Should You be Using Social Media?

Social media is the catch-all phrase of the decade, encompassing a wide range of platforms that allow people from all walks of life to communicate with each other. And while personal connections are a big part of what drives these platforms, businesses are increasingly turning to them as well to engage with customers, connect with potential clients and build their reputations.

Most successful print shops have started looking into ways to incorporate social media services into their product mix, looking to offer clients a “one-stop marketing” solution that will allow them to move beyond commodity pricing and into trusted partner status—which carries a more premium price.

But while the shop might be an expert at creating and producing multi-channel campaigns for clients, how much marketing are you doing for yourself? And how much social media are you incorporating into that mix?

“Social media platforms cannot be ignored when it comes to marketing any kind of service,” said social media expert Dana Schomp, owner of Premier VEBA Inc. “Printers rightly are very focused on the physical aspects of marketing—banners, signage, etc. But in today’s interconnected world, not even they can afford to ignore the electronic mediums if they want to remain competitive. Customers of all types of goods and services are increasingly wanting the kind of connections with their vendors and partners that only social networks can provide.”

Like most small businesses, print shops are facing an increasingly connected world, and struggling to find ways to connect with both current and future clients. According to a Manta survey released in May of this year, 59 percent of small business owners—printers included—aren’t seeing a return on the investment they are making into social media platforms. Only 34 percent of the respondents said they were planning to increase the time and money spent on social media activities in the coming months, which is down from 49 percent in 2013.

When Social Media Examiner released its annual Social Media Marketing Industry Report for 2015, it found similar attitudes: Only 42 percent of its respondents noted that they are able to measure their ROI on social marketing platforms, but 72 percent regularly try to analyze and measure those activities.

But that doesn’t mean that printers can’t or won’t see a return on their social investment, noted Tawnya Starr, EVP of sales for Firespring. “Although it may not come quick, printers will gain traffic to their website from social media and see an increased RO,” she said. “According to socialmediatoday.com, 79% of B2B marketers who use Twitter generate twice as many leads as those who do not. This is because you’re engaging with customers, and social media provides yet another place where your information and URL are provided. 91% of local searches say they use Facebook to find local businesses online. In addition to searching Google for businesses, they’re also searching on Facebook. Additionally, 63% of local searchers on social media are more likely to use a business with info on a social media site. The more convenient it is for customers to find information, the greater the opportunity to connect with great prospects.”

Making Social Media Work

That being said, social media is still a powerful tool that every printer should be using to help grow the business. But it can be overwhelming trying to determine which services to use, and how to best allocate resources to ensure the best results.

First of all, narrow down the list to just a few social media services. By far the two most popular networks for small businesses are Facebook and LinkedIn; Social Media Examiner found that if pressed to choose a single platform, 52 percent of marketers cited Facebook as their top choice, with LinkedIn following the closest at 21 percent. Twitter and YouTube were also cited as platforms that are strong contenders for the marketing dollars.

“Printers only need to focus on three platforms: Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin,” said Starr. “Each of those platforms has more than 1 billion users on it, and plenty of business opportunity. . A new account is created on Linkedin every two seconds. There is no question that being engaged in social media is a way to connect to leads.”

“For businesses, LinkedIn is a powerful platform,” noted Schomp. “You can connect and network with a wide range of potential customers, and you can position yourself as an expert in your field. The ability to publish and share thought-provoking content, and know that it is being seen by key decision makers at both current and potential client businesses, is huge. Before you even call to pitch a new campaign or a new service or anything else, you are already on their radar as someone who is knowledgeable and trustworthy, and I don’t know of any other social network right now other than LinkedIn that will allow anyone, in any business—printers included—to have such a powerful platform to engage with.”

Second, don’t use the exact same message across every single platform. Each social network has its own demographic, and is best suited to different types of approaches. While you can certainly use the same promotion, know what audience you are trying to reach, and target them specifically. You wouldn’t advice your customers put a banner aimed at small children in the middle of a busy business district, would you? Social media marketing is no different.

Third, while it is tempting to craft messages for social media with purely marketing content, sadly, that approach doesn’t work on these platforms. One of the reasons so many printers struggle with marketing their own services on social media platforms is that they focus completely on the business. It might sound counter-intuitive, but that approach will actually turn customers away. Rather, use what many call the “80/20 Rule:” talk about your business 20 percent of the time, and talk about something else the other 80 percent of the time.

“Printers are using social media to connect with clients and potential clients alike by being present,” noted Starr. “It's much less about promotion of services, rather a channel to self-promote and build upon relationships with clients.”

This doesn’t mean you have to flood your Facebook wall or Twitter feed with adorable cat videos, however. Rather, talk about the latest trends in print technologies and why you are watching them; talk about trade shows and other events you or your staff attend, and highlight some of the exciting—or disappointing—things you saw; talk about current events, and how you see them impacting your community and business. In other words, create content that educates and informs. Customers will be far more receptive to those marketing messages when they are just one part of a content strategy, rather than the entire strategy.

“It’s all about variety, and becoming known as an industry expert,” Schomp said. “You want them to want to pick up the phone when you call, to want to open your emails, because they know you are going to be providing them with information they actually want to hear. And if you include a message about a great new printer you’ve purchased that opens up new capabilities you’d love to talk to them about as well, it’s not going to be tossed aside as irrelevant, because they will know you’re only going to share something that you genuinely think will help them improve their business. It’s about establishing yourself as someone they want to partner with, rather than someone they just buy print from—and social media allows you to create and nurture those relationships.”

Finally, social media isn’t a one-time thing. To get the biggest ROI on social media activities, printers will have to dedicate the time and staff to creating the content and managing the accounts.

“Our resident social media expert, [Lauren Bejot, social media strategist,] feels dedicating at least three hours a week on brainstorming, content, creating content and posting it is the minimum in order to see a return on social media,” said Starr. “Then dedicate at least 5 minutes everyday to respond to all interactions on social media. If time is not dedicated, social media won't work.

Tips for PSPs to Build a Solid Social Media Presence

Tawnya Starr, EVP of sales for Firespring, and the company’s social media strategist Lauren Bejot, put together three tips that every PSP should keep in mind when building and maintaining a winning social media strategy:

1. Create a conversation.

For example, create conversation by asking customers on social media, “What’s your best marketing tip? We like to recommend our clients to make sure they have updated brochures before presenting at conferences.” Questions are a great way to spark engagement. “Question posts receive 100 percent more engagement than statement posts,” reported by KISSmetrics. Social media allows companies to create dynamic, one-on-one relationships with their audience. Because of this, print shops can more efficiently and successfully target and create relationships with their audience.

2. Post engaging content.

In order to create that conversation, post content that truly connects with the audience. Printers need to put themselves in their customer’s shoes: what would they like to see? Engage and retain customers on social media with the universal 80/20 rule; 80 percent of the content needs to be what the audience would like to see, and 20 percent needs to be self-promotional. For example, 80 percent of the content could include a quote or an educational article about marketing. Moreover, 20 percent could include information about an upcoming promotion, or a new, exciting product or service that the print shop provides. With any post, “Photos receive 53 percent more likes, 104 percent more comments and 84 percent more link click-throughs than text-based posts,” reported by KISSmetrics. Print shops are more likely to connect with and maintain loyal customers by following the 80/20 rule and posting engaging, fresh content on social media.

3. Post consistently.

Creating a cohesive online brand identity and staying top-of-mind for customers requires consistent posting. If a potential customer searches for a print shop and sees there hasn't been a post in over a month, they could assume your company went out of business. For example, HarrisPlus, a print shop in Maryland, posts three times a day, everyday to stay top-of-mind with current and potential customers. Social media users have a necessity for news updates and posting fresh, consistent content is the key to capturing potential customers for a printing company.