Is Your LinkedIn Profile Working For You?

Do you know why landing pages are such a crucial element to the success of an online business? A landing page, if crafted well, is a targeted message designed to educate a specific subset of your audience, and lead them further into your sales funnel.

You see, the best landing pages are completely in control of both the experience once you're there, and how you got there to begin with. Whether through a targeted ad or selective keyword usage, the landing page author had youin mind when the page was written, making it an effective tool for communication and persuasion.

Your LinkedIn profile is just another landing page.

Over the past 90 days, my LinkedIn profile has been viewed over 700 times, which ranks me in the top 6% of my peers, and these views have led to many more connections and interest in my business and activities.

Optimizing my profile has partly led to getting more views from interested peers and prospects, but it also helps to make that profile more effective in delivering the kind of message I want those viewers to see.

You see, unlike a lot of people using LinkedIn, I'm notlooking for a job. I already have a job. In fact, I have my own business, The Social Media Hat, and I'm the Chief Marketing Officer at SiteSell. What I'm using LinkedIn for is networking with peers and connecting with prospects, which means my LinkedIn profile needs to do a better job of talking to thosepeople.

What do I mean by that?

Well, take your Experience section for example. this is the area within your LinkedIn profile where you talk about all your past jobs and positions. It's great, and it's interesting, and it's likely totally irrelevant to someone who might be interested in contracting your services or buying one of your products. They don't care who you were working for in 1995... they want to see that you have the skills and expertise to help them with their problems. Today.

Clearly, my past IT experience has little relevance to my current services.

So at a high level, that means we need to look at our profile as a prospect might, and make sure that we're doing as good a job as possible in talking directly to them.

Like I said before, think of your LinkedIn profile as just another landing page within your overall Marketing strategy. With, of course, a few unique strengths and challenges.

On the plus side, a great LinkedIn profile will stand out and rank well within LinkedIn for those who may be searching within the platform for someone with your skill set. This goes back to what I mentioned before... if you want hundreds of people viewing your profile every month, for the kinds of services and topics you're interested in, you're going to have to talk about those things on your profile, just like you'd optimize your website for your targeted keyword phrases.

If someone's looking within LinkedIn for a "Hootsuite Consultant" I want to make sure it's my profile that comes up as near the top as possible (and it's currently #1 for that phrase).

On the negative side, we're clearly constrained within the limitations imposed by LinkedIn. You can't put a call to action button in the sidebar, or change the color scheme to more closely match your branding. We have to work with what we're given.

And that's why I put together The Ultimate Guide to the Perfect LinkedIn Profile. If you haven't read it and want the best possible LinkedIn profile possible, check it out. It walks you step-by-step how to optimize that profile, specifically for people who are looking to make sales, not get hired. And it gives you several different ways in which you can customize your profile so that it becomes a real asset to you and your business. There's also a checklist for you so that you can more easily go through all of the LinkedIn Profile Optimization steps.

So head over to The Ultimate Guide to the Perfect LinkedIn Profile and bookmark it. Plan to spend a few hours initially getting your profile up to snuff, and then come back to the checklist once a month or so, just to get some reminders on how to keep your profile fresh. And plus, as LinkedIn changes or other techniques are discovered, the guide will be updated accordingly.

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10 Tips For Repurposing Your Old Content

We all have a myriad of blogs on our sites that are no longer utilised and tend to just sit there gathering dust.

Aside from receiving the odd view or comment, older content often tends to get overlooked – partially because it’s out dated and also partially because Google tends to prefer newer indexed material.

However, this doesn’t mean it should go to waste and there are numerous ways that you can repurpose old content and give it a new lease of life, allowing you to get more from it. You’ve done most of the research already – so update, change the format and reap the rewards – here is how to do so.

Old Material Refreshed

The archives of your blog content contains a plethora of information that can easily be reused. That content has already been tested and you know what has done well for you, so it gives you good idea of what you can reuse successfully.

Instead of reusing the same article, give it new life by adding some tidbits of new information or adding some small details that it was missing before. This will not only give you a basic template to use to write some content, but it also gives you content that you know has worked very well in the past.

Think about college textbooks. The basic structure of the book doesn't change from year to year, but new information is simply added to the already useful content. This provides companies with a quick turnaround and the ability to charge a little more for the textbook.

Transform Blog Posts into SlideShare Presentations

Taking those blog posts and transforming them into SlideShare presentations will open the door to increased traffic and some new leads. Since SlideShare has such a growing community, you will expose yourself to new viewers and potential customers. The key to great Slideshare posts is a mix of great, well-chosen imagery and well presented, informative content.

Remember, when saving your infographics to a SlideShare, it must be saved in a one-page PDF format before you upload it. SlideShare will then automatically detect it as an infographic and list it in the infographic directory.

Create Tutorials Out Of Webinars

After hosting a successful webinar, you can take the information shared on the webinar and transform it into a tutorial. Since many people won't be able to make it to the webinar, you will have missed a ton of potential leads.

Use YouTube to repost the webinar. This will provide an evergreen form of content provision that is available for anyone and everyone to see. The expanded audience can drive even more traffic to your site quickly.

Start a Newsletter

Sending out a newsletter to your clients can help introduce them to content that they may be interested in. When using outside articles for the content of the newsletter, be sure to give credit where credit is due and site your sources.

Turn Old Blog Posts into LinkedIn Publishing Posts

LinkedIn publishing has proven to be quite effective for many companies. Taking your evergreen content from your blog and posting it to LinkedIn publishing will make your content more visible and allow you to summarize and highlight the most important and interesting parts of the post. Then, you can link the post back to your blog and draw in the new traffic.

Take Advantage of Quora Q&A

Many content writers gain a lot of inspiration from Quora Q&A. This site provides questions that real users have and the answers they seek within a wide range of categories.

To use Quora to your benefit, find a question that has several upvotes. This shows that the answer is high in demand and that many users are interested in learning more about it. Create a blog post answering that question, answer the question on Quora and provide a link that directs the readers to your blog post. Here are some great tips fromBuffer.

This will draw in new traffic and increase your standings within the community.

Create a Case Study

You know what your viewers have liked in the past. Take the information that they have enjoyed and turn it into a case study. Include some stats, research results and solutions that can help your clients find the answers that they are looking for.

Write Top Ten Lists

Lists do very well on the Internet. Take some excerpts from your most successful posts and create top ten lists out of them. You can then include links back to the original blog post and draw traffic to your site. Check out this great guide on how to do so from Search Engine Watch.

Snippets Of Old Posts

Some of the most attractive content isn't lengthy articles - rather it is snippets of those quality articles. Post snippets with links back to the original post to draw in traffic.

Old content can become new content without a lot of effort and these ten ideas will help you do so easily, allowing you to get more value from your content.

Cormac Reynolds is an advocate of smarter and more engaging content marketing – when he’s not creating his next great piece for MyOnlineMarketer, or working on a new campaign for a client, he can be found making beer or listening to great music. 

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How To Use LinkedIn For Social Media Marketing

With over 380 million registered users, LinkedIn is one the largest professional networks in the world. It can lead to a lot of engagement and provide you with a platform where you can share updates about your company, news, upcoming events and more. The network allows you to connect with professionals in your industry as well as potential customers.

You can easily optimize your personal as well as company page on LinkedIn to engage with your target audience. Here are a few tips you might find helpful.

Increase visibility on LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a great platform for lead generation. Post daily updates and blog posts to make sure that your LinkedIn company page is visible to your customers. If you cannot spend a lot of time creating these updates and posting them to your page consistently, there are social media management tools that can help you achieve the task within minutes.

You can use DrumUp to discover content that is relevant to your business, and also schedule weekly posts to be published to your company page. This ensures that your LinkedIn page remains active, and that it stays on your customer’s radar.

Get more followers on your page

Optimizing your LinkedIn page and gaining more followers on your page is a team effort. Keep in mind that your employees and colleagues play an important role in promoting your page on LinkedIn.

Encourage your employees and colleagues to actively participate in the discussions that take place on your page. Spark conversations with them and make it easier for them to engage with you on the page. You can also ask your employees to include a link to your Linkedin company page in their email signatures. This will help draw more attention to your page, and can lead to more visitors.

Ask your web design team to include a LinkedIn Follow button on your company website and blog. This can be easily done using the Plugin Generator that LinkedIn offers on their developers website. By clicking this button your website, your customers can follow updates, posts, and event notifications that you post on your page.

Create and join groups on LinkedIn

The best way to place your company in front of your customers is to create a group that is relevant to your field. In this group, you can start discussions, and create an open forum for your customers to share their opinions, suggestions and concerns. However, you cannot just create a group and leave it at that. You must actively participate in those discussions and address your customers’s opinions or concerns.

Other than creating a brand new group, you can also consider joining other groups and communities that are related to your business’s niche. This way you can listen to what your target audience is talking about and the kinds of problems they are facing. Address these problems in those groups and propose solutions that your company can offer. If you develop a connection with a potential customer in the group, you can send them a message via LinkedIn InMail and start building a stronger relationship with your customer.

Complete your LinkedIn profile

We have placed this at the bottom of this list because it is pretty much a no-brainer. Having a completed profile is a must when it comes to your LinkedIn company page. Your customers should be able to understand what your company does, and know more about the products or services that you offer by just skimming through your page.

Give special attention to the Summary section on LinkedIn. In 2,000 characters, you can directly speak to your audience and provide them with more information about your company. Ensure that your summary is to the point and addresses the pain points of your customers . These customers often like to connect with a person first, rather than with an entire organization – which is why most of them prefer visiting the company’s LinkedIn company page before they visit the company website.

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Is Social Media Marketing Worth It for Small Businesses?

A survey released by Manta shows that nearly 50% of businesses have increased their time on social media channels in the last year, according to Michael Fertik at Forbes. Another 55% of businesses surveyed are actively using social media marketing for lead generation and customer engagement. 

Yet, 60% of small businesses reported no return on investment for their social media marketing.

That may seem dire, but it does mean that 40% of small businesses are seeing some ROI. What are they doing differently?

“I do think a defined digital presence—coupled with realistic expectations—can be a source of significant support for most, assuming a thoughtful approach is taken,” writes Fertik. “Too often, however, it’s easy to make some rookie mistakes.”

The mistakes? The first big one is joining every social media network without considering where your customers are. Spending your resources on Pinterest when you are an auto mechanic may not serve your best interest. There are no barriers to entry to social media networks, so a lot of business join all of them without considering the significant time and effort, and yes, even money, that will be necessary to mounting an effective social media campaign. Go where your customers are and spend your resources there.

“It’s much better to slow down and look at the data before you invest too much in one channel or spread yourself across too many,” writes Fertik. “What type of customer is purchasing your products?  What social channels do they frequent?  What kind of content gets shared, liked or retweeted?  If the data say that your average customer is a city-dwelling mother in her early 40s who likes Facebook, then there is no reason to spend your time and energy on Twitter, at least initially.”

Another rookie mistake is not publishing enough. Or rather, more common, publishing a lot at first and then losing steam. Come up with a schedule that it actually something you can fit into your work time. If that’s just one post a week, then go with that.

Social media is not dissimilar to a hungry baby—it requires feeding on a very regular basis,” writes Fertik. “Don’t set a rhythm you can’t maintain.  It’s a one-way ratchet; you can always turn it up but it’s hard to back off without appearing ungraceful.”

As for what kind of content you should create, first ask yourself: What kind of content catches your attention? What content has value to you? Then ask yourself what kind of content will have value to your customers. What can you teach? What can you do to entertain? Are you funny? (If you are funny, go with that. People respond very well to humor.)

Spend a little time experimenting on social media. Put up a post that tells a story. Then put up a post that asks a question. See which does better with your audience. Offer a prize. Post a picture. Which post gets more engagement? This is how you refine your social media strategy: Trial and error.

It’s also really important to have specific goals for your social media marketing. “The first step in making social media work is to define your goals, and determine your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs),” writes Troy Frink for Tentacle Inboud. “Do you want to get hundreds of page likes, or do you want to drive traffic to your website and generate leads? Deciding on your goals should center around the actions that actually help your business grow. You want to generate revenue, so how do you measure that definitively on your website?”

Once you’ve established your goals and your putting out regular content, work to connect with your online community. “Small businesses should identify strong social influencers—bloggers that your customers read, individuals with robust followers—and start engaging with them,” writes Fertik. “Follow them on their social channels to spark a return follow. Share their content. Comment thoughtfully, respectfully and without self-promotion on posts multiple times a week.” 

Carefully and thoughtfully engaging with other people who share your concerns online will grow your community, which will in turn give your content greater reach.

Frink points out a cool example of using real-time social conversations to connect with customers on Twitter. Heather Physioc was running a social media campaign on Twitter for a cosmetology education website.

“To achieve real-time social media success, she created the following Boolean query in TweetDeck: cosmetology OR ‘beauty school’ AND think OR thinking OR want OR wanting OR consider OR considering. Instantly, the firehose of tweets was narrowed down to individuals who were expressing real intent and desire to attend beauty school,” writes Frink. “This allowed her to focus her limited time only on the people most likely to convert to student leads. She then reached out directly to each of these individuals to offer personal help finding schools near them, and answer all their questions about cosmetology education and careers. Also, when she sent links to content on the brand’s website, she included tracking parameters to be able to measure the success of these campaigns and continually hone them.”

Expect a little bit of negative response to your social media. Every business will get some. It is actually a sign that your social media messaging has some legs if it reaches someone who wants to air a grievance. Use a complaint to improve your messaging. (Or even your product or service.) Respond to criticism with what Fertik calls “prompt courteousness and pleasant professionalism.”

At it’s best, social media marketing can increase your small businesses visibility, give you a bigger reach and engage your current and future customers. Get in the game. 

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The 4 Generations on Social You Ought to Know

There are many things in my life that I love, and dinner parties are one of them. Before I hosted my first ever soirée, my mother made it a point to instill a statement in my head. “Know your guests,” she said. While she also said, “Your chicken tends to be dry,” it was, “Know your guests,” that stuck with me for years—even to this day.

At first it took me some time to really understand what she meant, but after hosting a few parties it all became crystal clear. When you’re hosting a dinner party, you’re essentially creating an experience, and the best experiences are shaped by the preferences and behaviors of your guests. To this point, the more I knew about my guests, the more I was able to personalize aspects of an event for each person—making them feel valued and special. 

And isn’t that what we’re all about on social? As marketers, aren’t we hosting experiences on social media networks so that customers feel valued and special? It’s like an ongoing dinner party with an open invitation—one where we hope audiences happily consume our content and share their enjoyment with others. As such, knowing our audience is imperative to the success of our social strategy.

And that’s what we’ve done here. For this piece, we’ve mined through reports about age to gain more insight into a few audience segments prevalent on social. More specifically, we’re examining the four primary living generations: Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millennials and Gen Z. You see, your audiences will be comprised of all ages, so it’s necessary that we analyze behaviors and preferences in aggregate. It’s the only scalable way to create personalized content that will resonate with large audiences. By getting to know these generation types, you will be able sift through your own data to identify trends and opportunities that can help you build a more informed content strategy.
 

Baby Boomers

(Born between 1946-64)

Qualities:  With an age range of 51 to 65, this group’s key life experiences span mostly throughout the twentieth century. Baby Boomers were born into post-WWII cultures. They are considered the “rock and roll” and first TV generation. They lived through the wars of the ‘60s and ‘70s, creating a “me” attitude that ultimately broke from the traditions of generations past: such as women working outside the home, divorce acceptance, and a “buy now and use credit” mentality. Baby Boomers are also identified as people who see technology and innovation as a learning process and, unlike their parents, think of retirement as more than just a stay-at-home part of life, but an exciting time to travel and enjoy life. Most importantly, they are a very populous group. In the U.S., Baby Boomers secure one quarter of the population.

Key Social Insight: 60% of Baby Boomers are actively using social media. Studies also show that Americans over 55 outspend younger adults online 2:1. (Source)

Takeaway: Today, Baby Boomers are making strides toward learning these platforms in hopes of making their lives better. These audiences are either retired and/or their children are now adults, which means there’s more disposable income and time—a big opportunity for online sales. While it’s taking this generation a little longer to grasp all the major social networks, when they are on, they are ready to learn and spend. Look through your analytics and see if they’re consuming your content. If they are, think about how your product or service can benefit this demo and test a few pieces with them. If they’re not, consider tactics relevant to your brand that might peak their interest.  

Gen X

(Born between 1965-80)

Qualities: Children of the above generation, these now 35 to 50 year olds were once kids of two-income households or a single parent unit. This type of “empty home” produced a generation that is very individualistic and entrepreneurial. They are seen as short on loyalty and commitment and they desire exploration and contribution. This may be the reason why Gen Xers have an average of seven career changes within their lifetime. Currently, most are homeowners with children at home. 

Key Social Insight: 86% of Gen Xers are online on a daily basis and are multi-tasking professionals that are actively seeking information. They are the second largest percentage of Pinterest users and nearly two-thirds have used Facebook in the past month. (Source)

Takeaway:  Gen Xers are a well-informed, goal-oriented audience. People in this generation are reaching the height of their careers, with many out-earning Baby Boomers. On social, marketers have a chance to build long-lasting product value and brand loyalty with this generation. And the way to get there is through authentic, trust-worthy information. If your intent is to target people identified as Gen Xers, then the content must be easy to understand, insightful, and offer a benefit upfront. Transparency is key with this audience.

Millennials/Gen Y

(Born between 1980-98)

Qualities: Ages 17 to 34, most Millennials came into this world nurtured by focused parents. Millennials grew up with fast food, video games and computers, which shaped them into placing a high emphasis on quick information and instant satisfaction. They tend to have a sense of entitlement and a keen understanding of the digital space (since they grew up with some type of digital appliance). One significant trait of this generation is that they value work, but do not live to work. Having a social life outside of work is a necessary feature in life that they strive for. Lastly, Millennials represent more than a quarter of the U.S. population (more than Baby Boomers). 

Key Social Insight: 62% of millennials say that if a brand engages with them on social networks, they are more likely to become a loyal customer. They expect brands to not only be on social networks, but to engage with them. (Source)

Takeaway:  This tech-savvy generation knows exactly what they want from brands on social media. They’re active on most of the major networks so planning a connected social strategy that spans across multiple networks is a critical step toward reaching this audience. In order to generate content that resonates with a Millennial, marketers must be creative, clever and quick. This audience wants to feel like a valuable customer, so baking that message into your content is a powerful way to nurture customer loyalty.
 

Gen Z

(Born between 1999-Present)

Qualities: From babies, to toddlers, to teens, Generation Z is the youth of today’s world. For this group, digital is all they know. This audience is the mobile device generation. So much so that the second screen is a necessary component to the television experience. Because of the easy accessibility of information from digital tools, Gen Zers are adept researchers. Where Millennials use an average of three screens, this group uses five. Due to the immediacy at which content has been delivered to them, this group has a lower attention span than the generations before them. Gen Z is also the third largest group in the U.S. (trailing behind Baby Boomers), but by 2020, they'll account for 40% of all consumers. (Source)

Key Social Insight: Consumers age 19 and younger prefer social networks like Snapchat, Secret and Whisper, and a quarter of people age 13 to 17 have left Facebook this year. (Source)

Takeaway: While the purchasing power of this group is no match for the aforementioned generations, they do have influence over some of them because they are their children and grandchildren. But the main thing here is that Generation Z is an audience interested in the next big thing. Emerging networks—ones that their parents are not on—are far more attractive than Facebook and Twitter. Testing on new social frontiers is the only way brands can really capture the attention of Gen Z. And it’s not just being on these networks, it’s also about standing out and creating highly visual, fascinating content. Unlike Baby Boomers and Gen Xers, Gen Zers are more open to experimentation and risk-taking content—so have fun with it. If you do, they will, too.   

Note: Data from the "Qualities" section of each generation was provided byMarketingteacher.com 

What are your tips for marketing to certain age demographics? 

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5 Ways to Incorporate Customers In Your Social Media Content Strategy

Let me play captain obvious for a minute: there are more people in the world than there are businesses.

Why bring this up? Because this basic fact represents the central social media challenge facing B2B marketers. Countless B2B businesses are trying to use social media to market their services to an audience that is often much smaller than that of B2C businesses. Most regular people can’t buy your product or use your service, so why would they follow you?

The key to success is involving your existing customers.

Businesses don’t just want to know what you do, they want to know what your clients think about what you do. Social media has increased transparency, and consequently increased the demand for this kind of client-focused content.

If you’re a B2B business looking to grow your following, there are a number of ways your customers can help. Have a look:

Case studies

This is what most people think of when they consider how to incorporate clients in their content strategies on social media. Case studies are a proven method of showcasing your product or service while highlighting one of your valued clients.

Case studies can be a great fit for social media since they implicitly draw in the networks of both companies. If you are lucky enough to have a brand like theWorld Wildlife Federation or Five Guys as a client, you can build a case study, promote it on social media, and have it be relevant to both your follower base and the wider base of your client. This is important for B2B companies since, as mentioned, they often don’t have the same kind of mass appeal of B2C brands, and struggle to attract individual followers on social media.

Once you’re comfortable in your relationship with a client, ask them if they’d consider doing a case study with you. When putting together this piece of content, always have social media in the back of your mind. Hone in on quotes that would make great Tweets, Facebook posts, or even text to layer onto images. Ask the client for photos and videos, or take your own, to ensure that you have these assets to accompany your social media posts. There might also be stats or figures within the study that would make great visual elements.

When you’re preparing to launch the case study, ensure that you coordinate with your client’s social media team. They’ll likely be eager to share a case study that shows them in a positive light, and a coordinated launch might help blow up the content right after it is released. Ask the client if they would share the study on their networks and even reply to any social media users who comment positively on the content. You would be surprised how appreciative regular social media users will be to simply receive a ‘thank you’ comment from a big brand.

Case studies are also usually evergreen, meaning they’re not tied to any event so date so you can use them on social media indefinitely. This is great for the slow days, and for times when you want to reinforce that customer relationship.

Testimonials

Testimonials are a very important part of any social media strategy, as they represent a very powerful and accessible form of social proof.

Social proof is a psychological phenomenon referring to people’s reliance on the feedback and actions of others to determine what is right and what is wrong in a given situation.It’s use in marketing is about as old as marketing itself.

In a 2013 study, 79% of consumers said they trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations before making a buying decision. This statement alone should be enough incentive for small businesses and marketers to put more effort into leveraging social proof in their social media marketing.

The rise of social media has enhanced the importance of social proof because feedback from real people is more easily accessible than ever before. People are actively seeking it out more than ever, so you want to have that content to provide. So, much like with case studies, ask your supportive clients if they can provide you with a testimonial that can be shared on social media.

These social media testimonials can take on many forms. They can simply be a shareable quote from a client promoting your company, that you can then use on Twitter or Facebook, or they can be a bit more substantial. Examples of more involved campaigns include asking clients to Tweet or post about the value of your product to their business, and asking them to refer their own clients to your business where appropriate.

Remember: social media testimonials can be used far beyond social networks. Pull out any great client quotes from Twitter or Facebook and embed them in a blog post, add them to your website, or even use them on printed materials.

Content sharing or shout-outs

One of the easiest ways to throw a little love your client’s way is to simply share their content on social media. If you see them post something that may be relevant to your own following, or something they used your services for, simply retweet or re-share it to your own profiles. You give your client a boost in reach while highlighting your relationship with them. Plus, you fill a valuable slot in your content calendar.

On the other side of the fence, if you have a very strong relationship with a client, you may be able to ask them for their support in sharing your content. Often B2B businesses have overlapping relationships, where even if they provide different services they work in similar industries or in similar ways. If your content is relevant to one of your client’s social media following, there’s no harm in asking them to share it. Doing so can greatly expand your network.

Back-and-forth engagement

Beyond sharing content, actually engaging in back-and-forth dialogue with a client on social media can be an incredibly effective form of content. Brands are having conversations on Twitter with their followers and with each other, and users love it. There’s no reason B2B businesses can’t join in with their clients.

We took this approach on Star Wars Day (May the 4th) this past spring, Tweeting at several of our valued customers in a fun way. Many of them responded in turn, providing us with a source of social media content that our followers responded to.

While it’s great if this engagement happens naturally, consider connecting with a client’s social media team and planning out a conversation in advance. This could be as simple as coming up with some clever banter or a joke you can both benefit from, or as complicated as hosting a Twitter chat to highlight the client and share their insight. Find the formula that works for you.

Ask them for feedback

All of the examples above depend on you having a strong relationship with your clients. So what about the customers who are new, who have only sampled your service, or who you haven’t really built a hardened rapport with? These clients are equally valuable to your social media efforts, because they are a more accurate representation of the prospects you’re trying to attract.

The best way to make use of these clients is to ask them for feedback. If you see a customer post to social media about your service, especially if it’s something negative, reach out to them and ask them for feedback. Where appropriate this can be done publicly, to prove to others who are listening that you’re paying attention and that every client matters.

Don’t be afraid to poll your social media following. Ask them how you’re doing and what you could be doing better. Ask them what kind of content they’re interested in seeing, and then integrate it into your content plans. Once you do, reach out to them and share that content so that they know you really took their comments to heart.

Product releases or announcements provide another way to use clients for feedback. In advance of a release, reach out to a customer on social media and let them know it’s coming, and that you’d love for them to try it. You can even give trusted clients early access, making them feel valued. Then ask these clients for feedback. You can use positive feedback as content to help market the release on social media, and negative feedback to actually improve it.

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