Social Media has allowed people to connect, discover new products, and has created a new form of marketing. But Social Media has also created a new outlet for consumers to lash out against brands they feel have wronged them. 20% of people surveyed in the US felt empowered to lash out at companies online because of the anonymity provided on the internet. These are not the same customers that would walk into a store and make a stink. Unlike that one customer that may make a scene at the counter, these attacks are directed to thousands of users and can be found online for years. While this number is scary, it is manageable, with a comprehensive Social Media strategy.
What numbers we should be focused on is the 31% that feel empowered to try something new they have been wanting to do and the 48% of users surveyed are looking to meet new people (that does not mean dating). Why shouldn't they be meeting you (your brand) online? Remember that Social Media is about Socializing, far to many companies fall into the trap of posting ad after ad on their Social Media sites, consumers are not looking for ads, they are looking for interaction. Using Social Media to capture new business requires engaging the consumer through content that is fresh and calls them to action. Creating content that is specific to one site gives those users a feeling of having a inside track to your brand.
Check out a site that SGI created www.thegentlemanracer.com this is a young brand that we created just a few months ago, we gave it a depth that goes back for years, uploaded lots of content, and keep it directly tied its own Social Media pages as well as others.