How To Personalize Social Media

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Before I begin…. if you’re interested in blogging for small businesses, this article is for you as well!

Hello, there. It’s your self-professed social media maven, again! Writing about a topic I think most small businesses fail to implement while trying to market to locals (or, globally for that matter). I am going to give you a couple of examples of how you can engage your clients, site visitors and/or blog subscribers, just like the old days.

Remember when years ago, we remained loyal to the local butcher? Ok, ok, terrible metaphor for this animal loving Vegenista- but I am trying to make this relatable. Why? Because your local butcher remembered your mother’s name, your grandmother’s name, your father’s favorite cut of meat (sorry if I am not using correct terminology, I am not a meat eater)! He always asked about your family members, he was marketing while being genuine! He would tell you about the specials coming up, while sending a sample on the house with you. Believe it or not, things are not much different today!!!! Sure the demographics have changed. Geography too. Years ago you could walk down two streets to get to the local market; today, if you don’t own a car, you better wear your favorite walking shoes, and apply copious amounts of sun-screen. However, the concept of catering to people with genuine intentions, with the hope of building solid business relationships has not changed!

Let’s go over some examples:

• Take a local small taxi company owner in Hollywood Beach, Florida. Rather than just having a website serve as a business card (let’s face it, a website without a blog, is just that- an online business card!), this small business owner is catering to his clients’ needs. The majority of them are tourists. What are tourists most interested in? Attractions, entertainment, and restaurant recommendations. Guy’s Hollywood Beach Taxi Service, offers all of the above! Instead of just offering a taxi service, my clients makes an effort to give them all the information they may need, right at their fingertips. It’s not much different from the butcher scenario I gave you. Same concept. Different times. Different method. Same results!!!!
• Take Sydney! Faye-Davis (a spectacular realtor specializing in Williams Island real estate). Just on a side note- if you love fashion and style!, you must subscribe to her blog. She helped get Harpar’s Bazaar get off the ground, so if anyone knows anything about style and luxury, it’s Miss Sydney! herself. Ok, I digress, I know…………….. If you check out her website, you will see that she writes about other topics, not just rentals or sales at Williams Island. She writes about all things that may affect the island’s residents, such as assessments. She writes about the tennis club. The updated summer dinning schedule. If you love your Birkins, Sydney! just wrote an article about how Hermès’ employees were found to be participating in counterfeit merchandise. Considering that the majority of residents at WI are wealthy, Sydney! writes about subjects that would interest them- money and designer labels. She literally caters to each resident’s interest through engagement, and genuine desire to purvey the latest news.
• Let’s look at Miami’s best authentic European med spa- Bay Harbour Med Spa. Instead of just selling treatments such as acne facials and products, we try to educate the public about preventive measures by writing informative articles, so that one can avoid getting bad acne. Ok, I must admit, I am biased in this case. The owner of this fab establishment, is my amazing European-borne and educated, glamorous mother. I help run all aspects of the marketing for her business. In this instance, I am able to gauge the success of what we do on a day-to-day basis. In the last year, my mom’s website has garnered over 30,000 visitors. A lot of them land on pages because they are looking for a home remedy. There are locals that can afford her services, and many that cannot. However, because we openly share preventative skin care tips, we have had quite a few new clients walk through the door, because they remembered an article they read about two years ago. Most med spa websites talk about themselves; not about the prospective clients. As Julia Roberts said in the movie Pretty Woman to the snauty saleswoman- ”Big mistake. Big. Huge. I have to go shopping now.” My favorite scene in the movie. We talk about the client, cater to the client, and focus on the client’s needs at ALL times- that whether today, next week, or next year, the return on investment dividends are exceptional!
• Need another example? Roberta Shapiro, a mental health therapist based out of Miami Beach, provides her blog visitors with a free eBook to help reduce anxiety. The butcher knew you by name. Do to geography we don’t have that luxury anymore. However, Mrs. Shapiro knows the plight of those suffering from anxiety, so she provides them with tools. Thus, many of her readers, end up purchasing her Sleep Solutions meditation CD, as well as her other Calming Collection products.
• Last example. Take my clients in Sarasota; they provide home concierge services. Part-owner, Leighton Klevana, writes about tax issues affecting second or vacation homes. Now who is not concerned with taxes? Anyone I know is!! Most of his subscribers, have become active on the website because of this very topic.

Suddenly, the local butcher is a global one, but with a down-the-street kinda feeling! I’ve given you plenty of examples. I hope you are able to think outside of the box, engage your current and future clients, and go back to the ol’ way of doing things, with a dash of modern-day social media marketing tactics.

Are you getting the point now? Feel free to comment (bottom of this page) if you agree, disagree, confused. Or, wanting advice on blog topics for your own site.

Cheers,

Anabelle Taub