Rewards and Risks of Social Media

Aug 28, 2015 | Social Media

Many companies are turning to social media as a means of promoting their services and connecting with customers in new ways, but what happens when social media doesn’t work in favor for businesses? This blog will go over the Rewards and Risks of  Social Media networks.

Online Users who use Social Media

%

The percentage of businesses who use social media grew dramatically from 2008 to 2009.

  • 2008 42% 42%
  • 2009 93% 93%

The Rewards of Social Media

When used correctly, social media networks can create stronger connections with customers, generate leads and gain more web traffic. One of the biggest rewards of Social media is the ability to engage with your customers.

Social media is based on connections. Connections are made through shared interests and through social circles. Companies engage with their customers by liking , sharing and commenting on their customers posts. By doing this,  companies are building stronger connections and could potentially generate more leads for their business.

Another great reward of Social media is the ability to create content. You’ve probably herd the term ‘Content is King’, thrown around before.  What this ulitimaly means is that the more quality content you can produce, the better your online presence will be. Take for example blogging networks. Blogs are great forms of content that can generate web traffic when linked back to your website. Not only do blogs create higher web traffic, but search engines like Google and Bing LOVE blogs. The more quality content you can produce and share on social media, the higher your search engine rankings will likely be.

The Risks of Social Media

Along with rewards, social media can also produce severe risks. When companies hire a social media manager, that manager becomes the face of the company online. More than often, social media managers will find themselves dealing with problems stemming from social media.

Your companies reputation could be at risk if a customer decides to mouth off about your company. It is up to your social media manager to stay on top of this and to make sure that the unhappy customer gets the proper response to try and ease the situation and to find out why this customer became so unhappy in the first place.

A more serious risk than an unhappy customer is the potential for accounts to become breached or hijacked. Social Media is another asset that an organization has to attempt to protect from loss or compromise.  Companies need to make sure that they are not posting sensitive information that could put their entire business at risk. 

Along with hackings, social media presents the risk of viruses, malware and spyware. Creators of such viruses tend to follow the market by placing hyperlink-friendly viruses that are easily accessible by clicking on a certain links. Users need to be aware of what they are clicking, especially when accessing a social media network on a work computer.

Take-Away

To wrap things up, Social media can be a great outlet for businesses to expand their brand awareness, however, they must be mindful of the potential risks that lurk online. Use social media to your business’ advantage by connecting with customers, creating content and joining online communities but be careful of the potential risks that you could find you and your business in.

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