[HOW TO] Engage your customers through social networks

This article is going to be a "tips from Smiirl to engage your customers", so everything comes from our raw observations, and from what makes up smile/laugh/throw thumbs up on social medias. So it might look like articles you can find on the big internet ocean, but keep in mind that this one comes from our hard working brains 😉

With that being said, let's see how you could use social medias to engage your customers, and  make them come back to your store.

PS : if you're a local store and you're not on Facebook (or any social media for that matter), we recommend you create your page. NOW. DO IT. JUST DO IT. We're not moving till you've done it... Done? Good, to the list!

Tip #1: Keep em updated with what's up

What you're selling, new products, special offers, discounts, etc. Your customers must not be forced to come to your store to learn about what's happening over there. That can seem obvious for an online store, but for a physical local business, your pages are your second store.

Even if you can't buy directly on them, it has to become your 2.0 catalog. Even if these informations are not straightly connected to your products/services, your followers/clients might wanna know about what's happening in your store. New design, new shelf to display products, new members... And that's a perfect transition to the tip#2.

Tip #2: You're human beings, not just a brand name

Yes, your products/services are the main topic you're going to talk to your followers about. But it is important for you, especially as a local business, to show who's behind the brand's name. YOU are the people your clients will see in the store, so show yourself on your social medias pages.

Instagram seems to be the perfect network for this, it is the best one for storytelling purposes. For example, you might prefer posting official informations on Facebook, such as promotions, new products showcases. But your Instagram feed could be the place to share news about the team, presenting news members, or even sharing some cool pictures that have nothing to do with what you actually do. Pictures of members during holidays, funny takes of a member's pet, or whatever seems interesting to share with your followers to gain a more human image.

Tip #3: Engage them, make them participate

Engage your followers to gain engagement in your local business. Engageception. By engage, we mean post things they can participate to. For example, if you're a pastry, and you're creating a brand new tasty yummy cake, post two pictures of cakes, and let them choose they like the most. It seems a bit too much déjà vu, but the new Facebook emoji-is can help you do that.

You know, the "like if you prefer this one, or love if you prefer that one" kind of post.

In the case of a local business like yours, these post can be really useful, because your customers will feel.. well, useful. Just because you're asking them to be part of a strategic decision you have to make, simple as that. So don't overuse these posts, because it will feel like you're unable to take decisions concerning your business by yourself.

It's all about Engagement

Tip #4 : Get the badge!

I'm not talking about a Gym leader's badge from Viridian City, no. So put your pokeballs back in your pocket and open the "message" tab on your social media account, because you'll need to be a 100% responsive to your clients' demands.

This badge is a quality stamp, a proof that you, as a local business, take time to answer to your clients' needs. So get the 100% response rate badge! And if you're even better than that, you can aim the "2 minutes" average response time badge, which shows that you're one reactive son of a b...business, son of a business.

This badge can be translated in "in store" language. Having the 100%/2 minutes average response badge is like answering quickly and efficiently to your customers' questions in store.

This is literally what you'll see

Tip #5 : And, of course, get your counter 😉

What? Autopromotion alert you say? Ask Julien Le Coupanec, in one of his Hackisition article, he advises barbershops to get the counter. And as Walter White once said, he is "Goddamn right".

Our counters connects people in local businesses and your followers on social medias. It is a fantastic tool to engage your customers in a physical and in a digital way. But we're not going to start a pitch on whether you should get one or nah, you're old enough to make up your mind on your own 😉

Smiirl's counter on the top of the world

Thanks for reading this social media orientated article of the week, we hope you enjoyed it, and as usual don't hesitate to give us your feedback on it!

And if you happen to have some tips to share with us, be our guests!

I'm out 😉