Over recent years we have seen brand new furniture retailers and manufacturers come into the industry and take market share from more established brands. One of the main ways these new brands have done this is through effective social media marketing strategies that have enabled them to engage with customers in a new way, create action, develop loyalty and turn customers into advocates of their brand. Brands that have been on the forefront of social media have used it to build customer relationships, engage with their target audience and form sustained online dialogues to build loyalty.
With the UK home furniture industry currently contributing a whopping £9.4bn to annual GDP and it looking to grow by 4.9% in 2017/2018, we explore the various ways the rise of social media has helped furniture retailers and manufacturers grow and the future benefits it has for the industry.
Social media marketing is now an essential part of the marketing mix for furniture retailer and manufacturers marketing plans, helping to build brand awareness, increase audience engagement, nurture relationships, amplify messaging, influence perception, ramp up customer lifetime value, drive website traffic, improve loyalty, generate sales…..the list goes on!
Key benefits for furniture manufacturers and retailers:
1. Increased awareness of brand and products to end consumer to make the products recognisable and desirable. This is done through effective content creation that inspires, educates and entertains which is then amplified to the relevant target markets to create action.
2. Allows brands to position, develop and deliver the expertise of their brand.
3. Drive high value traffic to their website, store, retailers and social channels for consumers to then take action.
4. Create demand for products and drive sales by helping customers along the buying cycle by using social media as a source of inspiration, reviews, user-generated content, lifestyle imagery etc.
5. Promotion of new ranges at key times throughout the year.
6. Drive engagement with prospects, retailers and customers.
7. Utilising the power of influencer such as interior design bloggers, magazine editors, journalists and celebrities to grow trust.
8. Developing and retaining an online community of loyal customers that can then be easily upsold.
9. Turning customers into advocates of your brand ….turning them into a tribe of marketeers.
10. Development of customer data
11. Improved website performance (Higher search engine rankings)
Social media is here to stay and channels such as Pinterest, Instragram, Facebook and Twitter should be embraced and not ignored!
To see how Hoopla can help with your social media and digital marketing strategy visit http://www.hoopla-marketing.com/furniture-brand-marketing. To get your FREE tailored social media strategy and unleash the online potential of your furniture brand, get in touch on 0161 731 0048 or email danny.cleaton@hoopla-marketing.com.