What Your Social Media Says About You to Prospective Clients

Photo: The Social Skinny

Social Media for business is intended to share and convey a brand. To engage with current customers as well as potential customers.  And yes, it is supposed to get personal from time to time.  Again, the operative phrase being “from time to time”.  All business social media gurus and international marketing leaders agree that allowing potential customers to catch a glimpse into your personal life – sparingly- fosters trust and can build common ground and this trust leads to sales/bookings.


Besides the personal element of social media in business, I wish to bring up another topic rarely addressed, but one that is equally -if not more- important. It is a thorough review of how businesses handle themselves on social media, as it will tell a client (and fellow colleagues) more about a company's work style and the personality of the key principals significantly more than photos that they share on their BLOG, national BLOG features, or magazine publications in which they may appear. It may, in some cases, also show their integrity and how they handle stress, which is something potential clients want to be aware of before entering into what is always a very intense working relationship for months- or sometimes a year or longer with wedding or special event.


Recently, I was told by a bride that she was considering a wedding planner but when she went to said wedding planner’s social media, it turned her off so completely, she did not even want to make contact with the wedding planner to start a discussion.  What were the turnoffs?  All the planner’s biographies in social media were in all capital letters (which is like shouting); all his/her Tweets were complaining and lashing out at an airline, where the wedding planner had a delayed flight (and Tweets on the complaints lacked maturity in tone as well as were downright hostile towards the airline;  additionally, there were multiple Tweets back -to-back on the same subject, where the planner did not even pause, but just kept slamming the airline with back -to-back insults);  the Facebook page was not updated for a year;  fans/followers had “engaged” with them in commentary and there was rarely a response back to the fan’s /follower’s comments;  their BLOG had photos of some flowers and commentary but no real weddings or events and there was no diverse content to help current or potential customers.  Finally, the Instagram account looked like that of a teenager with 90% selfies. There were gross misspellings in almost all of their social mediums (and not just the required abbreviations we are all required to do because of character space limitations).  

The overall picture conveyed an inexperienced, narcissistic, uneducated, out-of-touch, immature individual with what appeared to be a temper and no constructive problem-resolving skills.  Is that the type of professional one would like to work with on an event as detailed and emotionally-based as one’s wedding?  My client didn’t think so and quickly moved on to her next candidate for wedding planner.

The tone one conveys with their “voice” on social media is 10 times more critical in marketing today, since one cannot see body language with statements and in fact, many are reviewing social media without knowing the individual first before even reaching out to make contact with the service.  

“You never have a second chance to make a first impression” is one of the best philosophies I live by.  That said, in this case, it can also lend deep insight into the wedding professional's style and let you know everything you would need to know before hiring him/her.

As Publicity Gal Lisa Horn says, "Everything you post on social media impacts your personal brand.  How do you wan to be known?" 
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Engaging Inspiration provides sparkling marketing, social media, service training and events to the special event and hospitality industry: designed to engage and inspire.