How to Integrate Your Store with Social Media?

Social commerce is an extremely important part of any retail store’s marketing strategy. Retailers have realized that customers don’t rush to buy things through social media (yet) but it can generate brand awareness and influence sales in store and online. If you want your store to be successful in 2015 you need to know how to take advantage of social media and integrate it with what’s going on in your shop.

Social media can generate buzz around your brand and help to increase sales. According to research by VisionCritical, ‘40% of all social media users have purchased items online or in-store after sharing or “favoring” them on Facebook.

Practical Tips To Merge Your Store With Social Media

Here are some handy tips on how to integrate your store with social media!

Share in store offers

If you have some amazing offers coming up in store then announce your best offers on social media. This might encourage fans to come into the store to take advantage of your latest deals, or they might see a specific product they really like. Be loyal to your social media fans and post your latest in store offers and let fans know when sales are about to start.

Social customer service

If you are active on all the main social media channels then you will have to deal with many customer service issues. People are now using social media to get help and resolve issues as well as going into stores and asking.
Make sure you take social customer service very seriously so that you build trust in your brand. Moreover, the customer service you provide in store may be mentioned on social media sites so it’s imperative staff are trained up properly and your customer service is on point.

Share new product launches

Simon from Tills4Change said “Loyal fans will want to know about new product launches. Share new product launches on social media so that fans know when they get their hands on the very latest products. Build up anticipation about your new and most exciting products.”

Encourage social engagement in-store

A lot of retail stores are very active online but they don’t take advantage of social engagement in store. When people visit your store you also want to encourage them to follow you online. You can do this by using digital signs digital signs which can showcase products and tell customers where to find you on social media.

Identify key social influencers

Find out your key social influencers online and showcase them in-store. Produce in-store social displays with consumer content. It’s also worth building relationships with influential bloggers and celebrities who could be ambassadors for your brand and help to build your audience.

In-store events covered on social media

Some retail shops have had great success with hosting events in store and covering them on social media. Invite a relevant blogger or celebrity to the event if you want to generate more buzz. There are many reasons to host an in-store event, you could launch a new product, host a competition or have a flash sale. Be sure to create a specific hash-tag for your event and share pictures, videos and interviews.

I hope that you’ve grabbed some executable tips to combine your store with social media through this post!