Quora, Digg, StumbleUpon, Delicious, and Mixx allow members to share useful content with their network of users. After registering, you can post and follow other members. It’s another way to get exposure and build relationships with customers.
Industry Blogs and Forums. The good old-fashioned way to create relationships in your niche is by participating in what’s happening in your industry. You can submit a post, answer a question and be an active participant. This is a good place where customers will notice and remember you.
