How To Select The Right Social Media Consultant For Your Business

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You’re probably well aware that social media websites like Facebook and Twitter are becoming an increasingly important and some would even say essential part of the business world.

You might have even set up a Facebook account or Twitter feed for your company already, in order to make sure that you’re doing everything possible to make your company a success.

But what if your social media efforts aren’t paying off quite as well as you had hoped?

What if you don’t even have a Facebook page or Twitter feed because you don’t know where to start?

Many companies have used social media consultants to help solve these problems.

There are many different consultants who are willing to try to help your company, so how do you choose the best one for you?

Before you start the process of finding a consultant, it’s a good idea to have a general idea of what you want to accomplish through your company’s social media efforts.

Note: This really only needs to be a broad outline – you don’t need to have any details in mind because that’s why you’re hiring the consultant in the first place!

Do you want to generate sales directly through social media outlets, or are you looking to increase your brand awareness so that your sales staff can perform better?

Are you looking to use Facebook and Twitter to help you launch new products and services, and generate “buzz” around them?

Different social media consultants have different focuses and areas of expertise.

Like me – I focus on teaching you how to monetize your social marketing efforts.

While you should consider as many different consulting firms and individual consultants as your schedule permits, focus on those consultants who most often assist companies with the types of campaigns that you think you might be interested in.

You also might want to consider how you want the social media campaigns to look.

If you’re fairly confident that you don’t want an “over the top” or “cutting edge” promotional campaign, then you probably want to avoid the consultants and firms that specialize in that type of work.

A consulting firm that has been spectacularly successful in promoting snack foods and energy drinks to teenagers might not be the best solution for your company if you’re in the business of selling supplemental insurance products to retirees.

Ask to see examples of recent work each agency has done for any similar client.

There may be situations where the agency has a confidentiality agreement in place with its client, and is prohibited from disclosing this information, but there should be plenty of other examples that they can give you.

Also ask each potential agency how it determines whether the campaigns they originate are successful.

In other words, what metrics do they use to determine whether they have done a good job?

Is it simply the number of “Likes” that they generate for a client’s Facebook page, or the number of Twitter followers they can bring?

Or do they have use other measures as a goal, such as bringing qualified leads to their clients’ websites?

While it’s essential to ask the consultants for this information, don’t neglect to do your own research.

Google is a great resource for finding out what others are saying about these consulting firms.

Use a critical eye to identify and discount the “puff pieces” that aren’t likely to be entirely objective.

The companies you’re evaluating know how to navigate and manipulate social media properties, after all.

I hope that this information has been helpful to you and if so I’d love to hear about it!

Please leave me a comment letting me know at least one tip that you plan to use immediately because you’re know it will make a difference in your business.

Have an amazing day!

Pam Lawhorne

If you’re tired of trying to figure out how to make your business successful online, then apply for my More Profits Online Strategy Session today!