Six months on since the UK entered lockdown and a worrying number of towns and places across the UK are facing localised lockdowns. While we might not like to admit it, this pandemic is going to be with us for some time and certainly life as we knew it may never return. For businesses, the prospect of a local lockdown being imposed is a very real and worrying possibility. We’re here to help you stay connected and engaged with your customers and to help you communicate effectively online.
Maybe* is committed to supporting local recovery across the UK. This week we’re off 'up toon' to Newcastle-Upon-Tyne to see what we can learn from its businesses, what best in class Geordie social media looks like, and what tips and tricks you can apply regardless of your location.
The Maybe* Place Insights tool allows you to benchmark the social media activity, posts, engagement, sentiment and conversation topics of all businesses within your place. When you know what the local conversation sounds like in any town or place, you can replicate the successful tactics no matter where you are.
Staying connected if you are locally locked down
by Amy RountreeHow many businesses in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne have social media accounts?
Maybe* Place Insights shows us that 28% of businesses in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne marked in yellow, have social media accounts. This is higher than neighbouring County Durham.
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How many businesses in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne create social media content everyday?
Of those 28% of businesses, 30% of them are active every day. In County Durham, this can drop as low as 20%. Getting as many businesses within the North East active on social media on a daily basis is crucial to keeping them connected to customers, especially if they re-enter lockdown.
How many posts do businesses make and how engaging are they?
Newcastle-Upon-Tyne’s businesses create an average of 75,000 pieces of social media content per day. Those social posts earn approximately 380,000 engagements per day. That sounds a lot but on average, it’s about five engagements per post.
What is Newcastle-Upon-Tyne’s best social media content?
We’ve used the Maybe* Best Post in a Place tool to find Newcastle-Upon-Tyne’s best post on Tuesday September 15th.
Native Skate is a Newcastle-based skate shop, with an online business that serves the UK. As a result, they have a large following and see engagements in the thousands.
Native Skate creates plenty of content with UK-wide appeal, but they also do a great job of creating local content via their Instagram stories. So while trading nationally, they still show their Geordie roots plenty of love.
Content like that produced by Native Skate can be ‘evergreen’ meaning not time specific. Whether it's showing off tricks, iconic boards, or fan content, this is an easy way to keep customers engaged, even if a local store isn’t open.
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What conversations do Newcastle-Upon-Tyne’s businesses create?
The conversation created by Newcastle-Upon-Tyne businesses is place-led. Newcastle, Newcastle Upon Tyne, and North East hashtags all feature in the conversation.
Newcastle-Upon-Tyne’s content scores neck and neck with County Durham for positivity. Keeping vibes sky high will be even more important if the area is locally locked down.
Key takeaway
Maybe* Place Insights aims to inspire more businesses to take up social media on a daily basis. When one business thrives, others can follow suit by participating and engaging in the local conversation.
If a place is in a local lock down, business can re-use old content to keep customers engaged or create new content which reflects the changing environment. Keep customers inspired and be positive. Be clear in the services you are offering to serve customers. In short, do whatever you can to stay connected, this serve you well in the future.
WATCH THE WEBINAR HIGHLIGHTS: discover more super social from Newcastle Upon Tyne's independents with the Maybe* team
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