Social Media: Yes, Their Opinions Count

Social media has become one of the most predominant tools available in the marketing arena, thanks in large part to its unmatched ability to reach a variety of audiences worldwide. Its effectiveness in reaching global markets makes it an extraordinarily powerful tool when it comes to marketing. It’s no surprise that many businesses are placing a greater focus on attracting those they think might be interested in their products. However, entrepreneurs might be missing an important group of people who can push their social media efforts even further: friends and family.

It’s one thing for someone who runs a business to spend time with friends and family, but when it comes to sharing information and media through social media, friends and family are often left along the wayside in favor of highly targeted marketing. While that’s not a bad thing in of itself, entrepreneurs may be overlooking opportunities that could improve the overall effectiveness of their efforts. It’s important for these business leaders to step back and see for themselves the importance of sharing with friends and family, as well as what it can help achieve.

Positive Feedback

Boiled down to its bare essence, social media consists of people talking to other people. When they speak, their voices are heard by dozens, hundreds or even thousands of people who might be interested in what they’re doing. Being focused on the people who might be interested in what a business has to offer is par for the course, but entrepreneurs run the risk of leaving out a number of voices outside of that scope, voices who are equally interested in the business and capable of spreading the word far and wide.

Sharing media with friends and family might not be first and foremost on the entrepreneur’s mind, but there are plenty of benefits that can go a long way towards helping businesses get the message out to their customers. For starters, friends and family can provide some well-needed feedback about the information and content being shared. If the message or content needs a better focus or if it sends the wrong signals to potential customers, it’s better for friends and family to catch it and offer their feedback before it’s sent out to the public at large.

Spreading the Seeds Far and Wide

Another benefit of sharing information with friends and family first lies in the way it can trigger a cascade of organic interest once it’s shared beyond that immediate circle. For instance, once you’ve shared your media with a close relative or friend, that person ends up sharing it with someone else who finds it interesting, and so on and so forth. The end result is an organic spread of information that captures the genuine interests of scores of people outside of that circle.

A recent AOL-Nielsen study sheds light on the close-knit social media sharing phenomenon. For instance, the study discovered that most people prefer to share content with close friends and family. Most social media sharing happens among a small network of friends, family members, and in many cases, colleagues. The bottom line is that people want to share information from people they trust. When a business’s message is delivered through a close-knit network of trusted individuals, it makes it more likely for their message to be heard by others.

https://www.businessesgrow.com/2011/08/10/social-media-gold-lies-in-the-inner-circle/

https://www.tnooz.com/2012/10/22/news/friends-and-family-most-influential-for-hotel-tripadvisor-catches-up-but-apparently-social-media-nowhere/