The Importance of Community Management
Community management of social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram has become a crucial part of brands’ operations in this day and age.
Community management is entirely about building relationships. How your brand or company utilizes opportunities to interact with your community online has a direct effect on many aspects of your brand efforts. If you hope to build a long-term business and a strong, relevant brand, community management is one practice that you must take the time to invest in.
Community management whether it be on Facebook or Instagram or LinkedIn is crucial because of the following reasons:
Retention of existing customers. Community management plays a significant role in the retention of existing customers who are then likely to be involved in repeated brand interactions;
Attracting new customers. One of the major characteristics of communities is that it helps information flow faster. Therefore, effective community management can help in cultivating new members through positive word of mouth;
Enhanced brand reputation. Instead of focusing on the short-term benefits and increasing sales, community management focuses on strengthening the position of the brand in the long-term by building a good reputation online.
Here are more reasons why you should consider community management as part of your marketing efforts today:
It Builds Equity and Brand Advocacy
Keeping your brand’s current users and customer base engaged is arguably just as important — if not more — than acquiring new ones. Like many aspects of life, the more time or effort an individual invests into a product or service, the more they come to value it. And the more connected and involved someone feels with a brand, the more likely they are to become an advocate for you and sing your praises to their friends and family.
The most difficult accomplishment to achieve in the brand equity pyramid is resonance.
Resonance is a term used to refer to building deep customer relationships. True resonance is a difficult task and can only be achieved once your customers have formed a deep psychological bond with your brand. These are the customers who continuously make repeat purchases, and feel an attachment to your brand or product that goes far beyond that of the general public.
It Empowers Your Customers and User-base
Most online communities who are doing social right and are successful in their efforts leverage an abundance of user-generated content. When you enable your community to speak up by enticing them with questions and content that inspires a reaction, you are stimulating engagement and a sense of empowerment for your customers and user-base.
This empowerment often allows users to self-police themselves in the event that you have a rogue user who seems to be stirring conflict within the community. It also provides your brand with educated ambassadors who have the ability to answer each other’s questions and concerns first hand, without the involvement of your brand. While you should always be active in addressing the needs and concerns of your community, it’s certainly a major benefit having these ‘foot soldiers’ of sorts helping to brige the gap and reinforce a positive brand sentiment.
It Creates A True Sense of Community That Humanizes your Brand
The reach of Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and other major social media platforms is equal to or greater than what we can do with television, in terms of getting content out to the masses; especially your target audiences. But unlike television, social media gives you the opportunity to establish a direct and personal connection with your audience. This makes your brand much more approachable.
It Allows You To Tap into a Built-In Audience
If the channel you’re on gives you access to a large audience or you’re speaking to someone with a sizable following, it might even be worth it to go the extra mile and tap into that audience. Leveraging a built-in audience allows brands to save some money with their marketing efforts through owned and earned media.
Analyze your brand’s networks and determine which channels your community is the most active on, and which networks you’re most likely to satisfy your main objectives with. Take note of good online business resilience this 2021. Whether it be to build brand awareness, drive traffic, or simply maintain your reputation, those channels are the ones your organization should prioritize with your social efforts, and the ones that will allow you to tap into your audience most effectively.
iManila With 25 years of experience in the digital industry, has the skills and the experience to help you with your brand’s digital marketing, website development, hosting, and technical support needs. Send us an email at [email protected] or contact us through our facebook or website to learn more!