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Health & Fitness

Social Media is Here to Stay!

Those who have figured out that get-rich-quick schemes do not work, will appreciate that Social Media Marketing is remarkably similar.  Hard work and passion for what you do will ultimately lead you to financial contentment and success.  The same rules apply to Social Media Marketing. Social media is more than setting up a Twitter account and adding a Facebook LIKE button to your website. For starters, you need to offer someone and something for the online consumer to follow and LIKE in the first place.

As far back as the days of Avon in the Great Depression, person-to-person contact was a proven method to build sales. In 1929 Avon boasted nearly 10,000 United States representatives with just under $2.8 million in revenues. In 1939 sales skyrocketed to $6.5 million with nearly 25,000 sales representatives.  Trust, product education and personal contact built the Avon sales network to today’s 6.4 million representatives in more than 100 countries. According to their website, “through economic boom times, depressions, world wars and other crises, what’s united Representatives over the decades across continents is their dedication to building personal relationships with the customers they serve.” Avon could very possibly be deemed ‘the original social network’.E-commerce has become social commerce. Shopping is no longer a solo exercise. Shopping is now a social experience. Traditional advertising and marketing methods have created distrust amongst the consumers, causing a movement toward the collective wisdom of online communities. The online community is discovering that it is easy to find, learn, and share information that directly contributes to making an informed purchasing decision.  Consumers want to ensure they are not only getting what they paid for, but exactly what they want. Online communities allow consumers to obtain a better knowledge of the products/services available and at what cost.  If you use social media commerce effectively, you can bridge the gap between you and your customer. Shoppers want to connect with companies they are considering doing business.  They want their opinions to be heard and their desires understood. They crave a buying experience where they are in charge. Joining in the conversation is wise, but listening is VITAL to converting customers.

Marketing aimed at "targeting or capturing” customers is contradictory when the strategy for increased sales is focused on earning the respect of your consumers. Authentic and transparent sales approaches are paramount. Consumers want to hear the truth, not what you want them to hear. Be authentic when engaging with your consumers. Be sure that you listen to your customer needs and understand them. Consumers want the acknowledgement that what they have to say matters. Relationships between your consumers and your business become voluntary in this environment and loyalty is readily established.

Despite that the digital landscape experience transitions continually, one aspect that will never change is the ability to immediately and positively connect with consumers. It is for this reason that people are moving en masse to the social web . . .  and for this singular reason, if you are a business looking for clients, you should be there too.

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