Blog: Social Media & Local Carlsbad Customers – Still Planning to Plan?

We previously recommended taking a good hard (and long) look in the mirror before embarking on our local business social media maiden voyage.

Taking the time to analyze our Carlsbad small businesses from every perspective before launching our products and services into the social maelstrom will save us time, embarrassment, and money.

Getting started with social media for local small business is relatively easy, we go to Twitter and Facebook, enter some business info and boom bam bip, our business is now socially connected.

Sort of, but then what?

Do people research products and services on Facebook or just connect with people they know?

Does the neighborhood really care if your business just received a shipment of the newest carbon fiber athletic supporter…and tweeted about it?

The answer to both those questions is a resounding yes.

If you fancy some proof, go ahead and start asking your customers if a Facebook presence would enhance their buying experience; take a survey – informal off the cuff, or starched and pressed.

People will search your business out on Facebook to see what you’re all about. They will do so because they understand even local small businesses often reward loyal customers, or even offer promotional discounts through Facebook.

Furthermore, whether it’s a mattress or a dentist, or a plumber, or a mechanic, or a ukulele; people will ask their ‘Friends’ for a reference – and they will use Facebook as the communication medium.

Social media is simply word of mouth gone viral.

The conversation is now taking place online, within these social communities and hyper-local media outlets.

As we’ve mentioned before, proper previous planning will prevent p*ss poor performance (that’s not our saying, we just try to follow it).

But planning goes beyond the introspection stages of how your customers (and surrounding community) view your products or services, you also need to outwardly formulate a social media game plan for your small business.

The good part is we don’t need to be so difficult, keep it simple – and don’t be afraid to ask for help.

Here are some important basic waypoints for the maiden social media sojourn:

• What message are you communicating?
• Who is your audience?
• Are you actively maintaining a mailing list?
• Do you have a website?
• How about a blog?
• Are your services or products available for purchase online?
• Do you use social media?
• How do companies you’re loyal to communicate with you?
• What do you find effective or ineffective?

It also pays to organize some images, testimonials, events, announcements, past successful promotions…etc. And analyze any marketing channels you currently employ – to seek out cross promo opportunity.

Furthermore, remember to create an action plan for dealing with negative sentiment (bad customer review or word of mouth) before it occurs. It will most likely happen, but how you deal with it will determine the lasting (or not so much) impact.

This is really just a broad swipe of planning questions and points, the primary message I hope to convey here is the need to plan for success.

Yes, there are times in life when the plan goes out the window once the proverbial feces flies toward the fan – but even the most minimalistic social media plans will keep you from taking at least one misstep on your journey to social media success for your Carlsbad small business.

Plan, but also plan to change the plan as conditions warrant.

In April of 2012, there is absolutely no good reason why every single Carlsbad small business should not be effectively communicating with new and existing local customers using the expanding array of social media and local online marketing tools available to business owners in the digital age.

If your business needs some help planning or putting the plan into action, please get in touch with me at 1LocalBusiness.com and we will make that happen together.

If you would like to blog on Carlsbad Patch, click here to apply.