The year 2018 is coming to a close. Looking back on all of the advancements made during this time has been quite astonishing to say the least, especially when referring to technology and social media. These progressive strides have shown no boundaries and are being used in industries to connect more freely with their followers, prospects, and customers. Today, we’re going to look at how logistics companies are using these new social platforms to brand, connect, and grow their businesses in a way that could have never be done before.
5 Steps to Establish Your Logistics Company On Social Media
Post regularly and often
Content must be relevant and appealing to the user
Engage with your followers in the comments section
Sponsor your posts
Use both pictures and videos for optimal engagement
Why use Social Media?
As you probably know by now, more and more companies are taking to the streets of social media for their marketing and public relations (PR) efforts. But have you ever really considered the reasons why companies use social media instead of traditional forms of marketing/advertising (radio, television, print, billboard), which are still effective? Here’s a few social media factoids that will explain why social media has been and continues to be an effective advertising tool for companies:
Online adults aged 18-34 are most likely follow a brand via social networking (95%)
Source: MarketingSherpa
71% of consumers who have had a good social media service experience with a brand are likely to recommend it to others
Source: Ambassador
2.56 billion global mobile social media users, equaling 34% penetration; globally with 1 million new active mobile social users added every day
Source: We Are Social
As you can see, the amount of user penetration is quite abundant, making social media a staple in any big or small business’ repertoire. However, small business really seem to be attracted to the idea of using these platforms because they have a low barrier to entry, are easily accessible, and have the ability to micro-target consumers in a way that no other advertising medium can. Alternatively, larger companies (1,000+ employees) typically already have an established brand that attracts customers without relying too heavily on their social media content. It is not to say that they shouldn’t participate, but they have more options when it comes to branding than those companies with lesser budgets.
Facebook is great for growing a community of people who support your company and want to remain updated on it’s whereabouts. This platform is great for publishing informative articles, promoting traffic to your company’s website, engaging in networking groups, and publishing sponsored content in the form of videos or photos to promote your company’s Facebook page/website.
Instagram is surprisingly proving to be more and more of a necessity for logistics companies to be actively involved. Just the sheer number of users allows for companies the ability to operate with a substantial sample size. It is also a good way to humanize your company and promote what your company is doing for the community, environment, and your employees.
One of the most innovate platforms for business professionals to interact on and cultivate relationships. For logistics, this is one of the best places to network and engage with points of contact for shipping companies, carrier companies, and other brokerages. Whether your prospecting for freight, looking for qualified carriers, or are seeking out new opportunity, LinkedIn is going to be the place for you.
As you already know, the market in logistics is a lot like the stock market in the sense that it is constantly changing due to various external conditions: weather, politics, time of the year, etc. Twitter is a great platform to stay updated on current events and engage with followers better than anything else out there. Use this app to get people talking about your company and you’ll win!
Why Do Logistics Companies Need To Use Social Media?
Logistics is one of those industries that has struggled to gain recognition from the general public since it was created. Reason being, logistics is very black and white, meaning you either know what it is or you don’t.
Most people’s response to me saying I work in logistics is “what’s that?” They don’t think about what’s going on behind the scenes. A majority of all goods in nation are being transported on trucks, but human nature only dictates that you see what’s in front of you. This is why logistics doesn’t get the recognition it deserves.
Source: Arik Bibicoff, Marketing Director at Eagle Express Service
Social media will allow for logistics companies to captivate a greater audience while others have little to no understanding of what is involved with working in logistics or what it even is. This is how lack of exposure has suppressed the industry, while others gain more recognition. Fortunately, social media can change these outcomes. It acts as a central hub that brings together those within the industry, while educating those who are not.
In addition, these social tools have a lot to offer for those already involved within the logistics industry. For example, it provides a slightly more level playing field for companies from a public relations (PR) standpoint to compete for their share in the market. No longer are the days where brand recognition was solely developed from sticking your logo on the sides of your fleet of trucks. With increased accessibility to technology and globalization, logistics companies (both asset based and non-asset based) have the ability to better communicate messages directly to the world.
Can I Use Social Media Channels Like Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, Etc. To Help Find Prospective 3PL Customers?
Yes, often 3PL companies can market B2B through Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Foursquare, etc. Each platform has their own advertising capacity which allows small businesses and big businesses to implement market segmentation to identify their who their target audience is and have their ads seen by those individuals or businesses.
When using paid advertising like that, you want to make sure your content is properly curated towards the user it will be seeing the ad on the receiving end. Ads are designed to be an introduction to your company to get the customers exposed to your brand. Every step beyond clicking on your ad is the opportunity to establish a relationship with another potential customer.
Don’t Abandon Other Forms Of Marketing/Promotion
You hear a lot of people these days that favor social media and that’s completely fine. However, what you don’t want to do is confuse social media for marketing as a whole. Marketing is about capturing the attention of the consumer, wherever or whomever they may be. By limiting marketing efforts to exclusively social media, you’re only capturing the prospect’s attention while they are interacting with their mobile device.
If you can captivate the attention of your consumers/prospects online and offline, you’re going to win, period.