If you are on social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and so on) you will probably agree that there is a lot of ‘noise’ on there. There are so many companies, organisations, media outlets and other parties vying for your attention. For business owners, the million dollar question is ‘how do I break through all the noise to reach my customers?’. There are two examples I have come across recently that may provide some answers.

In between reporting incidences and providing relevant community service announcements, the Queensland Police Service interject with timely humorous posts. They joined in the social media excitement of ‘Back to the Future Day’ (in the movie Back to The Future 2, Marty McFly travels forward in time to 21st October, 2015). Their post, “Officers from the Mount Isa Hoverboard Unit are investigating a crash involving a silver vehicle travelling at 88mph” was accompanied by a photo of police officers apparently riding hoverboards. Within 2 hours, the post had nearly 25,000 likes and 1600 comments! What they have very successfully done over time is improve the perception of the Queensland Police Force with the general public by showing a sense of humour and a ‘human face’.

The other surprising social media success story is NSW Premier Mike Baird. Mike posts on a variety of topics, sometimes purely political (as would be expected), and interjects these with stories about (and sometimes photos of) his family, jokes about current events (he also posted about Back to the Future Day!) and videos documenting his days. He also has a knack for eloquently writing about tragic events (such as the recent Parramatta Police Headquarters shooting), sharing his thoughts and feelings in the process. Mr Baird’s friendly, personable and down to earth posts have raised his profile enormously and promoted quite a different image of a politician that what we are generally accustomed to in Australia. Unlike the pages of most politicians, the comments from likers are overwhelmingly positive.

The lesson for the rest of us? Be culturally relevant, be down to earth, share something of yourself and don’t take yourself too seriously all the time – have some fun with your posts!

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

We all have opinions. With the rise of social media, some of us have suddenly found a broader and louder platform to share those opinions. You are probably familiar with the terms ‘trolling’ and ‘keyboard warriors’ in reference to online behaviour, and many of you are likely to have experienced it to some degree.  Trolling generally amounts to bullying, with the ‘trolls’ hiding behind the anonymity of the online world. They use their keyboard to unleash sometimes quite vitriolic tirades against people who in ‘real life’ they would never confront or speak to in that manner.

If someone is clearly being abusive or threatening towards you (or others) on your social media accounts, you should absolutely delete their comments (after taking a screenshot of them for possible evidence if required), and block them from being able to post again.

But there are often more subtle occurrences of online ‘feedback’ that needs to be navigated. If you receive negative feedback or criticism on social media, your first instinct is probably to want to delete it. Why would you want other people to see negative feedback about your business?

However, you need to strongly consider leaving negative (non-abusive) feedback for others to see, because it is your response to that feedback that is going to show others a great deal about your character. If you receive a negative response, as soon as you possibly can, you need to respond to it, even if it is just to say “Thank you for providing feedback on your experience with our business. Can you please send a private message with some more details and we will look into this for you?”

A response like this shows the complainant, and other customers, that you respond quickly, you are willing to listen and investigate, and that you are responding in a measured and polite manner. This will go a long way to repairing any damage that a negative review might have had on your business.

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

Your business is chugging along, you are managing to pay the bills and you have plans for bigger and better things in the future. But how do you get your business to the ‘next level’?

For many years, well before the appearance of social media, marketing experts were telling us all about ‘raving fans’: who they are, how to get them and how essential they are. Before social media, this was a slow process. It required building up rapport with customers, exceeding their expectations and finding ways to compel them (of their own accord) to rave about your business.

While all those aspects are still essential to creating ‘raving fans’, we all now have social media at our finger tips. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and other social media sites provide you with ample opportunity to connect with people and introduce them to your business, and eventually convert them to sales and raving fans.

Before you start you need to plan carefully and research:

-       What types of posts get the best interaction?

-       What times of day/week are best to post (this will vary with different sites) for optimum interaction? For example, posting something at midnight is not likely to be seen by many people.

-       What information will your customers (existing and potential) find most interesting and useful?

-       What percentage of your posts should be ‘sales’? (Tip: not many!)

The answers to these questions are not the same for everyone and there certainly isn’t a strict formula. However, spending time looking at what other successful local businesses are doing on social media will quickly teach you what works.

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

If you’re not using social media in your business, you’re probably sick of hearing that you should be. And I’m not going to be the exception! There are very few businesses who couldn’t benefit from interacting with customers and potential customers via this medium. In case you’re not sure what ‘social media’ refers to, it is websites such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Digg, Google+ and so on. These websites allow you to create business pages or profiles where you can post messages and interact with your ‘likers’ or ‘followers’. Many businesses fall into the trap of thinking social media is just another advertising avenue and try a ‘hard sell’ approach. This works in very few cases. A successful ‘social media campaign’ involves building relationships and rapport with those who’ve chosen to follow you. This might include, posting articles you’ve written, sharing relevant links to articles or websites, providing community information or offering free advice. It is also acceptable to include in the mix, announcements of your events, sales or offers. But if that’s all your messages entail, your followers will soon tune out or stop following you. Social media can also be a great tool for business owners. You can ask your followers to give you feedback about your service. Or ask them to fill in a survey on a particular topic you are researching. Recently I asked my followers to comment on some logos I’d designed for a client – they were really happy to give their two cents worth, and my client was thrilled by the feedback (it made his decision so much easier). The great thing about social media is that its free to setup and use, and you can start slowly as you get to understand how it works. So get yourself on social media so you can start posting and tweeting!

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

Technology has advanced quickly over the past 10 years. Who would have thought we would be checking emails on our phones, recruiting staff via social media or witnessing the phenomenon that is Facebook?

Ask any teenager what they think of email. They are highly likely to answer that it is only for "old people". Instead they communicate via social media, chat, SMS and other online avenues. What does this have to do with your business? One reason to think about this change in communication style is that one day soon, this age bracket will be in your target market (if they aren't already). Another reason is that many businesses have made the shift and frankly, you are being left behind if you don't investigate the possibilities ASAP.

So that leads to the next question: what are you doing about it in your business? You have three choices:

1.  Learn about social media and other current communication mediums and the way they can benefit your business
2. Find someone else to manage it for you
3. "Do nothing" - that is, continue to use only traditional methods of communication with clients and potential clients - which will ultimately lead to a rapid decline in your customer base

Obviously you know the correct choice is either 1 or 2. But it is big ask for those of you who have a technology "phobia". But when you consider that a recent SENSIS report showed that 86% of people search online before contacting a business directly, you can't afford not to investigate social media and emerging technologies. So talk to someone who you know is "technology savvy" and start investigating the ways that you can harness current (and future) communication mediums in your marketing strategies.

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender