Social media has become one of the most effective ways to communicate with customers and colleagues and it’s a way of spreading your brand presence. As with many things, social media has its own rules, regulations and unwritten laws that you could easily come unstuck by. During the holidays, these unwritten laws are very much worth heeding and if you don’t you could see that holiday snow dust blow back in your face. There are certain things you should do, certain things you shouldn’t do and figuring out what those things are can be a difficult task. We’re going to take a look at the some of the big things to avoid and some to embrace this holiday season when online.
Decoration is Digital Too
For families, decking the halls is important and can definitely get the holiday spirit flowing, but it’s also important for your social media pages, too. Halloween might have been an important time to dress up your Facebook and Twitter pages, but the holiday season lasts a lot longer and it’s a lot more important these days.
On Facebook, you can handpick a holiday-themed banner (http://www.pickatheme.com/) image to make your page more appealing to your followers. Perhaps you could even show a family photo of your employees or the team? Failing that, a handpicked image of a Christmas scene always works well. The same goes for Twitter — choose a background that’s appropriate for the season and inviting. It doesn’t really matter what it is, but it should be somehow relevant to what your page is about.
Get the Holiday Spirit Flowing With Giveaways, Competitions and More
If there’s one thing we all love at Christmas, it’s a little excitement in the form of something that brings us all together. There’s no better way to do this on social media than by hosting a giveaway — perhaps for something you stock or produce. Giveaways are great to get more people to your page, but throw in a holiday theme and people will be sharing the good vibes all over the internet. Don’t forget to treat Facebook, Twitter and Google+ with similar amounts of attention, though, and don’t be afraid to try something different at this time of year.
Make sure, though, that whatever you do in order to celebrate the season of giving, that you don’t go over the top. Keep things subtle and professional. You definitely don’t want to look like you’re “cashing in” on the holidays.
A company that sells auto parts( http://www.cjponyparts.com/) has some suggestions that have worked well for them this time of year. They say, on Twitter, you can try to create your own hashtags to celebrate the holidays and it can be a great way to boost your number of followers. Again, don’t take things too far and keep things lighthearted and fun.
Raise Your Interaction Levels
In the vast majority of the world, the holiday season brings with it cold weather, snow storms and more. This essentially makes it the perfect time of year to stay at home with a laptop, which gives you more active users to get talking.
By engaging in more customers and Christmas, you can portray yourself as a fun brand that likes to engage with their followers. This is never more important than it is on Twitter, where only thriving handles become successful and stay successful. The cold holiday season is a great way to get people talking about your brand and turning new people onto your shares.
Guest post by Courtney Gordner!
courtney.gordner@gmail.com
Courtney Gordner is a passionate blogger who loves sharing her insights into social media and marketing. Read more from her on her blog, www.talkviral.com
Twitter: @CourtGordner
