All of us have been bound by stereotypical thoughts that compel us to believe that engaging on social media is counter-productive. Business marrying social media is still a major stigma in the most forward societies. We often believe that the social media is for those who have the luxury of time.

In reality, we often forget  that a large chunk of our users, customers, clients, even colleagues and workers and many of our competitors are out there, embracing the open world. So, why are we hesitant to bring in this amazing platform into day-to-day business activities? It sure remains a mystery to me. I bet you are wondering why too. Here’s why you should!

Aspects of the social media that your company can harness to its advantage:

• Opens up a wide customer/client-base - This is one of the best aspects of social media that your company should utilize effectively to their advantage. Over 3 billion people use social media platforms today. Facebook has over a 1.59 billion footprint. This is just Facebook. Some of them are your potential customers, possible potential investors, or even versatile employees and the social media is one of the best places to break the ice and establish a relationship. Each connect could open up a new link to another client. It is indeed a gold mine.
• Opportunity to post free ads - Don’t we all love freebies? Free marketing is the best gift a business can ask for. Every page you maintain on these sites are free. From Promotional banners to hitting the sales pitch, you get access to a wide range of audience with an account. All you need is to sign up for free. If your business is just starting up and you cannot afford a domain or a fancy website yet, get out and explore the open web, web 2.0. Create a page on Facebook and you have your temporary website up and running. Add all the information about your business and plug-in a Contact Us button and you are done!
• Connects your employees and the business - It does become a challenge to keep all your stakeholders informed of anything that happens in and around your company.  The lowest level employees lose out significantly on potential updates. A page that they can follow creates the visibility, bridges potential gaps and also exposes your company to a larger audience

Actively Engage With Your Employees on Social Media

If you are trying to actively engage with your employees on social media, you might have encouraged them to “like” and “follow” your pages to help boost your visibility. With usage of social media comes social responsibility. Personal accounts are also a potential candidate for a million cyber attacks and a powerhouse of information. Adequate care and diligence are mandatory when bringing social media into the business realm. It is best to have a predetermined plan before you ask your employees to mention your company in their social media accounts so that your employees don’t accidentally make statements that embarrass your company.

Any plan to connect with your employees should contain these six vital steps:

1. Create a written policy that clearly defines what can and what cannot be said on social media sites.
2. Promote social media involvement at all levels. For example, professionals from the C-suite bring in a different perspective as compared to the front-line employees.
3. Get your employees to be excited about new developments within your company.
4. Make content easy to share.
5. Motivate your employees
6. Track employees’ use of social media through hashtags and keywords.

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