A Lesson on Sharing

What can we learn about sharing? This seems more of a kindergarten topic than marketing tips for successful contractors. Yet sharing is in. In fact, social media marketing is most effective when people “share.” In the case of Facebook, that means someone has liked, commented on or shared your post so that it appears in their own news feed. Then you’ve grown exposure from your own fan base to the friends of fans.

Why do people share? One possible reason is that they feel genuinely connected to your company. Sure, that could be your mother always sharing your posts, but also staff, personal friends, people from your church, and so forth. Don’t knock it. People like to call on people they know or who know someone they know. Additionally, customers can develop a personal connection to your company because you’ve blown them away – perhaps through a lifesaving CO detection or an emergency service call that saved the day.

How do you encourage sharing? First, add sharing features on your site – like Twitter or Facebook icons. But don’t stop there. Rather than just hoping people will share your website, encourage the sharing of specific articles, blogs, educational info, tips and warnings, etc. by posting a sharing button at the end of these pieces. People are more likely to share something specific than general.

You don’t have to add everything at once. You can roll out the buttons gradually, highlighting and giving instructions for using the buttons.

Track shared metrics. Once buttons are active, monitor how visitors are using the feature. For example, track how many times users clicked on a share button. To monitor what happens after that is more of a challenge, but you can use a URL shortening system, for example, to track how many times that particular shared page has been accessed. Also, measure in-bound traffic from social networks.

SPECIAL INVITE: This month we have featured experts Melissa Broadus and Christine Cunnick, ACCA’s very own marketing gurus on their call, “8 Common Web Marketing Failures Contractors Make Every Day” that KILLS their rusults. Go ahead and SAVE YOUR SEAT for the call here. ONLY 255 lines available. Don’t get left behind and miss out on this goldmine of profit-boosting content.