ACCOUNTANCY BEYOND THE NUMBERS with Hayes Knight
Facing-off with Social Media
Sometimes hearing some home truths can be a difficult pill to swallow, so last month when Aidan Bennett, the well respected and esteemed publisher of Channel, called me a dinosaur over my inability to tweet I figured I needed to investigate further.
So off I set on some research and I came face to face with some hard facts – social media integration is no longer an aspirational thought, or a good idea to be mulled over later. This became clear to me at a recent Hayes Knight business improvement forum (T3). I learnt that in the UK 1 in 4 people are less inclined to engage with a website that uses no social media tools.* Sure we can argue "but that's the UK, however, further discussion suggested that Google also factors social media integration into its ranking system. This was followed by two more hard hitting facts:
| - | 56% of people surveyed feel more engaged with companies that interact on social media |
| - | 57% of people surveyed say that as consumers they feel better served by socially engaged companies** |
| This was a well needed wake-up. But where do we start? It's easy to be overwhelmed by all the things you should be doing; so at Hayes Knight we plan to start by building on the things we do well. Two things immediately came to mind; we have a great looking website and our team author insightful articles that are useful. Website integration is at the top of our social media strategy. For us, and most businesses, this means considering: | |
| - | Converting general news posts into an engaging blog format, where visitors can comment, review, ask questions and get answers. Visitors also appreciate blogs that utilise keyword tags, which they can then use to find related articles. |
| - | Introducing a news feed (RSS) to stay connected to clients and stakeholders. The reverse is also true. You can pull in fresh, up-to-the minute content by adding relevant content feeds from partner networks to your website, or alternatively from social media platforms you're already active on. |
| - | If we're doing our job and providing content that shares a resource, solves a problem or improves a life then people will want to share this. So step two; add functionality that allows visitors to share your website's content via Email, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and other relevant social networks with just one click. |
| - | The above point rings true for e-newsletters. So much effort goes into preparing them so why not add functionality that will allow readers to share your great content with others. |
| - | Opportunities to repackage content and tools to make them more engaging. For example, Slideshare is great for sharing presentations (something we do a lot of) and video content. Embed this new content into blogs, website pages and e-newsletters. And voila, you have interactive multi-media content. |
| The next hard fact: Several clients (including, but not limited to Mr Bennett!) have recently shared with me the success they've having with Twitter. Now if our clients are having conversations via Twitter that's where we need to be. The same rule applies for any business. Find out where your customers are most active online. What next? | |
| - | We plan to start by listening; finding relevant feeds and then learning how people in our industry and our clients use Twitter. Find your customers, contacts who are centres of influence, and thought leaders relevant to your industry. |
| - | Decide what your point of difference is and get the right people using Twitter (or Tweeting). You already know who the thought leaders in your organisation are. Use Twitter to give them a voice and the medium to share relevant opinions, observations, trends, tools and help the Twitter community where they can. Help them save time by showing them how to update Twitter (or Tweet) on the go via their mobiles. |
| - | How often will you Tweet and what about? Twitter is a long-term investment so develop a communications plan at the start to help keep the momentum up. Initially, this may mean sitting down with your Marketing Manager every week and planning your Tweets. |
| - | Once you're away, leverage Twitter by integrating it with your website and LinkedIn profiles, include it on all email signatures; print advertising; direct mails etc to get more followers. |
| - | Remember, being on Twitter is just like walking into a room of people and networking. Don't start bleating on about yourself in a loud voice, rather approach it like a normal conversation, join in on the conversation and once you know what is going on you can share your two cents worth. |
Social people have a natural affinity to always be on the move. This brings me to the final hard hitting fact: The swing to mobile or portable web is the next biggest change to hit the internet industry. This makes total sense. I just have to look to my team – most of them now prefer the convenience of their iPhone over their laptops. Mobile sites, that are device independent, are going to become the norm for publishing and making information instantly available and convenient. One thing is for sure we're not going to park this as another good idea to mull over.
I believe that to be competitive, we have no choice but embrace social media and start using the tools available to enhance business credibility; help people make decisions and build traffic. It will be an investment, but start by choosing the features that will be most helpful to your customers and aim for incremental progress.
Why don't you share our journey?
Visit hayesknight.co.nz/register and sign up for our business improvement updates.
*UK Customer Satisfaction Index.
** The Saatchi & Saatchi and Colmar Brunton Social Networking Survey
Matthew Bellingham
is CEO of innovative chartered accountancy practice Hayes Knight
Dedicated dentists
