2015 is here and that means that we’ve got a new year to take a look at some new tactics to help grow our businesses. So let’s discuss some ways that you can take advantage of some Social Media tactics to gain customers.

1: Facebook Referrals

This is a big one. If you’ve been following us on Facebook, you’ll see that we’ve really been pushing the importance of finding a way to get your customers to talk about your products on Facebook. This matters because people are more inclined to purchase something based on the recommendations of friends and family either online or in person. We’ve all seen those friends on Facebook that ask for recommendations on which laptop or phone to buy, and the countless friends and family that chime in with which products they prefer or recommend.

So, how do you get your customers to talk about your products? Well first, deliver them something of quality, make sure whatever it is that you’re selling is well made and gives them the satisfaction of knowing that they made the right purchase. Then, encourage your fans to like and follow you on whatever social media sites you’re on. Also, don’t be afraid to offer some discounts or rewards for recommendations. For example, for every new customer that they refer, you can offer a discount on their next purchase or a small gift certificate.

2: Following Your Audience

Recently, we discussed how Facebook use for teens is on a steady decline. Now is the time to take action and determine which networks your audience is on. Are you a B2B company? You may want to start investing your time and efforts into LinkedIn or Open Forum. Are you trying to sell items to a younger audience? Instagram, Pinterest and now Snapchat are growing platforms that you can use. Think about the typical gender, age, lifestyle interests and geographic location of your ideal customer, then make sure you’re on social networks that cater to a similar audience.

3: A Commitment to Customer Service

There have been plenty of times that I’ve had an issue with a company, and the best way that I found to get my issue fixed? Sending them a tweet. I once had a problem with an unnamed shipping company who seemed to have lost a package of mine, and while I sat on hold with the company, I went ahead and vented a little bit of my anger over twitter. Before I was able to get a response over the phone, I had a direct message from the company’s Twitter account whose manager was able to contact me directly and sort out my problems.

That prompt and helpful service over Twitter really helped ease relations between me and that company, in fact the next day the rep called me to make sure I knew that my package was on its way and messaged me in the afternoon to make sure it got there safely.

So in 2015, set a goal to be attentive and proactive over social media, alert your customers to any stock issues that you may be experiencing and always be ready to respond and act to a problem, no matter what time of day it is. A good first step is to make sure you are using a social monitoring service to make sure you know when people are talking about you online.

4: Avoiding Over Promotions

The problem that a lot of companies face is the issue of over promoting themselves on Social Networks. Facebook has already started cracking down on it, and it got a lot stricter after January 1st. If your company is posting too much about itself, or just trying to drive links to its own site, Facebook WILL drop your reach. So how can we counteract this?

Make your Facebook page informative, yet still on topic with your industry. Share news stories, statistics, and other cool developments to your followers. Also try to post photos that are organic and just show off your business without trying to post links to bring people to your page. If you do these things well, and then sprinkle in a link here or there to your own pages, you’ll see a lot more reach and engagement from your customers.

In 2015, let’s make our number one goal on Social Media to serve our customers with high quality service, products and shopping experiences. Let’s also make sure that we’re following the best methods of reaching our fans and always staying flexible enough to adapt to any changes that the year may bring.