Author name: Victoria Greene

Social media automation is something that often splits people into two camps: you’re either for it, or you’re against it. So should you use social media automation for your ecommerce business? Not only should you use it, but there are some rules that you must certainly follow when doing so. Rule 1: Pick the right platforms Social media has been called the love child of the web and, with the number of users expected to reach 2.95 billion by 2020, that child has become a full-fledged adult. [color-box color=” customcolorpicker=”]There are a huge number of platforms within the social media world. The major players are: Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Google+ YouTube Pinterest Instagram Flickr Reddit Snapchat Quora [/color-box] Each of these have their unique quirks and not all will be suitable for your ecommerce business – let alone compatible with social media automation. For instance, Twitter is responsive, precise, and packed with personality: Credit: @VancityReynolds The first thing you have to do is decide which platforms are likely to be the best investment for your company. This isn’t just about choosing the one with the largest number of users. When deciding which social media platforms to use, you should consider: Your objectives for your social media outlets The voice of your company What content do you want to create – text or images? The skillset of your social media manager How much time you have to commit to your social media How many channels you can manage Which platforms your audience use Once you have settled on which platforms you are going to employ, then you have to use them. Remember, there’s no obligation to be as hilarious as Ryan Reynolds; you have to do your own thing. via GIPHY When you automate your social media channels, it is more important than ever to ensure that you are on the right creative management platforms – the platforms that are in tune with automation (for instance, Twitter is great for automation, Snapchat less so). Know what type of content works best your different channels; think about what themes you want to explore (what’s popular with users), and then create content in bulk that you can automate. You can create: Eye catching video content for Facebook Puns and pithy comments for Twitter Vibrant flat lay pictures for Instagram Remember, your social media accounts won’t help your ecommerce business to sell more goods if you haven’t fully grasped and realized the potential of the platform(s) you are using, along with their unique quirks. Once you have these nailed, you can then start to automate your posts… Rule 2: Participation isn’t optional This rule is something you should nail to the front of your monitor, tablet, mobile, and anywhere in the vicinity of someone who has access your company’s social media accounts. Participation doesn’t just matter, it really, really matters. Your social media accounts are running on platforms that can number into the billions — that’s A LOT of people. Participation helps you reach more of the right ones. Without participation you will not only fail to add to your followers, you risk losing your supporters too! Ask yourself this would you follow an account that didn’t offer anything? No, of course not. Here are a few ways that you can participate with your social media outlets: Voicing your opinion – your opinion is a valuable currency and your customers and followers want to have a stockpile of it Offer something new – this can be information on your industry, on your business, or on life generally. The important thing is that it’s unique and not something your followers and customers can readily find elsewhere – don’t drown them in familiarity A range of voices – So long as there is at least one more soul than your own in your business, make sure more than one person posts to your social media accounts. This will keep your accounts fresh, less predictable, and offer your followers variety Show your audience you’re there, care, and are willing to share – your followers want to speak to a real person. By participating in your audience’s discussions, you’ll demonstrate your company is a real person and not an impersonal corporate shoe. There really is no way around it: you have to participate on your social media outlets and engage with your followers. Don’t think you can get away with infrequent, low quality participation – no, no. Automation can help you be more engaged with your audience. Here’s how: Automated lists can help you find interesting people fast, and engage with them in batches Drip-feeding content means that you can work of crafting social posts when you are feeling inspired and creative (A.K.A not on a Monday morning) Social media rules like automated ‘thank yous’ and follow backs can help you scale participation The wider your social network is, the better your understanding will be. Automation helps you do that. Research the keywords being used in your industry and by your audience. Create tracking lists in social apps so that you are always ready to jump in on a relevant conversation. via GIPHY Rule 3: Quality and consistency go hand-in-hand While it is essential that you are participating, you have to make sure you’re giving your audience the good stuff and that the tone you strike remains consistent. This is where knowing your audience and your brand voice comes into play. Here are some brands who really know their voice, what their audience wants, and bring this consistently to their social media content: Lidl German supermarket Lidl know too that they can’t sex up their products in the way that a brand like Rolex can. That’s not a problem, though, because they know what their audience like about them – they offer high quality produce at a lower than expected price. They bring this attitude to their social media accounts, not only by making it the tone of their posts, but by sharing examples of their customers buying