It’s not for lack of trying that her clients won’t budge. Local public relations pro Amy Delman pushes, pushes and pushes some more. They do a little bit on social media, and don’t want too much of a heavy lift.
“I tell them, you have to blog, you have to engage on LinkedIn or Instagram, you have to have a presence on more platforms and provide relevant information for your audience – and potential clients or customers,” she said. “They just don’t often utilize it to the full extent.”
As the calendar year turns, those in public relationships are imploring companies to look past the hard-to-see instant results of engaging more on social media and survey the potential benefits that might be on the horizon when doing more on these platforms.
Delman, if you can pardon her putting the pressure on again, adds it’s a company’s competitors that will realize those benefits otherwise. And that’s exactly what she’s seen happen in recent years.
Social media’s stature is nothing new, but from the public relations perspective, there’s always more that’s being added to the ongoing conversation with businesses about why it should be high priority. Delman said that has been apparent in how professional service firms attract the young pool of talent often bemoaned as a rare find.
“(These firms) have some millennials working for them, but they want to attract more of them,” she said. “I’ll tell them to have one of their millennials make posts under their name why it’s great for young people to work at the company – here’s 12 reasons. Just put something out there that not only says this firm is great, but that they’re allowed to be influencers for that firm.
“Some firms will do that; some won’t. And it’s frustrating when, due to that, they’re missing a whole block of talent they need to attract in certain industries, such as accounting.”
For professional service firms, Delman added, concentration is always on the billable hour. Social media posts can’t be billed to clients, hence the hesitation.
“When it comes time to do a podcast, or other opportunities that don’t come around every day, even young (professionals) would love to engage with more of that – being so comfortable with it and not needing any tutelage on it,” she said. “But what stops them is being told you can’t do non-billable work.”
Delman admits the results a company should expect with encouraging more social media engagement aren’t always tangible. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t valuable.
Chris Rosica, president of Rosica Communications, wrote the book (literally, called The Power of B2B Social Media) on the ancillary reasons for diving into social media and really embracing it.
“Some people do think it’s not going to do much for my business, but it can help you protect your online reputation and boost your visibility online,” he said. “When you do an online search for a company’s name, you’ll find a website and then you’ll find at least one, two, or even three social media profiles. If you can dominate those search engine results, you’ll manage perception in terms of what comes up when people look for you – and you’re ahead of the game.
“There are some limitations to social media content optimization, but we’ve found some of our clients are ranking for search terms that do relate strongly to their organizations. And while it’s not the only benefit of social media platforms for businesses, it does make a difference.”
That doesn’t mean a business has to have a strong presence on all platforms. It has to be a good fit. For those trying to reach an audience in their 40s or 50s, they might find a Facebook following is best aligned to their goals. Establishing a TikTok presence, on the other hand, may only make sense for a brand aimed at a younger audience.
Then there are platforms with less of a niche generational appeal, according to Rosica, who puts Instagram and YouTube in that group.
“Also, if you’re a smaller company or organization, there’s really nothing wrong with focusing on building smaller communities on platforms,” he said. “You can create micro-communities of your most loyal advocates or followers and cultivate those smaller communities that are more engaged and connect with them niche groups on Facebook or LinkedIn.”
The key in utilizing these platforms is to ditch the artificial intelligence or anything else that ruins what Rosica calls the “authenticity” of a brand’s engagement.
“You want to build credibility and foster trust,” he said. “It’s also really not about pushing a bunch of promotional content. It’s about providing valuable advice, trends, information and data. That’s what allows you to build your following.”
As far as where to start when trying to do something different and exciting on these platforms, Rosica has some advice for the new year.
“For 2025, it’ll be video, video and videos,” he said. “You should be looking at how you can make short video content that you can share across your channels. Engagement numbers aren’t even comparable. The more videos you have, the more shares, likes and overall engagement you’re going to get.”
