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Back to Social Media School- 6 Recent Changes You Need to Know

by Article by Remington Begg Remington Begg | August 6, 2015 at 9:13 AM

shutterstock_209863684.jpgIt’s almost that time of the year again- back to school! So, while you’re buying new notebooks and packing lunch boxes, remember this: just because you aren’t a kid anymore doesn’t mean you can stop learning. In today’s ever-changing marketplace, you need to “to go school” constantly. Don’t worry, you won’t need to get on the school bus this time. Let’s take a look at a few changing social media aspects and attitudes that you may have missed.

Customer Engagement is Everything

Simply advertising and then selling a product is insufficient to building evangelists and trusted customer relationships. That’s not the way today’s consumers want to be treated throughout their buying cycle. In a recent Forbes survey, 62% of millennials (young adults born between the early 1980s and the year 2000) say that if a brand engages with them on social networks, they are more likely to become a loyal customer. Luckily, companies are waking up to the fact that their brand’s reputation and overall success will be built more by delivering great experiences and interacting with their customers than through old-fashioned advertising. If you still think social media posts can be scheduled and never thought about again, it’s time to catch up!

Facebook Now Has a Group App

Facebook is years beyond just an avenue to share vacation photos. Facebook ads and business pages have helped it become a fantastic marketing tool for business of all sizes. Recently, it released an app to allow specific groups of people with shared interests to stay in touch. This new feature has a lot of potential for social media marketers to tap into. In the Facebook Groups App, your customers and potential customers can post updates, links, and photos, start new discussions and find new groups to join. Groups most frequently used are at the top, so you can always stay on their mind.

Share Tweets Through Direct Messages

In a change that should prove helpful for social media managers and inbound marketers, Twitter recently added the ability to share tweets through direct messaging. This is a great way to keep your social engagement going, without being too public. Did you recently get a new follower? Tweet them directly and say thanks! If someone tweets a complaint or issue with your brand, you can discreetly take the problem private instead of having a conversation for the rest of your followers to see.

Facebook’s New “Buy” Button

WriteSocialPostsToEnhanceBrandImage.jpgAnother exciting new feature rolled out from Facebook is the brand-new “Buy” button, allowing viewers to purchase directly from you while browsing Facebook. This change is still being tested,  but if it is released to all markets it could be a major boon to help businesses drive sales through Facebook in News Feed and on Pages. One less step for your customers is great news to you.

New Blogging Interface on LinkedIn

If you’re trying to share information with your LinkedIn connections, you don’t have to post an update with a link to an existing blog; you can write your blogs directly on their interface. This is great news for small companies who don’t yet have a working blog on their website. To get started blogging on LinkedIn, go to your profile as if you were about to post a status update and look for the pencil icon that will take you to the blogging framework. After following the very simple posting instructions, viewing your posted blog will clearly show you how many people have seen it and liked it. All of those connections who viewed your LinkedIn blog just became leads to follow up with.

Easier Understanding of LinkedIn Views

When you receive a notification of a profile view, do you ever wonder how those you are not connected with find you? LinkedIn’s new graphing feature just made it a lot easier to figure out. With recent upgrades to the “Who’s Viewed Your Profile” page, that you can find it under Profile in LinkedIn’s navigation menu, you can see some cool charts that overlay what you do online there with what effect it had on your visibility. LinkedIn will chart actions you take like making updates to your profile, endorsing a connection, joining a group or expanding your network that could lead to a specific increase in engagement.

Don’t fail social media because you aren’t paying attention in class! Social media moves fast, so educate yourself just as quickly. Your brand’s success depends on you constantly learning, growing, and changing with the trends. And if you need help getting started, we can assist you. Download our free Social Media for Business eBook today and get started toward posting, tweeting, and connecting your way to a better ROI.