The Bottom Rail by Verbal Shredwright
Posted April 01, 2016
ANTI-SOCIAL MEDIA
When was the last time you went skiing or snowboarding and didn't see people texting, taking pictures and posting on social media? This is the modern customer... like it or not... social media has changed when, where and how consumers get their information. Today's consumers can find out what's happening, where it's happening and what ACTUAL customers are saying about in real-time and on-demand. Social Media Hashtags, Timelines and more provide instant access anywhere... anytime... on their smart phones, tablets and other devices. They don't need to pick up a newspaper or brochure...and they don't need to watch local TV or listen to the radio anymore either. Smart phones and social media applications make more actionable information available to consumers then just advertisements and media spin.
Skiers and snowboarders have smart phones, go pros and other smart devices... and all designed with the idea of sharing images, opinions and more. Unsolicited endorsements from real customers will always out weigh the value of any ad agency campaign. Today's audiences are smart enough to realize ads are a form propaganda designed to showcase the best a business or brand has to offer...and that's what they are supposed to do. Many forms of media beholden to their advertisers because that is how they pay the bills...so that means the media in most instances will protect their investments at the expensive of the consumer simply using the excuse of it's business... or buyer beware. But, today social media enables the customer to call the business or brand out publicly if they fail to live up to the claims they advertise.
As ski resorts have grown so have the number of lodging, dining, retail and other options. Social media and other applications make faster and easier to locate what you are looking for when you are looking for it. Many places have comment cards or ask for feedback on their websites...so why would they not want that feedback now? Most businesses have a website, brochures and other ads, but the deciding factor can ultimately be the unfiltered feedback, opinions and endorsements from real customers on social media. Even a bad experience can be turned into a social media positive simply by being able to respond to customers via social media. Acknowledging and responding appropriately to social media posts can demonstrate a level of professionalism and attentiveness to the customer that even the best advertisements cannot.
You can reach customers in your lobby and around the world for free via social media. Why would you disregard your current customers and discourage future customers by ignoring them. No one cares if the owners or managers don't like it or don't want to use it. The customers are already using it. It seems some businesses prefer to bury their heads in the sand or snow as the case may be... and ignore their customers and the real world all around them. In the past businesses used to ignore many emails where customers complained, and no one ever found out. But today everyone can find out about all the problems at a business before the owners and management ever hear about them if they're not using social media effectively.
If you're in business... and want to stay in business... you might want to know what customers are saying about your business.
Your customers already have social media accounts and use them... So why wouldn't you?