Are you doing enough to celebrate your customers’ wins, whether they be new product releases, media coverage, nabbing an award, a new piece of content they’ve created, or welcoming new executives? If not, why? Customer news can, after all, add significant credibility to your marketing efforts, and can even turn into some of your best-performing content. So, what are some ways you can you show your customers some love without a lot of effort?
First, strategize about how much customer news you want in your own social media streams. Is 50 percent a good mix? Is 20 percent feasible? 10 percent? For Calysto, the more coverage we can post from our clients, the merrier, especially since we’ve helped them generate those interviews and articles. You can check out some of the recent coverage we’ve earned for our clients here.
Once your strategy is set, it’s time to get moving. Here are three things you can do to turn your social media platforms into customer fan zones:
- Track their coverage alongside your own—and share it. If your customer is mentioned or quoted by a publication or mentioned in an analyst note, make sure to congratulate them across your social media channels by posting a link to the article, or link back to the news when it’s posted on their site. It’s easy to track this via paid monitoring platforms or even via Google Alerts. Sharing their news generates good will—and links your company back to a successful customer.Make sure to tag appropriate parties, including the publication, reporter or editor, company names, etc. By sharing and tagging, you’ll get extra exposure, as most people and media outlets tagged will often re-share, like, or comment on your post.
- Ask customers to guest blog. Customer-generated content is nearly free except for the time that someone in the marketing department or PR spends soliciting posts and then editing what comes in. By adding the customer’s own voice to your blog or LinkedIn page, you now have existing customers talking to potential customers, some of whom prefer hearing from their peers. Ask your customers to focus on the challenges that caused them to look for a solution like yours. By being specific with their story, they can help you move potential customers through their own buyer’s journey.
- Look for your customers’ evergreen content. Although social media appears to have a one-and-done facade, some of the best content to post is evergreen content, such as customer case studies, white papers and other customer content that has staying power. By repurposing your client’s content over and over, you’re helping them get more eyeballs, and therefore more bang from their marketing dollars. If you have your own case studies that involve these clients, make sure to post these as well. One rule of thumb: Try to keep content recent, i.e., under one year old, if possible. If a customer produces a quarterly report, for example, it makes sense to post the most recent one, not one from six months ago.
Sharing your customers’ success just makes good business sense. Want to learn more about ways you can turn your social feeds into customer fan zones? Contact Calysto.