Category: Social

Social

Top 5 Social Media Tips for Small Businesses

Post author By Rallio
Post date February 10, 2021

With our recent addition of Rallio Local for Small Business division at Rallio, we’ve been working with small businesses to help them optimize their social media pages. More often than not, we offer the same social media tips for small businesses over and over again.

Most small-business owners are so busy running their companies that they don’t have much time left over for social media marketing. Rallio helps them wear fewer hats and make a greater impact on social media. With our social media tips, technology and teamwork (hello, alliteration!), we’ve helped hundreds of business owners use social media to their advantage.

The following social media tips represent the five most common opportunities for greater success on social media.

#1 Post Local Content

Great social media marketers have local content at the forefront of their marketing efforts. As we discuss in this article: “The key element that makes local social media, well, local, is that it shows the real side of your business.”

Local posts consist of snapshots of the owners, employees, customers, product recommendations, how-tos, and other authentic-feeling images and videos.

It’s the difference between a post with a stock photo or a sales graphic versus a real photo or a video of a team member. When you see it, it’s instantly more relatable and engaging than something that feels like you’re being sold to.

Having local content on your page improves your engagement rates and reach with your target audience. As you post this content and boost it, you’ll ensure more of your content gets seen than it would with organic reach alone.

Make sure you:

Post real images and videos of your team, your products, your customers and your location.
Avoid stock photos.
If you’re a franchisee receiving corporate branded content, be sure you are also posting local content at least three or four times a week.
Read 31 Days of Social Media Content Ideas for more ideas.

Read the post: 7 Habits of Highly Successful Social Media Marketers

#2 Engage Your Employees as Brand Advocates

One of the fastest-growing trends in social media is employee advocacy, in which employees become loyal ambassadors for your brand. With more and more companies adopting employee advocacy programs, you might be wondering what types of content your employees should be posting for you.

Although branded content has its place, it should not be the bulk of what’s shared via employee advocates.

On the contrary, it’s the unpolished, unbranded types of content that will earn the greatest engagement on social media. This content showcases the authentic, human side of your business and is more likely to earn the trust and affection of your audience. Moreover, these types of content are more likely to be shared by your employees on their personal pages.

Own a coffee shop? The barista behind the counter will resonate more with your audience than a branded photo of coffee beans. It’s that simple. No matter what type of business you have, you need hyper-local content of your team members and their typical “day in the life” photos at work.

As employees post about your company on their personal pages, they’re doing more than just generating greater engagement for your accounts. They’re also actively contributing to the building of positive sentiment about your brand. The more that prospective customers and future team members see this content, the more they begin to view your company as likeable, trustworthy, and even socially and environmentally responsible under the right circumstances.

Read the post: The 4 Types of Content Your Employees Should Post for You

#3 Respond to Online Reviews

The cost of ignoring customer service issues can be huge. Nothing will tarnish your online reputation faster than reviews without responses from the brand, comments and messages that get ignored, and poorly crafted responses to customer questions or complaints.

Your response time matters, too. Consumers expect rapid answers — just as rapid as if they picked up the phone and called. Within minutes is ideal if you have the bandwidth, but you should at least be responding within 24 hours.

With a system for responding to customer inquiries, you can handle their requests quickly and build customer loyalty. You’ll also make it known that you’re a trustworthy brand when you post public responses to reviews, questions or complaints.

Read the post: 4 Social Media Marketing Lessons Learned in 2020

#4 Outsource Anything You Can’t Do Yourself

Here at Rallio, we’re on social media all day, every day. We live, breathe, eat and sleep social media. That’s because it’s our business to do so — just as it’s your business to live, breathe, eat and sleep your own business.

So if you’re busy running your own business, it’s likely that you don’t have the time to manage your social media. You also might not particularly want to manage this task, much less become an expert in it.

That’s all OK, because when you outsource, you can hire people who are experts in social media like Rallio. You don’t have to waste time or resources on something that draws you away from your core functions as a business owner.

Rallio, an Entrepreneur Top Franchise Supplier and an Inc.com fastest-growing company, has earned nationwide recognition for its service of the franchise sector, from corporate down to the franchisee level. With its new Rallio Local for Small Business division, Rallio is able to lend its expertise to small businesses that are independently owned and operated.

Read the post: Should You Outsource Your Small-Business Social Media? 4 Compelling Reasons It Makes Sense

#5 Use Technology to Automate

Rallio’s solutions include a social media management platform where users can access and manage all their social media accounts, in one central dashboard with a single login. Along with a mobile app, the platform enables clients to upload and schedule content, implement employee advocacy programs, reply to comments, messages and reviews, and much more.

Basically, Rallio makes small-business social media management a much smoother, easier process. Rather than having to log in to multiple platforms with different logins, you can simply log in to your Rallio Dashboard.

You’ll also avoid letting anything slip through the cracks like a negative customer review or an important sales lead. Everything will be in your inbox to review and respond to.

Read the post: Should You Outsource Your Small-Business Social Media? 4 Compelling Reasons It Makes Sense

Want More Social Media Tips? Get in Touch With Rallio

If you’re looking for more social media tips, we’re here to help. Our Rallio Local for Small Business division is an extension of our existing social media management and marketing solutions. As a top-ranked provider of social media technology, employee advocacy and local social media services, we’re thrilled to be offering our all-in-one social media solutions to small, independently owned businesses.

If you’re ready to outsource your small-business social media and focus on other parts of your business, contact localsales@rallio.com, and visit www.rallio.com/getlocal or www.rallio.com.

Tags social media marketing

Social

Why Employee Advocacy Works for Even the Most Unusual Businesses

Post author By Rallio
Post date February 5, 2021

If you’re familiar with employee advocacy, then you might be aware of some of the benefits. By engaging your employees as brand ambassadors on social media, you’re able to increase engagement and reach for your brand. Employees who share both their own images and videos, along with those of your brand, help to spread the word — often more organically and effectively than brands sharing content from their own pages.

That being said, we know there are still companies that are reluctant to implement an employee advocacy program. Whether they aren’t familiar with the concept, or they don’t want to devote resources toward it, or they don’t believe it works for their particular industry, there are businesses that haven’t embraced the concept of employee advocacy.

As such, we’ve devoted this blog post to explaining how employee advocacy can work for any type of business — no matter how odd. It might just get you thinking how an employee advocacy program could benefit your business.

Note that the businesses mentioned in this article are for example purposes only and not to point out the existence or lack thereof of any type of employee advocacy program. Rather, we’re simply demonstrating that there are, in fact, lots of unusual businesses out there — and having some fun with describing how we’d approach employee advocacy if this were our own business.

Custom Spuds

Who knew there was a demand for potatoes with custom messages on them, sent in the mail to special someones? Potato Parcel did. That’s right — the company, which touts its one-of-a-kind potatoes as “The Most Unexpected Gift in the Mail,” will imprint custom messages or images on a potato and deliver it to anyone you’d like. They even got Shark Tank on board with their concept.

The company claims “100% laughter or confusion guaranteed.” Sounds about right.

Kinda makes you want some French fries, no?

But seriously though, imagine the employee advocacy posts for this one. Let’s say James from Potato Parcel sends his girlfriend a Valentine’s Day Potato Bundle. He films the exact moment she opens the gift and posts this on his Instagram Stories, tagging @potatoparcel.

Now James’ friends see the Story and think it’s hilarious. They start thinking about potential potato recipients. Next thing you know, they’re following @potatoparcel and ordering a Potato Birthday Bundle for their buddy.

The more potato-promoting people on the Potato Parcel team, the more laughter and confusion will ensue. And of course, the more Potato Parcel will grow.

Eyewear for Your Fur Buddy

In a world where dogs are family and not just pets, it should come as no huge surprise that Doggles exist. Imagine playing a game of Frisbee on a sunny day and having your pup struggle to make a catch because the sun is in his eyes. Or imagine having a dog who needs prescription eyewear so she’s not bumping into furniture all day long.

Here’s where Doggles (goggles for dogs) come in.

This concept screams “social,” and we’d venture to guess they have team members whose pups are proud owners of several pairs of Doggles. All they need to do is head out to the park and snap some photos and videos as their fur babies run around wearing Doggles, nailing every Frisbee catch. Or capture the moment their vision-challenged pooch slips on prescription Doggles for the first time.

Tag Doggles in the post, and there you have it: lots more people seeing Doggles and deciding they better get some nice eyewear for their doggos. It’s the content we didn’t know we needed — and we’re soooo here for it.

Employee advocacy is easy when you have a cool product like Doggles. Judging from their Facebook page, people — and their pups — are loving them, too.

Weddings on Wheels

Nowadays, nearly everything you could ever want can be ordered online and delivered to your door. Whether you’ve got a craving for wings or, hey, you want to order a complete wedding on wheels, you don’t have to look far to find what you need in just a few clicks.

Las Vegas Wedding Wagon, for one, will come directly to the happy couple with a wedding officiant, a photographer and even a witness if needed. Starting at $129, the Wedding Wagon is a convenient, no-frills option for couples that want to avoid the high costs and stress of planning a big wedding.

The @lasvegasweddingwagon Instagram shows how easy it can be to get hitched and still keep it classy. Imagine how beautiful this Red Rock Canyon ceremony must have been for this couple.

For the team members who make these events happen, there’s an opportunity to capture special moments on camera and share them with their network. (Note that businesses who use Rallio Activate for their employee advocacy program have built-in model release forms in cases like these where there would be a need to get permission to post.)

Employee Advocacy Works for All Types of Businesses

The businesses above are just a few examples of how employee advocacy could be used, even in unusual businesses. What type of business do you have? How do you think your team members could help spread the word? The Rallio Activate platform is designed specifically to help organize assets, activate employees to be brand ambassadors, expand brand reach and engagement, and reward and incentivize employees who contribute.

And it doesn’t matter if you sell everyday widgets or you’re participating in a Squirrel Census. Every type of business and industry can use employee advocacy. That’s because behind every business, there are real people doing real things, and that’s what makes a business interesting.

If you read through our case study of how one of our clients has made use of Rallio Activate for employee advocacy, you’ll see how effective and cost-efficient it can be. Schedule a no-obligation demo of Rallio Activate to learn more and see how it can benefit your business.

Tags employee advocacy

Social

Case Study: How Rallio’s Employee Advocacy Platform Boosted Engagement for Pet Supplies Plus

Post author By Rallio
Post date January 29, 2021

Pet Supplies Plus (PSP) is a multi-location retail franchise organization with over 520 locations nationwide. As the preferred technology supplier for PSP, Rallio provides the social media SaaS and employee advocacy platform needed to manage, schedule, optimize and grow the chain’s entire social media presence — from corporate down to the location level.

While PSP has competitors in the pet retailer industry, the company’s unique selling proposition is their relationships in their local communities. Customers, and their animal companions, are considered “neighbors” and are treated as such anytime they walk through the doors of their local PSP. When you visit PSP, you can expect friendly service, helpful answers to questions, and plenty of love for any animal friends who accompany their humans on their visits.

With the rise in use of social media, particularly during the pandemic, PSP needed a way to generate more hyper-local images from team members in order to properly showcase individual locations on their social media pages. These images would provide the visual proof of PSP’s commitment to their local communities and their neighborly approach to providing the highest quality pet supplies and services. The assets would also further PSP’s reach on social media — with content shared by employees receiving up to eight times the engagement of content shared on brand channels.

Challenge

PSP had already been utilizing Rallio’s software and mobile app to automate their content scheduling, ad boosting, review responses and engagements on their local social media pages. Yet PSP stores needed to generate more hyper-local photos and employee advocacy posts from team members.

At the same time, PSP owners did not want to provide full Rallio admin login information to team members. Rather, they needed a way to allow team members to submit their own photos via limited logins — photos they were already snapping from their own phones and sharing via their own networks on social media. Furthermore, PSP needed to incentivize PSP team members to share content on their personal pages, thereby extending their reach on social media.

Solution

To address the challenges above, Rallio first developed limited logins enabling employees to submit photos. With a built-in model release form and easy-to-use functionality, the app simplifies and streamlines the process of taking in-store photos/videos, uploading them with comments, and submitting them.

The robust limited logins were rolled out to all PSP locations and team members in 2018. Then, Rallio launched a 30-day pilot program with six different PSP locations on Rallio Activate, a fully mobile employee advocacy platform that enables brands to engage employees as brand ambassadors. Using Rallio Activate, PSP would collect team members’ photos and videos in one central image library, allowing the brand to build a robust database of employee-generated content for use on local PSP pages. They were also able to activate team members to share brand-approved assets on their personal pages.

Along with the simplicity of uploading, Rallio Activate enables PSP to encourage more uploads by incentivizing team members — awarding them with $10 gift cards for uploading at least 10 images or sharing at least three pieces of content to their personal profiles. The entire process was automated through Rallio Activate, with no extra work required by PSP.

Results

Since the rollout of the limited mobile logins over two years ago, 3,395 PSP team members have been activated, equating to 173,513 images and videos submitted. Ultimately, these uploads have resulted in over 2,541,965 social media engagements (such as likes, comments, clicks and shares) from posts, which leveraged those assets that PSP otherwise would have not received.

With just these six locations alone, the pilot program proved to be successful in activating team members as ambassadors, incentivizing them with rewards, and generating more hyper-local assets. On average, the six Activate pilot locations experienced the following results:

41% increase in local posts created
320% increase in team member logins
816% increase in employee advocacy posts
23% increase in daily engagement

We estimate that if Rallio Activate were rolled out brandwide, PSP would have approximately 8,160 team member logins total, at an average of 16 team member logins per store.

Conclusion: Rallio is the Employee Advocacy Platform You Need

Brands that launch employee advocacy programs with Rallio Activate have an opportunity to expand their reach via their own employees, activated as brand ambassadors. With an employee advocacy platform and a formalized advocacy program, you can expose your brand to more people and extend your brand’s reach.

If you’re ready to launch an employee advocacy program, Rallio can get you up and running. It all begins with helping your employees understand the benefits of sharing content on their social media pages. Contact sales@rallio.com to schedule a no-obligation demo of our employee advocacy platform and get your program up and running in 10 days or less.

Convince & Convert says 83% of Americans are more likely to purchase a product or service that’s recommended by a friend or family member.

Tags employee advocacy

Social

The 4 Types of Content Your Employees Should Post for You

Post author By Rallio
Post date January 26, 2021

Of course, before you get to the posting part, you’ll need to implement an employee advocacy program of your own. We recommend reading our article 5 Big Reasons You Need an Employee Advocacy Program for the hows and whys of advocacy.

As you develop your employee advocacy program, it will be helpful to give your employees some guidelines on the types of content you’d like for them to post. While you want employees to have some freedom to be creative with their posts, you also want to be sure you’re protecting sensitive information and presenting your brand in the best possible light.

Gather together with your employees to brainstorm different ideas, and come prepared to share with them the types of content they should be posting. The five categories below will get you rolling.

Branded Assets

The first obvious category is branded assets that you create and provide to your employees. They might be professionally created marketing graphics or videos, how-to tips about your products or services, contests, events or special promotions.

At the same time you’re creating these assets, consider creating a branded hashtag that employees can use when sharing on their personal pages. A dedicated hashtag about your brand helps to categorize your content and create conversations around your brand. You can also use the hashtag to locate employees’ content that you can then share on your company’s official accounts.

Learn more: How To Encourage Employee Advocacy On Social Media

A Day in the Life at Work

Although branded content has its place, it should not be the bulk of what’s shared via employee advocates. In fact, you’ll see that the remaining four categories do not mention corporate-branded content.

Events In and Out of the Office

Along with day-to-day photos, employees can also share photos and videos from special occasions or events both in and out of the office. Remind them to snap photos of birthdays at the office, team building events, and “national day” holidays (see calendar here) like National Hot Chocolate Day.

Again, you have opportunities to build culture as you’re building awareness. Host “bring your dog to work day” if you’re a pet-friendly company, or host a team lunch on the last Friday of the month. When you find ways to infuse fun into your company, your employees will naturally be more inclined to capture these moments on film and post them to social media.

The coolest part about these types of content — both candid moments and organized events — is that employees’ posts have a way of informing a company’s core values and culture. If employees are happy at work and posting about it, it’s a great indicator that you’re doing something right. If they’re not, and they don’t, it’s an opportunity to right the ship and make sure yours is a company that employees are proud to post about.

Answers to FAQ

Somewhere on your website, you might have a list of FAQ about your company. These FAQ can serve as ideas for the types of content your audience wants to see. Have an employee answer these FAQ, and the questions instantly become more interesting and engaging.

Any kind of company has certain FAQ that customers tend to ask. However, answers to FAQ work especially well for companies that have products or services that require explaining or step-by-step instructions.

If you have a furniture store that sells items requiring assembly, you can have employees be the experts and share their how-to instructions. Not only can your employees upload these videos to their own pages, but you can also use them on your corporate accounts.

Make sure you have clear answers to all your FAQ handy for employees so they’re giving “official” instructions. They’ll be more confident filming answers to FAQ if they have the correct tone and verbiage you want used for various situations. At the same time, encourage employees to use their own words and speak authentically to avoid sounding canned.

What Types of Content Should Your Employees Post?

Although each company is unique in the types of content they want employees to share, the common thread is authenticity. As long as your employees speak and write from the heart, and as long as they’re not sharing information you want kept private about your company, they should be successful as employee advocates.

A few final takeaways:

Create social media guidelines about what employees can and cannot post about
Have a social media policy that states when and how employees may use social media at work
Create a culture of advocacy by partnering with your employees and incentivizing them with rewards for promoting your brand
Use Rallio Activate technology to organize and streamline posting and collecting assets from employees that you otherwise wouldn’t have

The little moments at work are often the most meaningful for your employees. They spend a large part of their day working for you, and employee advocacy allows them to feel recognized, valued and heard.

Tags social media marketing

Social

4 Types of Social Media Influencers to Power Up Your Brand

Post author By Rallio
Post date January 22, 2021

The concept behind social media influencers isn’t exactly new, as brands have long used influential figures to promote their products. Look back into the previous century, and you’ll see Coco Chanel as one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people, or even Santa back in the 1930s getting his caffeine fix with a bottle of Coca-Cola in his hand.

As far as modern-day social media influencers, Instagram as well as TikTok have been largely responsible for their rise in popularity. You can’t open these apps without seeing both familiar and not-so-familiar faces promoting brands’ products and services.

Influencer programs are a cost-effective way to spread brand awareness and increase your engagement, reach and followers on social media. In exchange for their promotional posts, these influencers may be given product, gift cards, affiliate commissions, direct compensation or other rewards, depending on how a company sets up its program.

With visual imagery, short videos and Reels, Stories and Live features, today’s social media apps allow multiple ways to help these social media influencers engage with their audiences. Keep in mind, your influencers can be people not affiliated with the company, or they could be employees who act as brand ambassadors. Rallio has specific technology (Rallio Activate) that helps you activate employees to post branded content on their personal pages, as well as build an image database to pull from.

If you’re wondering what type of influencer you need for your brand, check out the quick rundown below to find the right fit for your goals and budget.

Social Media Influencer 1: Nano

Follower count: 1K to 10K

Who they are: Nano influencers tend to have a highly engaged social media following, and they are vocal advocates for the brands and products they’re promoting. Given their smaller following, they have an opportunity to get to know their followers on a more personal level. Their authentic content and recommendations resonate with their small community, who appreciates nano influencers’ genuine tips and transparency.

Who should use them: Small and midsize businesses are a good fit for these social media influencers. Start with your own network of followers and even employees to identify possible nano influencers who would be willing to work with you.

Social Media Influencer 2: Micro

Follower count: 10K to 100K

Who they are: With 10K to 100K followers, micro influencers have a larger network but are still viewed as relatable, authentic and genuine with their audience, who enjoys engaging with and sharing their content. They tend to have a specialized audience base that’s open to hearing marketing messages about the products and services used by these micro influencers.

Who should use them: Micro influencers work well for specific niches and a highly targeted audience. If you’re looking to create special promotions and sponsorships with your influencers, a micro influencer can be a good fit. Their high engagement rates mean more eyeballs on your content and more opportunities to convert casual followers into loyal customers. To find them, you can again look to your own followers who are already fans of yours, as well as search for certain hashtags related to your brand or niche.

Social Media Influencer 3: Macro

Follower count: 100K to 1M

Who they are: Macro influencers have a much larger network, with anywhere from 100K to 1 million followers. They appeal to a broader audience than micro influencers and may be established bloggers, vloggers, podcasters or social media celebrities who have made a name for themselves. They may also be more disconnected from their audience and won’t have the same personal relationships with their community as someone with a smaller following.

Who should use them: You may have a harder time getting your foot in the door with a macro influencer, who likely gets pitched every day from brands asking for representation. If your brand is more well-established and you’re prepared to meet a potential influx of new orders, then a macro influencer could be right for you. In other words, if you successfully land a macro influencer and they agree to promote your brand, you need to be prepared to meet the demand from new customers.

Social Media Influencer 4: Mega

Follower count: 1M and up

Who they are: Like macro influencers, mega influencers also have a much larger network of 1 million followers or more. They’ve worked to establish their name — they’re either big-time celebs that are household names, or celebrities within a certain niche, like the fitness community. Again, they may be more disconnected from their audience than someone with a smaller following.

Who should use them: You’ll need to have a large budget and an established brand with locked-down distribution to work with a mega influencer. If you’re set on going with a mega influencer, and you’re looking to cast a wider net with your audience, a mega influencer can help you get in front of a lot of potential followers. For small brands just starting out, however, smaller may be better.

Which Type of Social Media Influencer Is Right for You?

For the majority of brands we work with at Rallio, we recommend working with influencers and employee advocates who have a smaller, focused following. Although it can be tempting to dive in and try to work with a macro or mega influencer, you might want to “think small” when you’re just getting started. There will be fewer barriers if you contact people who are eager to represent you and will have a greater influence within their networks right out of the gate.

Rallio Activate provides the perfect platform to create an employee advocacy and influencer program for your brand. We also have a new affiliate program with unlimited earning potential for those looking to earn one-time or recurring commissions off referrals. For more information about either of these options, click here to learn about Rallio Activate, and here to learn about our affiliate program.

Tags social media marketing

Social

3 Surefire Ways to Get Your Social Media Content Ignored

Post author By Rallio
Post date January 15, 2021

Typically here at Rallio, our blog content focuses on practical tips and strategies you can use to amplify your social media presence. Every so often, we get the urge to knock down the guardrails of traditional content and throw a little parody post your way. Beneath the layers of sarcasm, you’ll find nuggets of truth that you can apply to your social media content strategy.

Today, we’re dishing out a gourmet platter of 3 surefire ways to get your social media content ignored. That’s right. If you want people to scroll past your content or not see it altogether, then the tips below are exactly what you need.

Call it keeping you on your toes. Call it word salad. Call it what you will, but just make sure you have a strong beverage of choice in your hand before you start reading. It’ll go nicely with today’s main course.

By the way, we don’t use recipes, but we do use metaphors. Heavily. Buckle up, buttercup.

1. Post Yawn-Worthy Content

When you first gain a follower, that follower might initially see your content in their newsfeed. Want to get rid of them? Just make sure you’re posting yawn-worthy content.

What do we mean by “yawn-worthy,” you ask? It’s pretty self-explanatory — it inspires nothing more than a big yawn upon viewing by an unsuspecting viewer. It might include a typical, generic stock photo, an ill-placed meme, or some type of sales post that’s overly promotional.

All those other pages that are posting local content showing the authentic people behind the business? Sure, they might be hanging on to their followers — even gaining new ones if they keep at it. But while they’re busy posting product spotlights, team member pictures, how-tos, videos and customer testimonials, you can sit back, relax, and shoo away any existing and new followers.

Phew, that’s a relief!

2. Ignore People

There’s another easy way to get your social media content ignored. Simply ignore your followers, and they’ll forget all about you!

If you happen to ignore tip #1 and decide to post interesting, relevant content, there’s a good chance people are going to engage with it. You know the book If You Give a Mouse a Cookie? “If you give a mouse a cookie, he’s going to ask for a glass of milk. When you give him the milk, he’ll probably ask for a straw. …”

The little boy keeps giving that mouse what he wants, and he keeps asking for more, and isn’t the boy tired of catering to that mouse already?

Likewise, if you keep giving your followers what they want in terms of content, they’re going to be vocal about letting you know they want more of it. Likes, comments, shares, direct messages, online reviews — expect it all.

But don’t worry! As with posting yawn-worthy content, you can simply ignore your followers if they post a comment, question or review. The more you ignore them, the more they’ll go away!

3. Lash Out

Now if you decide to ignore tip #2 above — i.e., you respond to people who submit a comment, question or review — there’s another easy way to make sure your content gets ignored: Lash out at anyone who disagrees with you!

This tip is especially useful if someone submits a negative online review. When you respond, make sure you argue publicly with the person. That way, the argument will be out there for all the world to see! (Honestly, why wouldn’t you want to be perceived as an unreasonable, argumentative business owner?)

There’s also the side benefit of scaring away new followers once they see not only a negative review, but also a negative response. Your existing followers might not be too keen on sticking around either! Great news for your “me time” — yet again, you’ll have fewer followers (and customers) to manage!

One Last Anti-Tip for Anyone Who Ignores the Social Media Content Tips Above

OK, you got us. We don’t actually recommend any of the tips above for anyone who actually wants to grow their business on social media.

The truth is, posting great content and keeping your followers takes work, but it’s work that’s worthwhile. With engaging social media content, thoughtful response management, and consistent effort, you can build a following and continue growing your business with the help of social media.

Actually, here at Rallio, we’re in the business of helping our clients create the kind of content that doesn’t get ignored. Their social media content looks like this:

It’s hyper-local, showing the real, authentic side of a business owner, their team and their customers.
It includes a wide variety of posts about team members, product spotlights and how-tos, blog posts, and videos featuring their people and customers.
It’s posted with some frequency, at least three to four times a week.
It sprinkles in promotions and boosted content.

Rallio has perfected the process of creating engaging content, responding to online reviews and making sure our clients’ pages are performing optimally. If you’re ready to make sure your content gets the reactions and results you want, get in touch with us today.

Tags social media content, social media marketing

Social

5 Big Reasons You Need an Employee Advocacy Program

Post author By Rallio
Post date January 6, 2021

If you haven’t set up an employee advocacy program for your company yet, now is a great time to get things rolling as we begin a new year. With employee advocacy, you enable employees to publish branded content to their social media pages.

With a formalized employee advocacy program and the right technology to streamline things, you can expose your brand to more people. By some estimates, you’ll be extending your brand’s reach by 500%.

We’ve written on employee advocacy in the past, and we recommend reading some of those articles (linked below) if you’re looking to establish an employee advocacy program. If you’re in the camp that needs further proof that employee advocacy programs work, then this blog is the one for you.

The list of reasons you need an employee advocacy program is long. To make things easier, we’ve narrowed it down to five big reasons to get on board with advocacy and make it a part of your social media strategy.

1. People Will Trust You More

As we write in this article, third-party endorsements impact buying behavior. Convince & Convert says 83% of Americans are more likely to purchase a product or service that’s recommended by a friend or family member.

It’s not just friends and family who enable trust-building, either. Gartner adds that a lead generated through employee advocacy or social selling is seven times more likely to close than those originating from other lead-gen tactics.

Bottom line is that your followers and their friends and family will trust your brand more if you’re not the one advocating for yourself. If they trust you, they’ll follow you. If they follow you, you’ll have more opportunities to engage with them. Ultimately, you’ll have a greater chance of earning their business.

2. You’ll Get More Engagement

Along with trust comes engagement. Employee advocacy posts will generate more organic reach and expand your network faster than you posting alone. Social Media Today reports that content shared by employees receives eight times the engagement of content shared on brand channels.

Consider the difference between a friend of yours sharing something about their company, versus a company sharing something about itself. You’re probably going to be more interested in what your friend has to say, right? That’s the power of employee advocacy. Not only are you able to crowdsource your social media, alleviating some of the burden of posting, but you also get greater exposure. Win-win.

Additionally, with recent industry shifts toward consumer privacy, employee advocacy will become even more important. Currently, advertisers are scrambling to keep up with Apple’s latest changes to the mobile ad industry — which essentially makes it easier for consumers to opt out of having their data tracked for advertising purposes. With their ability to target consumers curtailed, brands will need to rely more heavily on employee advocacy to get their messages heard.

Learn more: Apple’s seismic change to the mobile ad industry is drawing near, and it’s rocking the ecosystem

3. You’ll Retain Employees

Employees who are part of an employee advocacy program are more likely to be highly engaged themselves. According to Altimeter research, employees of companies that encourage employee engagement on social media are:

27% more likely to feel optimistic about their companies’ future
20% more likely to feel inspired
20% more likely to stay at their companies
15% more likely to connect to co-workers beyond their core teams

It makes sense why employees would feel more engaged if they’re included in the company’s social strategy. It makes them feel valued — like they’re more than just a number. When you include rewards, such as gift cards and other incentives, as part of your employee advocacy program, they’ll feel even more appreciated.

4. You Can Control the Narrative

Your employees are already using social media. Weber Shandwick reports that 98% of employees use at least one social media network for personal use, and of those, half of them are already posting about their company.

With an employee advocacy program, you can syndicate brand-approved content to your employees. And with a technology partner like Rallio, you can make it easy for them to access and share this content via our mobile app. You can also track employee posts on a leaderboard to gameify the process.

Formalizing an employee advocacy program is a natural next step for what’s already taking place. Your employees are posting content about you on their own channels, so why not be involved in deciding what gets shared about your company?

5. You’ll Build a Positive Online Reputation

As you build brand recognition with an employee advocacy program, along with subsequent engagement and reach, you’ll also bolster your online reputation. Followers who become customers will begin interacting with you more as a brand, through online reviews, direct messages, and comments and reactions.

With those engagements, you have an opportunity to engage back by responding to your followers and handling any customer service issues. The more you show you are listening to what your followers and customers have to say, the greater your online reputation will be.

Launch Your Employee Advocacy Program in 2021

To build that understanding, we suggest establishing or updating your company’s social media policy to include guidelines and best practices on social media posting. You can also spell out what types of rewards and incentives you plan to offer.

With your social media policy in place, you can then use Rallio’s Activate platform to bring everyone together in one central dashboard. Request a demo to learn more.

Tags employee advocacy

Social

12 Days of Christmas Captions to Brighten Up Your Social Media

Post author By Rallio
Post date December 15, 2020

This is it, folks. We’re in the holiday home stretch. Now is the time to post local content and reach your followers with the 12 days of Christmas captions below.

We’ve taken the guesswork out of caption writing to help you get this content done quickly. For many businesses, that’s half the battle — creating a caption that makes sense and engages your audience.

The other half is snapping photos or videos, but don’t worry. We’ve got that covered, too.

In a future post, we’ll break down how to write captions in more detail. For now, grab your camera, customize the Christmas captions below to your business, and start posting.

Christmas Captions, Day 1: Post a Favorite Holiday Meal

Somewhere in your phone, there’s got to be a picture of an Insta-worthy holiday meal you made or someone else did. Pull it up. Or order takeout from your favorite local business and snap a photo of your dinner tonight. In your caption, you can give the business credit and tag them, and invite engagement from your followers:

“One of my favorite dishes from [insert name of restaurant]. Post a photo of your best delicious dishes in the comments! One random winner will be selected to receive a 20% discount voucher on a future purchase!”

Fill in the blanks above with the tagged restaurant name and your discount or offer of choice.

Christmas Captions, Day 2: Post a Gift Guide

What products do you sell that you can suggest as gifts? Snap some photos! If you have a service-based business, take photos of the results of your work, or you heading out on a job, or a before-and-after shot.

If you offer gift cards, create a fun display showing a gift card surrounded by holiday decorations. Here’s a sample caption for a product-based business:

“Still looking for that special gift for your mom, brother or bestie? A gift card is the perfect way to let your loved ones choose their own surprise. Grab yours online at [web address], or order through our app for quick curbside pickup.”

Customize the above according to your usual ordering options. If you don’t offer curbside pickup currently, consider offering it.

Christmas Captions, Day 3: Share a Christmas Memory

Dig up a photo of holidays past. Go back as far as your childhood if you like. Describe what’s going on in the photo. Here’s an option:

“Here I am at age 5 in 1987 paying Santa a visit. What do you think I asked for that year?”

Simple as that. If you like, you can pick a winner if anyone guesses correctly.

Christmas Captions, Day 4: Share a Tradition

What’s one of your holiday traditions? Making homemade cocoa and watching Christmas movies? Baking cookies? Looking at Christmas lights? Tell your followers about it!

“One of my favorite holiday traditions is baking Christmas cookies with my family. Here’s this year’s creations! Post your own photos of your favorite traditions in the comments.”

Christmas Captions, Day 5: Give to Charity

At this time of year, there are many local organizations collecting food, toys or essential goods for those in need. Pool your resources and see if you can make a big impact on one of these groups. Take a photo of something you plan to donate, and add a caption such as the following:

“We are currently collecting new, unused toys for [name of charity]. These toys will go directly to local families in need.”

Be sure to post any other details such as the specifications for types of toys and deadlines for donating. Take some photos on the day of your donation as well!

Christmas Captions, Day 6: Take a Team Photo

Gather together with your team and take a photo in front of your location, or inside by your holiday decorations. If gathering is not possible, post a throwback photo instead. Here’s a caption:

“We’re so grateful for our dedicated team members, who work tirelessly every day to serve our valued customers. Wishing you and yours a happy holiday season from all of us at [your company name].”

Christmas Captions, Day 7: Post a Challenge

Pick a favorite Christmas movie of yours and a quote from the movie. Turn it into a fun graphic design using a free tool like Canva.com or your graphic design program of choice. Don’t include the movie title — instead, have your followers guess the movie!

“Name that movie! The first person to guess correctly wins [your choice of freebie or discount].”

If you prefer, you can pick a riddle and have your followers try to guess the answer. Check out a few ideas here.

Christmas Captions, Day 8: Post Your New Year’s Resolutions

Are you hoping to run a marathon in 2021? Or learn to cook? Or volunteer more? Snap a selfie and tell your followers all about your resolutions!

“In 2021, I’d like to run my first marathon — even if it means running it on my own in my hometown! What are your New Year’s resolutions? Post them in the comments!”

Christmas Captions, Day 9: Post a Travel Memory

Have a favorite travel photo from holidays past? Tell your followers about a travel destination you can’t wait to visit again.

“Paris, circa 1998. Looking forward to traveling again soon! What’s on your travel bucket list?”

Christmas Captions, Day 10: Film a Video

Record a Christmas greeting for your followers! Send them some goodwill and cheer for the holidays. Pair it with a caption that will encourage them to click and watch, such as:

“My Christmas wish for all of you — plus a surprise coming in 2021!”

For that “surprise,” it could be a hint at a new product launch, or any kind of fun announcement you’re willing to share.

Christmas Captions, Day 11: Post a Last-Minute Offer

Snap a photo of a few more gift ideas for last-minute shoppers! Tell them your hours and how to purchase — again, consider contactless options such as curbside pickup or local doorstep delivery.

“Still have a few more gifts to buy? We’ve got something for everyone on your list, and we’ll be open today until 8 p.m. Order online for curbside pickup, or pick up an e-gift card in the link. Local delivery available for an additional fee.”

Christmas Captions, Day 12: Relax and Enjoy the Holidays

When the time comes to close your doors and enjoy your holiday, be sure to take a photo or two as you’re relaxing at home. Try a fireside selfie, a glass of wine to say cheers, or a simple picture of your decorations or gifts.

“From my home to yours, Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones!”

Customize Your Captions

The above captions and ideas are a starting point to help you fill your page with engaging content this holiday season. Feel free to tweak them as needed to suit your business and preferences.

And from all of us at Rallio, we wish you the happiest of holidays.

Tags social media marketing

Social

19 Jaw-Dropping Social Media Stats + Action Items for Marketers

Post author By Rallio
Post date December 11, 2020

Social media stats are useful to review as you’re preparing to fine-tune your social media for the new year. If you look at the jaw-dropping social media stats below, however, we’d bet you’ll be inspired to do something about them.

The past year has shown us, more than ever, how important social media is as a marketing medium. In our work with clients at Rallio, we’ve also helped them gain a competitive advantage by optimizing their use of social platforms.

As you read these social media stats, be sure to put the action items into practice. Knowledge is power, but only if you use the knowledge to advance your goals.

General Social Media Stats

Browse the most noteworthy social media stats, and you’ll see that nearly half the world’s population is on social media. That’s over 3.6 billion people worldwide, notes Statista — a number that will grow to over 4.4 billion by 2025. (Some estimates put that figure even higher.)

Those are numbers you simply can’t afford to ignore. Your audience is already on social media, and it’s up to you to capitalize on the opportunity.

Action item: If you lack a social media presence entirely or haven’t put much effort into it, make social media a priority in 2021. Start by posting local content such as real photos and videos, engage with your audience by responding to comments and messages, and make sure you’re responding to online reviews.

Social Media and the Pandemic

Some 93% of U.S. adults say that a major interruption to their internet or cell phone service amid the pandemic would be problematic in their daily lives, according to the Pew Research Center. Although the majority do not see technology as a replacement for in-person contact, they see digital options as an aid during these times.

We’ve seen these statistics play out on social media as people turn to their feeds for the latest updates, inspiration and information from their favorite brands. We’ve encouraged companies to keep marketing themselves with the help of social media.

Action item: When times get tough, that’s not the time to throw in the towel on your marketing. Ramp it up instead to make sure you’re still getting your message out to your followers.

Employee Advocacy

The use of employees and influencers to promote brands continues to be on the rise. Weber Shandwick reports these jaw-dropping social media stats: 98% of employees use at least one social media network for personal use, and of those, half of them are already posting about their company.

These third-party endorsements, so to speak, impact buying behavior. Convince & Convert notes that 83% of Americans are more likely to purchase a product or service that’s recommended by a friend or family member.

Forbes further reports that brand messages shared by employees on social media reach 561 more people than those shared on a brand’s social media channels. They also earn eight times more engagement.

Need some dollar figures to wrap your head around? One November 2020 study in Public Relations Review found a correlation between employee advocacy and sales. “When people are talking about your organization, it helps elevate brand recognition, especially for companies that are in the sales realm and have growing goals,” states one study participant.

Gartner adds that a lead generated through employee advocacy or social selling is seven times more likely to close than those originating from other lead-gen tactics.

Bottom line: The evidence speaks volumes, and the stats above are just a fraction of the research showing the effectiveness of employee advocacy.

Action item: Formalize an employee advocacy program that encourages employees to post brand-approved assets about your business. Gamify the process with leaderboards and rewards. Rallio has technology and tools to help you get it done.

Social Media Advertising

Marketers have tuned in to the effectiveness of social media advertising, something we coach our clients through regularly. Status Brew reports that the total percentage of marketing budgets devoted to social media ads is expected to nearly double by 2023. Moreover, 26% of people who click on Facebook ads end up making a purchase.

Read that again. Twenty. Six. Percent.

That figure doesn’t even account for the percentage of people who end up making a purchase after the fact. That is, ads are just one part of the overall marketing ecosystem that contributes to your lead gen and sales. They might become aware of your company through an ad, see it mentioned by a friend on social media, or come across one of your boosted local posts.

Action item: Define your audience — their demographics, geographic location, interests and other characteristics. Boost high-performing content and local posts, targeted at that audience, to ensure more of your content gets seen than it would with organic reach alone.

Social Media as a Customer Service Channel

In a case of social media hubris, some 80% of companies online believe they deliver exceptional social media service, according to Smart Insights. Only 8% of their customers agree with them.

Smart Insights adds that 21% of consumers prefer to message a brand on social media rather than pick up the phone. And 49% of consumers are likely to unfollow a brand if they experience poor customer service, says Influencer Marketing Hub.

Action item: Use the above social media stats to fuel your customer service on social media. When customers leave online reviews, send direct messages or interact with your content, make sure you respond quickly — ideally, within the hour, but no more than 24. To streamline the process, use technology like Rallio to pull all your engagements into one inbox.

Handle any negative reviews with professionalism — a rude reply will get you unfollowed, too, and could have lasting repercussions. Your remarks could wind up living on indefinitely if your customer shares your response with their network, or if future customers see the interaction.

Social Media Stats on Stats on Stats

There are too many social media stats to mention in this article. If you want to go down a rabbit hole, by all means, don’t let us stop you.

This post needs to stop somewhere, though, so we’ll leave you with a handful of extra social media stats mentioned by Influencer Marketing Hub:

Of the internet users aged 16 to 64, 98% of them had visited or used a social network or messaging app in the past month.
In fact, those same 16- to 64-year-olds are on social media for roughly 2.5 hours a day.
Facebook remains the most popular social network, with 2.7 billion monthly active users.
The top four mobile apps are Facebook, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and Instagram.

When all is said and done, the social media stats above show that opportunities abound for social media marketers. When you partner with Rallio for your social media technology and marketing needs, you can create some jaw-dropping social media stats of your own.

Tags social media marketing

Social

The Year in Review: Our Most Popular Blog Posts of 2020

Post author By Rallio
Post date December 8, 2020

With all the uncertainty and challenges of 2020, we’ve all managed to find moments of motivation, inspiration and hope for a better future. Data on our most popular blog posts of 2020 reveal that our readers want practical social media marketing tips. And they’re learning to navigate the path that’s been laid down in front of them.

Looking back at the past year, we can see a pattern on the types of information that marketers and small-business owners want the most. In case you missed any of the following articles, we’ve included some highlights on our most popular blog posts of 2020. They’re broken down by month (with December excluded, as we’re obviously still in the process of creating content for the remainder of the year).

Give our most popular blog posts a read to review key social media marketing solutions — and get ready to apply them going forward in 2021. Each snippet below gives you a quick glimpse at the topic, but be sure to click over to the full article to be fully informed.

January

What Makes for a Happy Franchisee? Marketing Support Is a Top Factor

Of all our most popular blog posts, this one wins the prize for being the most predictive. We spoke with Michelle Rowan, President and COO of Franchise Business Review, to learn more about the marketing- and technology-related factors that contribute to franchisee happiness. We asked, among other things, “How can franchisees gain a competitive advantage in the marketplace?”

Being that this article was published before the pandemic, Rowan’s response seemed to foretell future events. As we indicated in the post, during uncertain times when there’s potential for an economic downturn, businesses tend to slash marketing budgets first.

“That’s the biggest mistake they can make,” warned Rowan. In actuality, businesses that keep allocating money toward marketing will be better positioned to set themselves apart in any type of economy.

“Spending those marketing dollars and creating that community online and in local markets — that’s your competitive advantage,” added Rowan. “You’re getting a lot of exposure, and it puts your business in a position of strength. It says, ‘Hey, we’re still here and here’s the reason to come to our store rather than theirs.’ ”

For some franchisees, being involved with marketing isn’t something they have the time or desire to do. In that case, outsourcing their marketing can be an ideal way to promote their business while devoting time and effort to the things they enjoy. “If [marketing] is not your skill set, look for an outside partner that does these things well so you can focus on what you’re good at,” advised Rowan.

If a franchisor’s marketing plan is well-planned and well-executed — perhaps with the support of an outside partner like Rallio that has marketing expertise — then it can provide exactly the kind of stability and predictable success that franchisees sign up for when they join a franchise organization.

Some franchisees may think they can do better and go rogue right off the bat, said Rowan, trying to execute a different marketing plan than what the franchisor has provided. That’s a recipe for failure that Rowan recommends avoiding.

Instead, simply follow the proven plan the franchisor provides and the dollars they have allocated toward marketing. “Don’t assume you know better,” said Rowan. “It should be a proven model if you bought into the right brand.”

February

How to Spring-Clean Your Social Media Marketing Strategy

When you don’t pay attention to your social media pages, they tend to accumulate digital “dust” in the same way your windows accumulate dirt. You may notice from time to time that the glass looks a little dirty, but you figure you’ll get to it tomorrow — and then tomorrow turns into next month … turns into next year.

Eventually, you have to either close the blinds and hope no one notices, or tackle the project and get those windows sparkling again.

Make it a priority to give your accounts a thorough vetting, not only in the spring, but on a regular basis. Our checklist will help you prioritize your “spring cleaning” duties across the platforms, polish up your social media marketing strategy and delegate anything you want to get off your plate:

Update your profile and cover photos
Complete your profile
Post local content regularly
Complete your bio
Evaluate your social media spend

March

Social Media Marketing, the Quarantine Edition: How to Pivot When Times Get Tough

Now more than ever, it’s critical that you pay attention to what customers are saying, asking about and commenting on via social media and online review platforms.

There’s been a huge surge in the use of social media and online usage ever since COVID-19 caused the need for social distancing, quarantining and lockdowns for people and communities around the world. eMarketer rightly predicted a boost in digital media consumption across social platforms as people turned to social media to connect with loved ones or access coronavirus news.

With many local businesses having to limit their hours, shift their product or service offerings, or even shut down operations altogether, their customers are now at home, scrolling their feeds throughout the day. That means you not only have an opportunity to get in front of them with local content and remind them you’re still actively engaged with your community, but also generate and respond to your reviews online.

What can you do about it?

Ask your customers for reviews on Facebook, Yelp and other review platforms.
Edit your business listing. You may be able to add a “temporarily closed” or “takeout/delivery available” descriptor to your business name in GMB.
Publish your reviews as posts.
Ask your customers to share their reviews.
Generate your own buzz. Go live on Instagram and Facebook to tell your customers about any changes, limited hours or just to spread some positivity, humor and love!
Pivot. Are you facing unprecedented changes in your business? So now is the time to do unprecedented, miraculous things.
Keep calm and post on. Now is not the time to stop marketing yourself.

April

The Pandemic and Pet Businesses: How Social Media Can Help

You’ve probably heard it said by now that the real winners in the COVID-19 crisis are the dogs. As you’re sheltering at home and spending more time with them than perhaps ever before, they’re blissfully unaware of the pandemic wreaking havoc around the globe.

That goes for cats, too — though they won’t admit it. Really, any kind of animal companion you have at home is probably extremely happy you’re at their side 24/7.

For retailers and pet clinics or shelters providing products and services to our fur babies, there’s an incredible opportunity to connect with pet owners on social media throughout this time of need. Just as we humans need to get to the grocery store for food or to the doctor for certain medical needs, we have to be able to supply the basic necessities and healthcare — and all the treats and toys — for our precious pets.

Many retailers and providers are remaining open during the COVID-19 crisis, ensuring that all our pets’ needs are met. However, at the same time, they are operating under restrictions to ensure social distancing and to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. If you have a pet-related business, this article will specifically help you to pivot your business model, connect with a captive digital audience and even grow your business despite COVID-19.

May

Franchise Social Media Best Practices You Need to Know

Being in business “for yourself, but not by yourself” is the classic allure of franchise ownership. Buying a franchise means buying into proven systems and processes, with a team that’s there for you every step of the way. From your marketing to your operations, you have a plan for starting and growing your business right from the get-go.

What’s not always immediately evident within those systems and processes are the franchise social media best practices. When we start working with clients, one of the first things we’ll take a look at is whether they have any kind of guidelines in place. Then we either add to them or help develop guidelines that work within the framework of our Rallio technology and services.

What we find time and time again is that those organizations that have a system in place from the start are successful at growing their online presence. Those that don’t … aren’t.

With guidelines, it’s clear what franchisees can and cannot do on social media. If you need to develop guidelines of your own for your franchise, we recommend implementing the following franchise social media best practices:

Be grammatically correct
Take videos in good lighting
Make sure we can hear you
Don’t use music you don’t own
Keep it friendly in the face of criticism

June

The Ultimate Guide to Social Media Recruiting

It’s understanding why this one would make the list of our most popular blog posts. With many businesses reopening around the country, there may be an increased need for new hires. Social media recruiting is one of the best ways to find the talent you need and streamline the hiring process.

If you’re looking to fill any vacant spots on your team, there are many ways to use social media recruiting to your advantage. It’s not as simple as creating a job posting and hoping the best candidates start flooding in; actually, a lot of the “recruiting” process will happen before you even make contact with a job applicant.

The Muse reports that 92 percent of companies use social media in recruiting — and 29 percent of job seekers turn to social media as their primary job-seeking tool. In a nutshell, employers and would-be employees alike are checking each other out on social media.

As such, getting your recruiting ducks in a row is extra important in order to source the best talent on social media. Our Ultimate Guide to Social Media Recruiting will help you skip common missteps and put your best virtual face forward for your brand. You’ll save a ton of money over traditional job sites — while also furthering your overall marketing goals. Here’s what you need to do:

Know your platforms
Make it local
Leverage employee advocacy
Manage your online reputation and directory listings
Boost your posts

July

Top 5 Social Media Growth Hacks for 2020

So you took the time to set up your social media pages for your business. Great work! What happens next is critical to your social media success, and you’ll need the right growth hacks to make an impact.

Keep in mind, the single most important factors for your social media success are still:

Posting local content
Boosting content

You’ll need to keep doing both of those things even as you implement the growth hacks we suggest below. Essentially, all of these hacks should circle back to local content and boosted posts.

Try out the growth hacks below to take your social media presence from “meh” to great:

Activate employees and micro-influencers
Go live
Mention other accounts
Get involved in conversations
Check up on your competitors
Think bigger

August

31 Days of Social Media Content Ideas

When it comes to posting regularly on social media, sometimes that’s easier said than done for busy small-business owners. Oftentimes when we talk to franchisees or independent operators, they tell us they’re stumped on content ideas. And getting stumped can mean not posting anything at all.

To help you avoid the dreaded writer’s block and a page with outdated content, we’ve put together an entire month’s worth of content ideas below. You’ll still need to put in a little effort to bring these content ideas to life. However, keeping this list of content ideas handy will take away at least some of the struggle associated with posting to social media.

Keep in mind, your work is not done once you post something to your social profiles. All the content ideas and social media posts in the world won’t mean much if you don’t engage with your followers. By engaging, we mean:

Replying back to their social media comments, direct messages and reviews
Boosting your content to make it more visible to followers and their friends
Handling any customer service inquiries in a timely fashion (yes, social media is a customer service medium)
Responding to job applications if you have an active recruiting campaign
Basically staying on top of your social media 24/7

If all of the above sounds exhausting, and if even these content ideas seem overwhelming, feel free to schedule some time with us. We’d be happy to throw some ideas around of how Rallio can assist with your social media management.

September

October

3 Critical Questions to Ask Before Slashing Your Marketing Budget

If you’re thinking of slashing your marketing budget right now, you’re not alone. Faced with the pandemic and economic uncertainties, many business owners are looking for ways to trim their expenses.

While there may be certain cost-cutting measures you can take, however, your marketing budget should not be one of them. With internet and social media usage at an all-time high, you have an opportunity to reach customers who otherwise would never find you.

“During a March 2020 survey of social media users in the United States, 43.1 percent of respondents stated that if confined to their homes during the coronavirus, they would use Instagram more during that period. YouTube and Facebook were also popular social platforms that users were estimating to increase their usage during physical distancing at home.” — Statista

Although the pandemic has brought about challenging times for businesses and consumers alike, now is not the time to reduce marketing spending. In fact, ramping up your marketing budget could be the thing that pushes you ahead of your competition.

According to Harvard Business Review (HBR): “Companies that have bounced back most strongly from previous recessions usually did not cut their marketing spend, and in many cases actually increased it. But they did change what they were spending their marketing budget on and when to reflect the new context in which they operated.”

So rather than cut your marketing budget, ask yourself these three critical questions. You might find that it’s simply a matter of reallocating your marketing dollars in new and better ways:

Have you pivoted?
Are you satisfied with your share of voice?
Can you better allocate your marketing budget?

November

How to Handle Negative Online Reviews

When you’ve worked hard to build a business, negative online reviews can be a real disappointment. You might do everything right, and some customer, somewhere, will manage to find something wrong. Unfortunately, this is simply a fact of doing business in the 21st century.

At the same time, negative online reviews are a chance to diffuse customer complaints and demonstrate empathy, patience and understanding. You can smooth over the situation while showing the general public that you can handle criticism.

When negative online reviews come your way — and they probably will at some point — there are a few things you can do to make things right. Start by taking a deep breath, and then walk yourself through these tips:

Don’t react
Be professional
Respond quickly
Customize your responses
Be systematic

The Most Popular Blog Posts Are a Great Starting Point

Heading into 2021, you can prepare yourself for the year ahead with a deep-dive into our most blog posts of 2020. Don’t stop there, however. Reading is just the first step; making progress requires action.

As you’re preparing your budget and social media marketing plans for 2021, you have much to consider. The promise of a vaccine and clearer skies ahead means you can be hopeful, but not lackadaisical.

Approach the new year with the same enthusiasm and determination with which you began 2020. Plan for unforeseen circumstances, as well as the changing face of business as we know it.

If our most popular blog posts give you ideas of how to tackle the road ahead, please share the information with your network. And reach out to Rallio if you’re looking for that unicorn sherpa to lead you through what will certainly be more uncertain times ahead.

Tags franchise social media, social media marketing