Cutting the social web down to size for the perfect fit

While at the launch of the Northern Hub of Enterprise Nation, at the Digital Media Centre, in Barnsley, I had the pleasure of speaking with Reynaldo Robinson, the co-owner of Vyn Johns, a specialist in vintage bridal gowns and menswear, based in Sheffield.

It’s always fascinating to talk to people from different business backgrounds to myself, and Vyn Johns are as different to Octane as anyone could imagine. But, despite the differences, there are the same themes: too few hours; making difficult decisions about which jobs to take on; meeting the expectations of the customer of client. The list goes on.

Reynaldo has a background in marketing, who — as you might imagine — is making solid use of Twitter, Facebook, et cetera. Please, take the time to skim down their Instagram feed, where you’ll discover a fascinating use of tiled images of two large photographs, because the effect is very impressive.

As a business that creates and curates vintage bridal garments, the photography is everything, and Vyn Johns making the most of that.

Sizing things up

What’s clear is that Reynaldo has everything under control, so there was little I could recommend, other than tightening things up a little, which Reynaldo is aware of, and on his to-do list.

So where do I come in? Little of what I suggested was news to Reynaldo, which is encouraging to see. So instead, I’ll write up those thoughts, recommendations, and suggestions for the benefit of everyone else.

But first, if you’re not using Google Analytics for your website, then you’re missing a big trick.

Getting a feel for social media

So you’re on Twitter and you’ve completed your profile by adding a link to your website. Good. Now let’s imagine someone visits your profile and follows the link straight to the home page. We can better than that.

Social media is about creating a dialogue and establishing a narrative around yourself. Here, you’ve already warmed the person up enough for them to visit your website, so why not keep things going by sending them to a web page which expands on you, your business, and what it is you do?

I point people to a page that isn’t that easy to find (via the website itself), so when people visit that page, I’m 99% certain they came from Twitter, which I’m able to see in — you’ve guessed it — Google Analytics. I’m able to quantify where people are coming from with a bit more precision, and I’m keeping that conversation moving along.

You can do the same thing anywhere (Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, a Page on Facebook, et cetera) that allows you to add a link to your website.

Almost anyone can jump into social media, but it’s all about quality and not quantity. Here, the goal is to create a feel, and a texture that speaks about you and the passion you have for your work.

A one-size-fits-all website

I often describe Google as being a fussiest 13 year-old who wants to read everything, but has a short attention span. It’s a shame I don’t take heed of my own advice! Fortunately, my clients do. The goal here is to write articles and to write often, to keep little Miss Google enthralled. This might seem a daunting task, but — again — it’s all about being specific.

Reynaldo attends trade fairs up and down the Yorkshire and surrounding regions. If, like Vyn Johns, you’re often out and about, why not announce this in an article ahead of the event, giving those prospective far-flung customers the chance to meet you.

If you’re going to be writing articles, you’ll need to best tools to do it, and I would recommend WordPress. You have two basic options:

  1. a “hosted” version of WordPress, whereby you sign up and get going within minutes;
  2. or you download WordPress, configure it (which involves a degree of technical knowledge) and then get going.

WordPress is very flexible, with a wealth of options to configure it exactly to your tastes and needs. Here, the second option offers the most flexibility, but that comes with the cost of being more technical to configure and manage.

Once up and running, you have the power to write articles whenever you choose, without having to pay for the services of someone like me!

Making adjustments for a tighter fit

So you’ve got yourself in on the social media act, and you have your website, which you control. Now what? We begin joining the dots.

You’re at the trade fair, you have prospective customers approaching you, and you need to give them something tangible, as a reminder. You also need to quantify those people, and in doing so, you get a measure of your own relative success; after all, it’s pointless attending a trade fair if you have no idea whether someone who came to your booth or stall made a purchase at a later date.

A pattern for landing pages

Everyone has seen those adverts on TV asking us to call a number or visit a website and either quote or use a code. We can do the same. It’s cheap and easy to print out fliers containing your campaign code, which you then hand out.

Now, on your website — powered by WordPress, or similar — you create a page whose link address would be, for example: www.your-website.co.uk/campaign-code, which you include on your flier.

What’s a landing page? It’s a clutter-free page with one purpose, and that is to encourage the visitor to do something. That something is either:

  • buy a particular item;
  • make contact with you for further information;
  • download an ebook, or some other digital item;
  • or perhaps sign up to a newsletter.

A common pattern for landing pages is the minimalist approach, in that they don’t include any of the navigation elements a regular web page would, for the simple reason that you don’t want anything to distract the visitor, and to detract from the experience, where you’re attempting to funnel them towards a specific goal.

In the case of the trade fair, perhaps have photographs of the items you had on show, with a call-to-action, such as a “Buy Now” button, for example.

As people visit your landing page, you’re quantifying the interest you generated at the trade fair, and perhaps converting that interest into actual sales.

A seamless narrative

While at the trade fair, why not have your own hashtag, so that like-minded visitors to your booth or stall get to share in and become part of the narrative. Similarly, take photographs of your display, talk about what’s happening, encourage visitors to mention you, and for them to take photographs, too.

Afterwards, all those photographs, the conversations, and the happy visitors mentioning you and your efforts that have been working so hard, building layer upon layer of an on-going tapestry, where you treat each moment as a success, one on top of the other, so that — in effect — you’re creating a continuous and seamless narrative, made to measure.

Got questions? Ask!
Speak to me, Wayne, for a free, no-obligation chat.

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