You get to show your customer base what you are all about.
The days of being the local one stop shop are sadly gone. People don’t just call ‘the town handyman’ anymore. There are dozens of options for every business, so it is important to show your customers who you are, what you stand for, and that you can be trusted with their business! For example, take a local Rants, Raves, and Reviews group in my town. Someone posted about a really good Philly cheesesteak in a local stop and shop. Within 2 weeks, they were so busy that the lunch hour wait was over an hour. Why? Because word of mouth comes from social media more than a conversation with the neighbor! If you have a quality service or product and the word gets out online, you had better be online to greet them or they will go to the next thing that glitters!
You can respond to complaints immediately.
Most people will not completely blast a company online, but some will! If you are there to apologize and make it right within an hour or two, it will limit the spread. However, if you are not online to find out about it, your bad review will stay in cyberspace forever. Critics (and observers) have serious respect for a business owner who will own up to a problem and offer a solution instead of hoping it will go away.
Your competition is on social media
It is just like any other type of advertisement. If you are not present and someone else is...your business will not get the recognition it deserves. If you are right there with your competition or even *gasp* communicating with them, then you will be continually upping your game and in return increasing your business’s bottom line.
It will increase your business sales
Obviously, if you are posting and interacting with your customer base on a daily basis, you will be on the front of their minds when it comes time to use your service or buy your product. Just today, I was talking to my husband about needing to paint in the living room. I mentioned a handyman I had seen online a few times and said I would contact him on Facebook. In addition to adding yourself to the mind of your customers, you can also offer incentives that keep your online following coming back for more. It is like an exclusive club. They will feel like you are offering a coupon code that only they know about.
It is FREE!!!
That is right. Create visuals using Canva. Create a newsletter using MailChimp. Post on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest. Write a blog on Wordpress.com. The only thing that it costs you is time. *Cough Cough* The gigantic advertising budgets of yesterday are of no value online. If you can connect with your customer, offer them a personal experience, and give value...you will win their loyalty and urge them to share it with others!