Handouts social media for greenhouse growers and garden ...€¦ · networks do you actively use? •Which ones do you use to connect with businesses? •What activities and events

SocialMediaforGreenhouseGrowersandGardenCenters

Kathy KelleyProfessor of Horticultural Marketing andBusiness Management Department of Plant Science [email protected]

76%ofU.S.adultsusetheinternetand65%usesocialmediaSource:PewResearchCenterhttp://pewrsr.ch/1Zgn7F7

Howdoyoudecidewhichsocialmediaoutletstouse?

• Stepone:“Who”areyoutargeting?


• Steptwo:Whatisyourgoal?

http://ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/choosing-the-right-social-media-platform.png;https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/270663;http://mashable.com/2011/02/14/small-business-social-media-infographic/;http://www.fastcompany.com/3032848/the-future-of-work/nofilter-necessary-why-any-brand-can-and-should-harness-the-power-of-inst


• Stepthree:Whatareyousharing?

ShouldyouposttoFacebook,Twitter,orboth?Onestudysuggests:• UseFacebooktodrivetraffictoyourwebsite

Source:Mashable,http://on.mash.to/1JTuNrF

• ConsumerstendtoengageandinteractmoreonTwitter

“Strength”ofFacebookpostsImagesandvideoarethe“strongest”

Textonlypostsrankthird

Next,postswithlinkstoexternalcontent

Source:AmericanExpressOpenForum,http://amex.co/1U8b0bb

Whatshouldyoupost?• Yourachievements,businessmilestones,anniversaries,andevents

• Newproductsandservices(e.g.eventspace,weddingvenue)

• Jobannouncements• Linkstootherbusinesses– onewaytodeveloppartnershipsandcrosspromote

UseatoollikeGoogleAlertstoreceivenotificationsaboutitemsthatyoucanrepost,retweet,etc.

Twomonitoringtoolsthatsearchblogsandsocialmedia:

• Socialmention(free)• Mention(freetrial)

https://www.google.com/alerts

Pinterest:Thepowerofimages• Oftheexistingsocialmediasites– itisthe“2nd largestdriveroftraffic”

• “Anestimated47%ofUSonlineshoppershavemadeapurchasebasedonarecommendationfromPinterest”

• “Pinterestbuyersspendmoremoney,moreoften,andonmoreitemsthanFacebook,LinkedIn,andTumblr”

Source:Visualistan,http://bit.ly/2euuMiz

Forthisparticularboard:2,000pinsand517followers

AsectionofmyPinterestfeedwithAGardenPartyFlorist’spin

IfIrepin orlikethispin– myfollowerswillseethepinintheirfeed

SearchPinteresttolearnaboutproductsorconsumerinterests• Search“garden,”“gardenproducts,”“coolgardeningproducts,”“gardeningtrends”

• Besuretoaddimportantinformationaboutthepicandredirectpinnerstoyourwebsite

WhattypeofInstagramimagegetsthemostlikes?AccordingtoresearchconductedbyDanZarrella• Photoswithfaces• “Busierphotos”• Coolcolors• Brighterphotos• Desaturated photos• Nofilterhttp://danzarrella.com/infographic-the-science-of-instagram.html

Whentopost,howoften,andwhetherornottousea#hashtag

Whathashtagscouldyouuse?

• Thisstepcanhelppreventyourbusinessbeingassociatedwithanythingnegative

• SearchonInstagram,Twitter,andothersocialmediasitesforthehashtag

• Useatoollikehashtagdictionary.com tolearnpossiblemeanings

Hashtagify.me Checkthatyourhashtagisappropriate

Periscope(periscope.tv)Theintentofthetool,accordingtotheblog,isto“letpeoplediscovertheworldthroughsomeoneelse’seyes”(http://bit.ly/1CcAkkl)byallowingthemtowitnessliveeventsandexperiences–anywhereintheworld.

UsesforPeriscope• Tradeshows:Documentsetup,periodicallyshowcaseanewitem,showlivegiveaways,interviewcustomerswhoattendabouttheirsuccesswithyourproducts

• Air“howto”segments• “Show”acustomerthetree/shrub/etc.thatyouwanttoselectfortheirlandscape- andgettheirimmediateresponse

• Broadcastduringevents

Aftertheevent:UploadthevideotoYouTube,the“thirdmostvisitedwebsiteintheworld”

• YouTube:• 8outof10consumersage18to49watchYouTubeduringanaveragemonth

• 6outof10consumers“preferonlinevideoplatformstoliveTV”

• 2015:18to49yearolds“spent4%lesstimewatchingTV,whiletimeonYouTubewentup74%”

Source: http://bit.ly/1MKNHDs

Recognizeyourcustomers• Askuserstopostimages,tweet,broadcastetc.enjoyingtheirgardenorvisitingyourgardencenter.Then....

• UsetheirimagesasyourFacebookpagecoverphoto• Beyourcustomers’preferredsourceforrelevantinformation• Post,comment,forwardothercomplementarybusinesses’and/orcustomerspostings

• Beproactive- askreaderstoreplytoyourposts• UsePeriscopetoanswerquestionslive

• HostaPinittowinitcontest

SurpriseandDelight• Give“customersunanticipatedperkstorenewinterestintheirproductsandservicesandtoamplifymessaging.”

• Rewardyourmostengagedfan(s)withanewlypublishedbook

CrowdTwist,SurpriseWhitePaper020415

Whatisyourstrategyandisitworking?

• UsetoolssuchasFacebookInsights,SumAll (Facebook,Twitter,andInstagram),YouTubestats,etc.tolearnwheretrafficoriginates

• Document:clicks,likes,retweets,couponuse,gardencentervisits,etc.

• Adjustyourstrategyifnecessary

• Increasefoottrafficonlineandinthestore

• Increasegardenclubmembership

• Promoteawarenessofeventfacilityrental

Questionstoaskcustomers• Whatsocialmedianetworksdoyouactivelyuse?

• Whichonesdoyouusetoconnectwithbusinesses?

• Whatactivitiesandeventswouldencourageyoutovisitthegardencenter?

• Howwouldyouprefertolearnaboutactivities,events,andnewproducts?

• Wholesalers:Askretailcustomerswhich“howto”videoswouldbethemosthelpfultothem