But what many brands don’t seem to be concerned with is how their social media streams express their brand. Perhaps what they should be asking themselves instead: Do our conversations reflect our brand personality? Is our brand voice being conveyed? Do our posts differentiate us from our competitors? Based on our evaluation, many times the answer is no.
Need an example? Here’s a week of posts from an edgy fashion flash-sale company: Enter to win a trip to this hotel. Enter to win this swimwear. Enter to win this designer hand bag. Can you see a trend? Sure, the brand is giving away lots of free stuff, but there is no expression of brand personality and nothing that differentiates it from the hundreds of other flash-sale companies out there. Not so edgy!
Another example… A fashion retailer, a bank, an online business publication and an insurance company – all with strong brand personalities – have the same exact Facebook posts: What are you doing this weekend? How was your holiday? Don’t forget to set your clocks ahead. All fine posts, but why not infuse some brand personality? Or at the very least, relate these topics back to your brand? I happen to be a liker of such companies on Facebook due to my affinity for the brands and what they stand for. But if there is nothing that distinguishes them, what reason do I have to engage with one over another?
Many companies we speak with know they are challenged in this area and are looking for help to make improvements, while other companies are just not there yet. To those that fall into the latter category, our advice is this: Before you fixate on how you can increase your Facebook liker base, engagement, shares, etc., reflect on the content of your company’s social communications. Are you doing everything you can to express your brand’s individual personality?