The following article comes to us from Ashley Burgess, senior MARCOM manager for Laura Burgess Marketing:
- INCREASE YOUR VISIBILITY USING SOCIAL MEDIA
By Ashley Burgess
Senior MARCOM Manager for Laura Burgess Marketing
SHOT Show is now the thirteenth largest trade show in the U.S. For our industry, it is the busiest time of year with new sales programs, new products, new people and new marketing campaigns. The show itself has become increasingly busy and for buyers and media people, almost impossible to cover in the four days allotted. As a marketer or business owner, you know about the media opportunities presented to all exhibitors by the NSSF; the press room, marketing opportunities, press conferences and more, but how can you expand your messaging to make sure everyone receives it and hears it above all the rest of the show chatter? Consider using social media tools to enhance your current public relations program. Besides building traditional press kits and releases, why not build a Facebook Fan page?
A Facebook Fan Page gives your company a direct connection to your end users. With the middle man cut out, you can receive instant feedback from your customers and provide them with immediate content. Consumers trust people and brands that they “know” and by reaching out to them in a space they use daily to interact with family, friends, even to get the news, will only benefit your company.
Yeah, yeah, you’ve heard it all before, but really, Facebook? Are my end users really there? You bet they are. Facebook recently hit 500 million users and continues to grow daily. The world is becoming increasingly more and more internet savvy and customers expect you to be where they interact – and these days that is on social networks. If you aren’t where your customer base is, you could be ignoring a crucial segment of your market.
Many people have the misconception that social networks are for high school and college kids who want to share what they did this weekend and find out where the next party is at. However, recent research shows that the fastest growing age bracket on Facebook is the 35-44 year old demographic, experiencing a 276.4% growth rate in over approximately 6 months. The 55+ demographic is right behind that, while the 25-34 demographic doubles every 6 months. You can’t afford to ignore numbers like that.
So how do you tap into Fan Pages, Twitter and YouTube to create a solid social media plan to make your company stick out at SHOT? Simple. It’s called buzz and social media sites are great at generating it. Prior to the show, create sneak peek videos and host them on YouTube. These don’t have to be Grade A movie quality videos. Honest, short clips from 2-5 minutes in length done with a hand held work just fine if you don’t have a big budget. Promote those videos through Facebook and Twitter and invite people to see and learn more about these products at your booth. Create a special promotion that is only promoted through those sites, perhaps something along the lines of come by our booth with code FACEBOOK and you’ll get a free XYZ. People love free stuff.
While at the show, use your social media platforms to keep attendees and those who aren’t able to come informed about what is going on at your booth. Have a special demonstration going on? Tweet out the location and time to increase potential foot traffic at your booth and post pictures and videos from the actual demonstration on your Fan Page and YouTube account so people know what they missed. Want to host an impromptu cocktail hour with writers? Send out a “Tweet Up” through Twitter with a time and location and see how many people show up to meet you and talk about your product. Keep the content coming while you’re at the show and you’ll be keeping people informed and interested. Consider even doing a Daily Wrap Up email blast which provides information on the activities that went on at your booth for the day.
When the show wraps up, it doesn’t mean your social media efforts are over as well. Post wrap up information on Facebook. Direct your followers where to find more information through Twitter. Create a wrap up video and host it on YouTube. Perhaps you’d like to find out what people enjoyed most and least about your booth and product. If so, create a poll or survey through your Fan Page and get the answers you need to improve your booth for next year.
Social media is not going anywhere. It is here to stay and savvy businesses are using these tools to continue to build communities by which they can build brand loyalty, shorten sales cycles, improve customer service and communicate to their customers in an honest, immediate fashion. But beware, social media PR is unlike traditional PR in that it requires constant monitoring and participation. There are programs out there to help you monitor your sites and the end result is worth it; you’ll see that result in your bottom line. Contact a public relations company in our industry that can guide you down the new media path and see how talking with your customers before, during and after the show will increase your brand share and sales.
Ashley Burgess is the Senior MARCOM Manager for Laura Burgess Marketing and a Cum Laude graduate of Babson College, specializing in social media optimization for the outdoor markets.
Laura Burgess Marketing (www.lauraburgess.com) is a public relations and marketing firm specializing in law enforcement, military, shooting sports and the outdoor markets with traditional and new social media tactics and techniques.
