USANA Social Media Tip #31: More Than Business as Usual

Article written by Tim Haran

I’ve started reading The End of Business as Usual: Rewire the Way You Work to Succeed in the Consumer Revolution, the new book by Brian Solis.


I’m only a few pages in, so I’m not prepared to write about the information contained within (although I’m sure it will be filled with valuable content. I’ll delve deeper in a future post, perhaps).

But the title alone is intriguing, especially considering many of our What’s Up, USANA? readers are entrepreneurs who for years have bucked conventional corporate thinking and blazed a new trail.

You might say you’re already past the business-as-usual mindset, and maybe ahead of the curve in terms of recognizing the massive shift that is upon us.

That’s great! But others might not be so lucky.

As we’ve written before, the way consumers consume information is changing. Just look at how social media allows people to interact with brands, consult with Facebook friends on relatively minor (and major) purchasing decisions, and send a virtual — but very real — shout. Worldwide. About anything, positive, negative, or neutral.

It’s so important to be a participant in the conversation, whether it’s a conversation about you personally, your business, or the company you represent. While you’re engaging in these conversations, it’s also important to think about what — and how — your audience is thinking.

Consumers’ Expectations

I am not in the trenches, as many of you are, interacting with a variety of people interested (or maybe not so interested) in who we are and what we do. But I do have a fairly solid understanding of how I like to be treated on social media by people I work with and by companies I purchase products from.
It’s clear which people and brands truly care about building and nurturing relationships.

By and large, I am incredibly impressed with what I’m seeing via USANA’s various social media channels. I mentioned this last week, but the vast majority of communications by our fans and followers on Facebook, Twitter, and blogs (at least the ones I see) are positive, friendly, and helpful.

It reflects positively not only on the individuals doing the posting, but also on USANA as a whole. You are our ambassadors. For that, we thank you.

As I worked through a social media issue earlier this week, I started thinking about the idea of “business as usual” and how that phrase, in a conventional sense, just doesn’t cut it on social media (a recent example: ChapStick) or in the real world, for that matter (due in large part to social media).

We’re in the midst of a consumer revolution, as Solis’ subtitle points out. Consumers expect much more, and the super-competitive environment in which we live will quickly cast aside the companies who aren’t paying attention and who aren’t doing everything they can to meet, even exceed, expectations.

5 Ways to Set Yourself Apart

With that in mind, I jotted down a few things that I think will help set you apart in socialsphere as you interact with current and potential customers.

1. Be Responsive: It’s amazing how far simply paying attention goes in this day and age. If you post something on Facebook and someone responds, that’s your opportunity to continue the conversation. I’ll admit, we don’t respond to every single item that’s posted on our pages, but we make a concerted effort to interact with our audiences as often as possible. And it’s something we at USANA will continue to focus on in the future.
2. Provide Value: It’s fine to post about the minutiae of your daily life, but if you’re serious about building a meaningful professional network, you’ve got to create content (or share others’ content) that your audience can use and benefit from.
3. Build Relationships: This is what it’s all about. Social media is not for selling, though sometimes certain posts may demonstrate otherwise.
4. Stay Positive: Our friend and USANA Ruby Director Soomin Kim offered excellent insight on this one on the social media training stage at USANA11. Whining and complaining are real downers on social media. Is that the attitude you want to convey to your current — and more important, potentially future — audience?
5. Have Fun: Please do. Life is too short to take social media too seriously.

How About You?

What have you found sets you apart in the world of social media? Even more, what do you as a consumer expect from people or companies with whom you interact on social media? Please let us know in the comments.