Guest Blogger - Jessica Fender - Featured on Forbes, AMA Boston, HR Exchange Network Connect: Twitter | LinkedIn
The vast majority of modern business owners have a good understanding of how important it is to grow social media presence. They invest in content production and grow their following organically. The only problem is that not many of them know how to convert followers into customers.
Have you faced the same problem? Have you already gained a few thousand followers but failed to increase sales? Use the following eight tips to get your followers to buy from you.
Show your customers that you value their opinions
Your customers want to feel valued and special. They want to be heard. Keep that in mind, when writing tweets and Instagram captions. Try to convince your customers that you value their opinions and that you are ready to accept feedback, both positive and negative.
Here is an example of how a world-known brand pursues its customers that their opinion matters.
Delta Air Lines recently announced that it extends the middle seat block to prevent the spread of COVID-19. In order to tap into customer loyalty, Delta started its tweet with the phrase, “you asked, we listened.” This simple phrase made customers feel truly valued and influenced customer purchasing behavior.
https://twitter.com/Delta/status/1329099548980109319
Speak your customers’ language
Who is your target audience? Where do your customers live? What lifestyles do they have? Whom do they follow on social media? Learn more about your customers to understand how to communicate with them the right way.
If you sell luxury goods and target baby boomers, you should use formal language. But if you sell affordable goods and target Millennials and Generation Z, you should stick to informal language.
Whatever niche you operate in, you should speak your customers’ language. If you see that your followers use shortened words, acronyms, and jargon, you should do the same.
Take a look at American Eagles’ posts on Instagram. Captions are written with the use of initialisms like BFFs (best friends forever) and symbols like “&”. This writing style perfectly appeals to the American Eagle’s followers and helps to make big sales.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CHqTpiFnu5V/
Add call to action
If you want your social media followers to complete a specific action, ask them for that! Add a call to action to your captions, and you will skyrocket your sales. Ask your followers to “tap to shop”, “click the link in the bio”, “shop today to get a discount”, or perform similar actions, and you will be amazed at the results.
Can’t come up with a suitable call to action? Take a look at your competitors’ social media posts and analyze the phrases they are using. If it doesn’t help, search for inspiration on the writing service or get help from freelance social media marketers.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CHtLfQ6AE-x/
Keep it short, simple, and straight to the point
Modern users have a short attention span. So don’t expect them to read long, boring, and sophisticated posts.
If you want to convert your social media followers into customers, don’t publish detailed product descriptions along with product photos. Keep your tweets and captions brief – encourage users to visit your website to learn more about your products.
Also, don’t use rarely-used words and don’t overload posts with too many details and ideas. It will distract your followers from the key message you are trying to deliver.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CHqUydBBVi_/
Consider using idioms
Some content creators get the phrase “keep it simple” absolutely wrong. They try too hard to simplify their writing and, as a result, create captions that sound like they were written by six years old.
Your key task is to make your posts understandable for your audience. If your followers can read and understand complex texts, there is no need to oversimplify your writing.
If you know that 90% of your followers are fluent in English, feel free to use idioms and idiomatic expressions. It will enrich your writing and help you to engage your target audience.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CBELJ8HJ6qf/
Don’t skip editing and proofreading
You should never publish a new piece of content before checking its correctness.
Even one misspelled word or one poorly-structured sentence can distort the message you want to deliver and hurt your reputation. For this reason, you should edit and proofread every caption, tweet, and comment meticulously. You should ensure that your customers will get your brand message right.
The good news is that there are many tools and services that can ease your work. For instance, you can use the online proofreader Grammarly.
Add translation
Do you target both local and global customers? Consider writing captions in two languages: local language and English. If you are fluent in both languages, it will not take you much effort, but the results will be worth it.
Local customers will appreciate the fact that you talk to them in their native language. They will reward you with higher engagement and loyalty.
https://www.instagram.com/stories/explorerssaurus_/
Talk about charity
Mintel’s study shows that 73% of Americans consider companies’ charitable work when making a purchase. So if your company is involved in some kind of charity project, you should talk about it on social media. It will help you to increase brand loyalty and double sales.
Big and small brands share information about their volunteering experience with their followers – it’s a common practice. So if you have never written about the charity organizations you support, it’s time to do it right now.
Are you thinking about launching a viral marketing campaign? You can use the same strategy that Reebok has recently used. Promise to donate a few bucks to a charity organization per every retweet, and your followers will be happy to support your initiative.
https://twitter.com/Reebok/status/1326558102783750146
Need help with implementing a viral marketing strategy? Use Sociamonials, social media marketing software. Start a free trial today, and get your sales to the next level.
Wrapping it up
Your followers are almost ready to become your customers. They are waiting for the extra push of encouragement to buy.
Use your writing skills to convince your prospective customers to make the first purchase. Apply these eight tips to create remarkable social media content and turn your followers into customers.