Social media is changing the rules of doing business

Social media plays an important role in supporting retailers by driving footfall and ultimately increasing sales.

It isn’t a case of the internet destroying retail; the businesses that use it effectively can create interest and build a relationship with customers.

At the Chesterfield Investment Summit, Polly Barnfield OBE from tech company Maybe* urged retailers not to focus on selling themselves on social media. As someone who encourages people to promote their place, it was great to hear Polly reinforce the view that activity on social media from businesses shouldn’t just be me, me, me!

Since Maybe* has been working with Vicar Lane Shopping Centre in Chesterfield, footfall has increased by 29%.  Through social media, the centre is interacting with its customers, asking them what they want and developing new events and facilities based on feedback.  It is not surprising that giving customers more of what they want keeps them coming back.

“Social media is fundamentally changing the rules of doing business.  It’s not a question of a business being online or offline anymore – they must be both.  There has been a huge shift in human behaviour over the last 15 years driven by social media.  For the first time ever, people now spend more time on their mobile phone than watching TV.”

Read the full article at Chesterfield.co.uk