Author: Rallio

Social

Reopening Your Business? 7 Social Media Strategies to Keep — Plus 1 to Ditch Forever

Post author By Rallio
Post date May 19, 2020

We’re all seeing signs of life in the economy as businesses start to reopen — an encouraging indicator of impending normalcy. If your business is preparing to reopen, you may be wondering which COVID-19 social media strategies to keep and which ones to ditch.

That’s just one question among many in this new business climate. As the U.S. Chamber of Commerce states in its reopening guide: “The businesses that will survive and thrive are the ones that can be flexible and adaptable to consumers’ new and evolving needs. You’ll need to plan carefully and understand not only what may need to change about your business, but what new growth opportunities may exist for you in a post-pandemic world.”

We recommend combing through the U.S. Chamber’s guide for more detailed suggestions on reopening. In the meantime, as far as the changes go in the realm of social media, we’ve recommended some “keepers” below. These changes have been implemented by many of the businesses we coach, and you may want to make these changes permanent.

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=140029840947243&id=105294971087397&substory_index=0

Curbside Pickup or Home Delivery

The COVID-19 crisis forced businesses to pivot how they do business. Curbside pickup and touch-free home deliveries are strategies that have helped many businesses to keep their doors open.

With touch-free options, you may have had to implement:

Ecommerce systems
Fulfillment processing, free shipping and home delivery
More advanced text messaging and email alerts to communicate order status
Third-party delivery systems

Keep offering these options to your customers for the foreseeable future — even if your business is able to open its doors for a broader range of services. Many customers are still not going to want to step foot in public places for any length of time.

How to incorporate touch-free options in your social media strategy:

Tout your touch-free options with photos and videos explaining how customers can safely access your products and services.
Snap photos of delivery drivers getting ready to make local deliveries, or employees bringing orders out to customers’ vehicles.
Create a Facebook offer with free shipping and boost it.

By the way, these types of white-glove services go a long way toward building customer loyalty — which brings us to …

Customer Service That Goes Above and Beyond

Going the extra mile for customers has become even more important today. Taking the time to listen to their needs and respond to them sets you apart from the rest.

Online reviews, direct messages and social media comments are often the first place customers go to air their concerns or their praise. Even after the pandemic has died down, you’ll still need to make sure you’re offering customer service that goes above and beyond.

How to incorporate great customer service in your social media strategy:

Respond to every comment, question and review. Rallio gives you a dashboard to make it easy to see everything in one place. Don’t want to manage it yourself? Outsource the work to our Rallio Local team of experts.
Set up auto-responders on Facebook for frequently asked questions.
Feature your customer testimonials in social media posts. Ideally, have a picture or a video of your customer with their positive reviews.

Learn more: How to Reopen Your Small Business Safely

Reputation Management

Along the same lines of customer service, reputation management ensures you’re not only responding to feedback, but also being proactive with getting reviews. Customers are relying on these reviews to decide where to shop and which businesses are worth their money.

A lot of the work of getting a customer to buy from you is already done before you even make contact with them. If they visit your pages or review platforms and see negative comments, they’ll likely move along to the next business. So if you’ve done the work to manage your reputation properly, the good will outweigh the bad and you’ll earn their business.

How to incorporate reputation management in your social media strategy:

Ask for feedback after a sale. Our Revv app makes it easy to generate reviews and resolve any negative customer experiences.
Be personable, friendly and helpful in your social media posts. Don’t argue with customers or get into a word battle online.
Use feedback to improve your business. When you make those improvements, share the news with your followers.

https://www.facebook.com/arcpointlabsofmontereybay/posts/2621841081475463

Sanitizing Protocols

It goes without saying that customers want to see stepped-up sanitization at your business. You’re likely already implementing enhanced protocols that follow CDC and any local guidelines.

Before welcoming the public back into your location, naturally you’ll need to have a system in place for cleaning and disinfection of your facility. If you’re requiring masks for employees and customers, make sure everyone understands what’s expected. And of course, keep your facility spotless to keep everyone safe.

Additionally, you may have had to implement stringent return policies, i.e., temporarily not accepting returns and/or extending return policies for retail goods.

The key, as far as social media goes, is communication of your policies and procedures. Keep driving home the message that you’re making it as safe as possible to visit your location.

How to incorporate sanitizing protocols in your social media strategy:

Create a video explaining how you’re cleaning the facility.
Communicate your mask policy and whether you’re providing masks for those who don’t have them.
Communicate what your current return policy is so no one is surprised when returning merchandise.

https://www.facebook.com/MassageHeightsLenexaCityCenter/photos/a.352284941636001/1355771694620649/?type=3

Virtual Formats

Many businesses switched to virtual formats to continue offering services amid the pandemic. We’ve seen fitness businesses offering livestreaming via Facebook Live and Zoom. Tutors are providing online education in place of in-person tutoring. Everywhere you turn, businesses are figuring out how to reach their audience in a virtual way.

Many customers have discovered the convenience and safety of staying home while still getting the services they need and want. As a business, you may have discovered a whole new line of business by offering virtual services.

How to incorporate virtual formats in your social media strategy:

Use Facebook Live to offer classes, educational services, how-to tutorials and more. You can also use Zoom in cases where you want to be able to see your customers and vice versa.
Continue to get creative with your virtual offerings. How about virtual tours, wine tastings, happy hours, shopping events and guest speakers?
Create Facebook events for your virtual events. Promote them beforehand with your target audience. Your guests will get reminders on the day of the event to join.

Employee Advocacy

Maybe you’ve been highlighting the great work your employees are doing throughout the pandemic. Or perhaps you had to temporarily lay off employees, and now you’re preparing to welcome them back. Whatever the case may be, it’s important to keep showing gratitude for the people helping to keep your business running — from employees to suppliers.

How to incorporate employee advocacy in your social media strategy:

Spotlight your employees in social media posts. Tell your followers why they’re so great!
Empower your employees to share about your business on their personal social media pages. The Rallio platform makes it easy to share brand-approved content through these extended networks.
Invite employees to submit assets like in-store photos and videos. Again, the Rallio platform simplifies this process.

Hyper-Local Social Media

Your audience responds to real-life, hyper-local photos and videos more so than they ever will with any type of “stock” content. If you’ve been following our best practices that we recommend to all brands, then you may already have seen an uptick in engagement, reach and followers.

How to incorporate hyper-local content in your social media strategy:

Keep posting real photos and videos of the managers, employees and customers who make your business possible.
Focus on building relationships with your followers, not selling them your products and services.
Boost your content to expand your reach.

1 Social Media Strategy to Ditch Forever: Boring Content

You’ll notice in all of the strategies above, none of them includes boring content. By boring, we mean stock photos, sales pitches, promotional posts, posts without images, captions that don’t inspire engagement and, generally, any type of snooze-worthy dribble.

The pandemic has made it abundantly clear that accounts posting engaging content consistently outperform those that focus on self-promotion. Ditch the boring content and implement our best practices to see greater success with your social media strategy.

Tags coronavirus, social media strategies

Social

The 6 Most Important Social Media Metrics to Track for ROI

Post author By Rallio
Post date May 14, 2020

As a business owner, you deserve to know the return on investment from your marketing efforts — including money spent on social media marketing. You also deserve to understand the complexities of social media metrics and ROI.

We’ve coached thousands of business owners on social media and ROI.

More often than not, they come to us with a mindset of “I don’t care about anything else — all I want is new leads, sales, members, customers or employees from social media.”

Consider how you get customers in the real world, however.

Standard human behavior dictates that most customers have to move through a traditional marketing funnel. Guess what? It’s no different online.

As powerful as social media is, it’s not powerful enough to alter standard human behavior. Potential customers still need to go through each step of your sales process before they decide to buy.

“Social media does NOT replace everything,” explains Mastered Marketing. “I’ve seen people who invest in social media, but then they get lazy. They stop making as many calls. They stop networking. They stop putting in effort, thinking that social media alone will carry them. This isn’t true! And your results will slip, making you think it was social media that didn’t work, but it was actually other factors.”

Traditional ROI Versus Social ROI

To measure your own social ROI, start by considering the different steps in the buying process of a traditional marketing funnel:

Awareness
Interest
Consideration
Intent
Evaluation
Purchase

We’ve tweaked that traditional funnel a bit for purposes of illustrating the social media buying process:

Awareness
Interest
Consideration
Purchase
Loyalty
Advocacy

At each step, different metrics help determine the return on marketing investment. We’ve outlined the steps with their associated metrics below — along with a few action steps that can help you improve your social ROI at each stage of the buying process.

One caveat to keep in mind at all times: A social media user may find you at any step in their own buying journey. They may become aware of your existence through their friend commenting on your team-member Tuesday post. Or checking out your social content and finding out how well you treat your staff may be the tipping point to get them to buy. We recommend checking out our post, Social ROI and the Marketing Ecosystem, for more details on the non-linear nature of social media purchasing behavior.

Step 1: Awareness

Do your prospective customers even know you exist? Or know you offer a specific product or service?

Social ROI = new followers, impressions, reach and video views — all of which contribute to awareness of your brand.

Let’s unpack those two terms: impressions and reach.

Impressions are simply the number of times a post appears in someone’s timeline. It could be the same Facebook user viewing your content multiple times.
Reach is the number of unique viewers your post has — i.e., not only your own followers, but also those people’s friends and others who aren’t yet following you.

What you can do to generate awareness:

Run a page promotion campaign to get more followers.
Give them something to see when they get to your page. Highly engaging content (more on that in the next step) that showcases your products and services helps to improve awareness of what you have to offer.
Boost your content to ensure it gets seen by a wider audience. More of your followers and their extended network will see your content if you boost it.

Step 2: Interest

Now that they know about you, do your prospective customers care about you? Are you interesting to them?

Social ROI = engagement on content and the number of direct messages you receive.

Engagement, a Fancy Word for Audience Interaction

The frequency and manner in which your audience interacts with your account create your engagement metrics. Boiled down even further, good engagement looks like this:

A high number of likes, comments, shares, clicks and other actions users take after seeing your post. The higher your number of engagements, the better your audience “health.” That is to say, a healthy audience is responsive and consists of real followers who engage with your brand. To have this type of audience, your content needs to be hyper-local, interesting, useful, funny or some combination of those qualities. It also needs to be boosted to improve the reach of that content.
A high post engagement rate. The number of engagements, divided by the impressions or reach (the number of times someone sees your content), equals your post engagement rate. Quality content, as described above, is more likely to generate a high post engagement rate because it inspires an engagement.

What you can do to generate interest:

Post highly engaging content. You need to post content that not only builds awareness of your business, but also gives people a reason to care.

The best example to illustrate what “highly engaging content” looks like is the difference between a stock photo and a real photo from a business. Which one are you likely to interact with? Most people would much rather see a real photo of a business owner, employee or customer engaged in the day-to-day of your business than a stock photo of a random person doing boring things.

Read our post, Facebook Ads and Hyper-Local Content, for more ideas of posts that will help create interest for your brand.

Step 3: Consideration

Something you posted got them intrigued and they want to learn more about your product or service.

Social ROI = Clicks from social content to your website or landing page as well as new leads.

What you can do to generate consideration:

When you post your highly engaging content, include a link to your website or landing page.
Include a call-to-action button on your page, like Shop Now or Book Now. Facebook offers several different options along with call-to-action ads that can help with lead generation.
Run a lead-generation campaign through Facebook.

Step 4: Purchase

The golden goose! Someone knows about you, reads all your reviews, likes the way you run your business, and likes your offering and price. Cha-ching!

But wait … how are you tracking purchases that come through social media? Do you have a specific offer or code only given on Facebook and Instagram? Do you ask and track, in an organized way, where your customers found you, and if so do you track the amount of those transactions?

Social ROI = Cold hard cash tracked through a code.

What you can do to generate and track purchases:

Run a Facebook offer with a PLU code tied to your POS system or your payment processor.
Boost these offers.

Step 5: Loyalty

Just as important as getting new customers is keeping your current customers happy and coming back for more! As Retention Science reports, “According to the Gartner Group, 80 percent of your future profits will come from just 20 percent of your existing customers. That means the revenue sources you’ve been trying to find are most likely sitting right under your nose, waiting to be nurtured and cultivated.”

Social ROI = new online reviews and Facebook Top Fans.

What you can do to generate loyalty:

Track your online reviews and respond to them. Whether positive or negative, every review should get a response.
Make offers and content just for your Top Fans. Hello, loyal customers!

Step 6: Advocacy

There’s a difference between being a customer and being a raving fan. You want customers that can’t help but shout your name from the rooftops. Those Top Fans you’ve been nurturing can become your greatest advocates.

Social ROI = advocacy posts, mentions and trending hashtags related to your business.

What you can do to generate advocacy:

While Rallio offers specific advocacy tools for loyal employees and customers, you can achieve advocacy in other ways, too. This step is closely tied to loyalty, as you identify and then reward your most loyal fans.

For even greater impact, you can formalize your brand’s advocacy program and tie it in with influencers. Here’s where social ROI gets really interesting as you have people out there helping with every step of the marketing funnel!

Key Takeaway

The ROI of social media combines all steps of the marketing funnel, oftentimes in ways that can’t be measured with exact numbers. You need to master each layer of the funnel to make sure everything is working together to produce your desired outcomes.

If you’re looking for a black and white answer to your social media ROI woes, then you’re looking to fundamentally change the way humans behave and buy. But if you happen to figure that out, please let us know. We’ll pay you a lot of money for your answers.

Tags social media marketing, social ROI

Social

Facebook Ads and Hyper-Local Content: Your Recipe for Social Media Success

Post author By Rallio
Post date May 11, 2020

If you’re looking for a cost-effective way to advertise your business, Facebook is a great place to start. With CPM/CPC tending to be lower than paid search, Facebook ads let you target your customers and get your content in front of your desired audience.

It’s an especially good time to dive into Facebook ads right now, with usage at an all-time high. In addition, Facebook’s cost-per-click rate has dropped in recent weeks, with COVID-19 driving down demand for ad inventory, notes Mobile Marketer. These two factors make it an ideal time for franchise organizations to advertise on the social network.

“More people on Facebook are home with their devices so consumption of the platform is going up,” adds Social Media Examiner. “But fewer advertising dollars being spent on the platform overall means less inventory to serve to that increased demand. Consumers will see the same quantity of ads but it will be cheaper for advertisers to serve more impressions.

Key Takeaways

While many marketers might be pulling back on advertising due to cost concerns, that’s the last thing we’d recommend doing. Between the increase in usage and the reduced CPM/CPC, there’s never been a better time to dedicate dollars toward social media ads.
Franchisors have a unique opportunity to help their franchisees increase exposure at the local level. Franchisees who post and boost hyper-local content ensure they’re connecting at the local level with their customers.
Customers want to help their community get back on its feet. When you engage with them and increase your reach with Facebook ads, you increase the likelihood of driving local business.

Now About That Hyper-Local Content

The bottom line you need to know: Your hyper-local content, when boosted, creates a personal relationship with your customers. Content that isn’t boosted won’t get seen by your followers or their extended network.

If you’re scratching your head about what constitutes “hyper-local content,” don’t worry — because we’re giving you a bunch of freebies below that we’ve provided to many of our brands. You can take any of these ideas, create content and boost it to instantly improve the engagement on your page.

20 Ideas to Keep You Busy Posting This Month

Create a post about a local school in your area and highlight the 2020 graduating seniors. Maybe you know a few of them in your community. Do they have any photos they can provide, standing next to a congratulatory yard sign?
What are some of the top products or services you’re providing right now? Take a video of an employee explaining what’s so great about what you have to offer. If your location is reopening soon, you could also post about your reopening plans.https://www.facebook.com/178906268830527/posts/2881252238595903/?substory_index=0
Which of your employees have been working at your location the longest? Take a quick picture of them and share why they love the industry so much and some fun facts.
Are there any first responders coming into your locations? Snap a few pictures with them and post a “thank-you” for their service.
What’s one of the most common questions you get at your location? Take a video explaining the answer. You could turn this idea into a series of FAQ videos and post them on a certain day of the week, like #FunFactFriday.
Put the spotlight on the pets! Do you have any pets that are sharing office space with you or your employees? Share pictures of these furry co-workers on your page!
Have you received any positive notes during the last 30 days? Don’t be shy about patting yourself on the back! Share that feedback with your followers and thank them for supporting your business at this time.
Have you been able to enjoy any outside time during lockdown? Snap a photo of the pretty sights you see on your next walk, and share it with your followers!https://www.facebook.com/2034052683289343/posts/3396082223753042/
Take a video explaining why you chose to be in business for yourself and what you love about your community.
Have your employees made any handcrafted face masks? Snap a picture of the most creative one! Or, if you have a favorite local supplier making masks, give them a shout-out and tag the business.
Take a picture and highlight a product of the week with any deals or specials available!
How is your team keeping their brains engaged while staying at home? Share a photo of them watching their favorite show, reading their favorite book or doing any activity to keep themselves busy!
Post an inspirational quote from a favorite author, speaker or leader. You can make it look professional and attractive using Canva.com or another design app.https://www.facebook.com/ARCpointLabsofRichmond/posts/4193686620645379:0
Have you seen a positive local news story from your community? Reshare that content with your followers to keep the positivity flowing!
Do you have any special services your followers might not be aware of? Share a post or a video highlighting some of the unique aspects of what you do.https://www.instagram.com/p/B_5qmKkHIoP/
Have you been receiving questions about your COVID-19 reopening plans? Take a video explaining any information you have at this time about getting back to business. Be sure to thank your customers for their continued support!
Team member highlight! We’re sure you’ve been working nonstop during this time, so take a photo of one of your stand-out team members explaining why they are outstanding and some fun facts about them!
What are some of the fun ways you’ve spent time with your loved ones at home? Whether you’re gardening, cooking, creating chalk art or heading outdoors, you can share your shelter-at-home lifestyle with your community.
Memorial Day is coming up May 25. Post a “thank you” to all the service members of your community and the nation.
Share a few throwback photos of your business when you were first getting started, along with a little bit of history about your location.https://www.facebook.com/148544921858641/posts/3007453889301049/

Get the Attention You Deserve

If you put these ideas on repeat and boost your posts, you’ll start to see greater engagement on your pages almost immediately. You may even start coming up with tons of new ideas on your own once you get in the swing of things.

The Rallio Local team’s full-time job is to come up with ideas like these, create and boost the content, and make sure that our franchisees’ pages are getting the attention they need. If you’re not currently part of the Rallio Local program and would like someone else to handle your social media management for you, reach out to sales@rallio.com and we can walk you through your options — with affordable initial costs.

Tags CPC, franchise social media

Social

Franchise Social Media Best Practices You Need to Know

Post author By Rallio
Post date May 4, 2020

Being in business “for yourself, but not by yourself” is the classic allure of franchise ownership. Buying a franchise means buying into proven systems and processes, with a team that’s there for you every step of the way. From your marketing to your operations, you have a plan for starting and growing your business right from the get-go.

What’s not always immediately evident within those systems and processes are the franchise social media best practices. When we start working with clients, one of the first things we’ll take a look at is whether they have any kind of guidelines in place. Then we either add to them or help develop guidelines that work within the framework of our Rallio technology and services.

What we find time and time again is that those organizations that have a system in place from the start are successful at growing their online presence. Those that don’t … aren’t.

With guidelines, it’s clear what franchisees can and cannot do on social media. If you need to develop guidelines of your own for your franchise, we recommend implementing the following franchise social media best practices.

Be Grammatically Correct

What not to do: Fill your content with typos. Use “there” when you mean “their.” Throw in extra apostrophes where they don’t belong. Make your followers die a slow death while trying to read sentences that make no sense. Throw caution to the wind by ignoring every basic rule of grammar you’ve ever heard.

What to do instead: Triple, heck, quadruple check your content before you send it out. Get a second pair of eyes on it to make sure it’s error-free, makes sense and isn’t potentially offensive. If you happen to post something with an error in it, edit it or republish it if you have to. That’s the beauty of digital publishing — you can fix mistakes.

Through Rallio, brands have added controls in place. The franchisor can review and approve their franchisees’ content before it’s able to be published. We see many brands do this for new franchisees for the first 90 days or so.

Take Videos in Good Lighting

What not to do: Film yourself with no lights on. Stand in the sun and squint. Step into the shadows like Darth Vader. Might as well put on the mask and breathe heavily while you’re at it.

What to do instead: Get yourself some good lighting, y’all. Natural light is great — and free. Position yourself and your camera near a window, with you mostly facing the light source. Play around with the angle and time of day to find your ideal filming conditions. If the sun is too harsh, it may create unflattering shadows.

If you’re looking to step up your video game even more, you can opt for special lighting like a ring light or a softbox. Adorama has a good roundup of various lighting options here.

Honestly, though, if you had time for all that fancy schmancy equipment, you’d probably be an influencer or you’d be writing this playbook, right? So just get yo’self some natural light, brush your hair, throw on a smile and press “Record.” Upload it, write a cute caption and call it a day.

Make Sure We Can Hear You

What not to do: Post videos that make you sound like you have a pillow over your face.

What to do instead: Even the greatest lighting isn’t going to fix muffled, hard-to-hear videos. And the last thing you want is to get to the end of your recording, only to realize no one can hear you. Test out your sound quality before you record your full video. Make sure all systems are a-go-go, and then get to filming. You can also add subtitles to be safe, as we did in the video below.

https://www.facebook.com/rallio/videos/528509271386367/

Don’t Use Music You Don’t Own

What not to do: Throw on any ol’ tunes you like in your videos. Have a great Spotify playlist? Well, shouldn’t everyone hear it?

What to do instead: Use royalty-free music. If you use audio or music you don’t own, it may be taken down by the social media platform where you posted it. With royalty-free music, you can have some nice background audio without worrying your content will be removed.

A few options for finding royalty-free music include:

Be aware, though, that rules vary from site to site (and are subject to change) as far as using music for commercial use, as well as whether attribution is required. Check with each site to be sure you’re following the rules before posting.

Keep It Friendly

What not to do: Get in your customers’ faces when they write a bad review or say something negative to you. Point out all their shortcomings. Tell them they probably ate paste in kindergarten. Be the cyber-bully you’ve always wanted to be.

What to do instead: Be friendly even in the face of criticism. Offer to rectify situations where you were at fault (it happens). You can’t make everyone happy, nor should you try. When customers complain or write a negative review, use it as an opportunity to a) educate the customer, or b) improve your business.

There’s no need to argue — doing so will only make you look defensive. Attempt to take challenging conversations offline so you can handle matters privately.

Respond to positive feedback, too! Your customers appreciate when you take the time to acknowledge their kind words.

https://www.facebook.com/heidi.meyer.144/posts/10222052446008335

Think Quality, Not Quantity

What not to do: Post 43 times a day about literally nothing. Snap low-quality photos and post them without captions. Better yet, use strictly stock photos. Promote yourself shamelessly.

What to do instead: Post highly engaging, hyper-local content. Engaging content features real people and places, like the owner/operator, employees, customers and the work you’ve done. Listen and converse more than you sell. Showcase the great work you’re doing and awesome people at your company, and let that content speak for itself.

Boost Your Content

What not to do: With all that low-quality content above, just keep pushing it out there and hope someone sees it. Your followers are bound to come across it sometime. Don’t spend any money on social media — it’s free, right?

What to do instead: Boost your content. No one will see it — not your followers, not their friends and not any prospects — if you don’t pay to play. Start with a reasonable budget and ramp it up as you go. Target the audiences you want to reach, smartly and strategically; then it will be money well-spent. Popular posts like the one below are exactly the kind of content you want your audience to see.

https://www.facebook.com/1690430347907071/posts/2625624484387648/?substory_index=0

Get Brand-Specific With Franchise Social Media Best Practices

These best practices are just a taste of recommendations we make for our franchise clients. The “best practices” can vary slightly based on your goals and the type of involvement you want to have in your social media — whether totally hands-free or fully involved with the process.

If you’re looking for an even more in-depth look at best practices specific to your brand, schedule a no-obligation demo. We’ll take information about your business and customize a complete playbook tailored to your organization’s needs.

Tags franchise social media, social media

Uncategorized

Top Social Media Management Tools from Rallio

Post author By Rallio
Post date April 29, 2020

When you consider the number of social media management tools available, it can feel overwhelming trying to choose the best ones for your franchise. Especially right now when you may be dealing with new challenges related to COVID-19, you need to know that any money you’re spending is being put to good use.

Rallio’s social media management tools are specifically built for franchises. We’ve taken the guesswork out of finding the best technology and services to help your business grow. As a Top Franchise Supplier on Entrepreneur.com, Rallio is the preferred supplier for franchise organizations in a variety of industry sectors.

Below is a quick rundown of the various social media management tools and services we offer. You might find you need just one of these tools, or you might need all of them. It varies from business to business. But regardless of what you may need, you can get started with any or all of them quite cost-effectively.

Rallio Dashboard

This is the technology behind everything we do. The Rallio app gives you both a desktop dashboard and a mobile app to manage every aspect of your social media pages.

Built for franchises and multi-unit businesses, the Rallio dashboard lets you control your brand’s social and review pages from one simple spot. As a franchisor or multi-unit owner, you can also syndicate content to different types of franchisees and set permissions. The powerful platform also gives you access to robust analytics, like your engagements and high-performing content.

In the database, you can see all the content you’ve created, schedule it, syndicate it, delete or edit it, and view and upload all your assets like images and videos. The Inbox pulls in all your incoming comments and direct messages and lets you reply directly within the Rallio app. Meanwhile, the Outbox shows you everything you’ve published.

You’ll also find the Sandbox, a one-of-a-kind feature with content pulled together from all your many locations. Franchisees can see which local content is performing the best in their brand — and either get ideas to create posts or even reuse content on their own page!

After all, you’re in business for yourself but not by yourself. The Sandbox gives you a virtual space to come together and gain inspiration among fellow franchisees.

Another unique feature is the Reviews tab, which pulls in reviews from the major review platforms and lets you respond directly to Google My Business and Facebook reviews.

If you like healthy competition, the Leaderboard keeps a running tally of how your locations are performing on their social media pages — from assets submitted to engagement on posts.

Once you start using the Rallio Dashboard, you’ll no doubt find it addicting — and so will franchisees. Get everyone in sync for a consistent, powerful brand presence from corporate down to the location level.

https://www.facebook.com/TutorDoctor/posts/10157235049042374:0

Rallio Local

Rallio Local combines the power of the Rallio technology with the creativity of real people. With Rallio Local, you work with actual humans on every aspect of your social media. You also get all the bells and whistles of our technology to make management and measurement simple and streamlined.

Our team creates and schedules weekly, custom, local posts to your social media pages. We pair you with a Social Strategist to deliver hyper-local content that gets seen by your audience through fully managed ad campaigns. It’s this type of engaging, real-life content that gets your audience in your business and your pages.

You also receive custom responses to your online reviews, social media comments and direct messages. If you prefer to have someone else manage and grow your social media presence, the Rallio Local program would be the best for you.

https://www.facebook.com/PetSuppliesPlusGoshen/posts/2875486582487415:0

Rallio Activate

Your employees are already on social media all throughout the day. Flip the switch with Rallio Activate, and you can leverage the power of your employees to reach customers like never before.

Incentivize employees with rewards programs that you create, and collect assets into your brand’s image library. Have them submit their own photos and videos to earn points, and publish your brand-approved content on their personal profiles.

With Rallio Activate, you build confidence in your brand. It’s human nature to trust the recommendation of a third party over the brand itself. Rallio Activate builds upon the positive experiences that employees are having with your company to light up your social media presence even more.

Revv

Ever wish you had an easy way to get more positive online reviews? Revv is the tool for you.

Easily send out quick surveys after a sale to ask customers about their experience. Positive feedback sends customers to the review platform of your choice. Negative feedback gets taken offline so you can contact the customer directly and resolve the problem.

With Revv, you not only get more positive reviews, but you also get a chance to handle any issues and make your business even better. With online reviews being so important right now — more so than ever — it’s imperative you have a way to connect with customers after the sale and make sure everything is just right.

Which Rallio Social Media Management Tools Do You Need?

Goldman Sachs predicts the pandemic will force “an acceleration toward an e-world.” In that world, social media and your online presence will play even more important roles in your business’ success.

Rallio’s suite of social media management tools and services are designed to help you navigate that “e-world” with greater ease. Whether you want to be fully involved or take a hands-free approach and let us handle it for you, we have a solution for every need and budget.

Now that you’ve read through the options, the next step is to schedule a demo. It takes less than 10 minutes and the rewards can be exponential if you get started today. Give us a shout at sales@rallio.com and we’ll get you plugged in.

Tags social media management tools

Social

The 7 Deadly Franchise Social Media Sins

Post author By Rallio
Post date April 24, 2020

The basics of franchise social media are more relevant today than ever before — particularly given the current challenges so many businesses are facing. If it’s been a while since you dusted off your social media marketing strategy, now would be an excellent time to do so.

When you do, you might come to some tough conclusions about the way that strategy is working — or not. It’s easy to let your franchise social media lag if you’re caught up in other parts of your business that you think are more important. However, your social media is honestly one of the most important areas of your business you can focus on right now.

We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: We’re not here to judge. We are, however, here to shine a light on the 7 Deadly Franchise Social Media Sins that many franchise owners make.

If you’re guilty of any of these sins, we forgive you. And we’ve got a cure for each of them we think will set you on the path to righteousness with your social media pages.

Deadly Sin #1: Lust

In the context of social media: Lust, of course, is a strong passion or longing for something. It might be that you’re “lusting” after vanity metrics like a high follower count, for instance.

When we say “vanity metrics,” it refers to numbers that might look good on paper, but do not actually tell you how your page is performing. As the Content Marketing Institute explains it, “the sheen on these numbers fades when you use them to explain important business outcomes like ROI or customer lifetime value (CLTV); they become hollow digits that contribute little substance to proving your marketing is making money.”

You can lust after those followers all you want, but even if you get them, will you really be happy … er, impactful on social media? All the shiny new followers in the world don’t matter if nobody sees your content, or if they see it and don’t care.

Why would nobody see your content? You aren’t boosting it. You figured they followed you, so they must be lusting after you, too. Sorry, buddy. Unless you pay to put your content in their newsfeeds, they won’t know it exists.

Why would nobody care about your content? It could be overly promotional, trite, confusing, repetitive or — bear with us here — a tad bit boring.

The cure: The combination of great content and boosting gets your content seen. And great content is hyper-local, personable, authentic, entertaining or informational. Now put your eyeballs back in their sockets, quit chasing followers and move on to the next deadly sin.

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=1047045519010372&id=405530529828544&substory_index=0

Deadly Sin #2: Gluttony

In the context of social media: Gluttony could mean consuming more than you’re contributing. It might come in the form of failing to respond to online reviews, comments and questions on your page.

If you’ve done a good job with avoiding sin #1 and you’re posting highly engaging content that you’re also boosting, you should start to see audience interaction. They’ll like your posts, share them, leave comments, post reviews and send you DMs.

Sure, it’s easy to sit back and let the engagements roll in — maybe not even noticing what’s happening on your social media pages. But sooner or later, it’s like watching Netflix for too long, when you get the question, “Are you still watching?” Or, in this case, are you still listening?

When you don’t respond to engagements, both positive and negative, it makes you look like you’re just out there enjoying your Thanksgiving dinner while your audience waits for a reply.

The cure: Set down your fork, dab your face with a napkin and jump into the conversation. You’ve got to get in the trenches with your followers and make sure they know you’re there. Get excited about serving up delicious morsels of customer service. If they get “fat” on your cheerful replies and helpful tips, they’ll be loyal consumers for life.

Deadly Sin #3: Greed

In the context of social media: Being greedy may mean you’re being overly promotional. You’re pushing sales more than you’re being social.

When you excessively post about a promotion or offer, it drives people away and may cause them to unfollow you. The key word in “social media” is, of course, social. Being yourself, posting authentic images and talking to your audience like friends is much more effective than self-promotion.

It’s like going to a party where you don’t know a lot of people. You make a few jokes, ask people what they do for a living, maybe throw in casually that you clean houses for a living and see what they say. You don’t immediately pull out your vacuum and start asking people to lift their feet as you sweep up (though you might come in handy after the party!).

The cure: Put your followers first. Be friendly, personable and charitable. Listen and engage more than you sell. Don’t be that desperate salesperson who follows people around the virtual “store,” if you will.

Deadly Sin #4: Sloth

In the context of social media: For lack of a better word, you’re lazy with your social media. Your pages are collecting dust. You haven’t posted anything in months, if ever.

It’s not hard to guess what happens when you ignore your social media pages. Nobody will see them.

By failing to put effort into your pages, you’re missing out on opportunities to connect with your target customers. And right now especially, with so many people online during the COVID-19 crisis, you’re letting leads and customers slip away.

The cure: Be diligent with your social media. Treat it like the necessary part of your business that it is. Create a buzz about your business so people become eager to hear from you. Like that alarm going off at 5 a.m. reminding you to go for a morning run, get into the habit of posting regularly to your page and interacting with your audience. Promise you can have pancakes afterward.

https://www.facebook.com/rallio/posts/1593062590846907

Deadly Sin #5: Wrath

In the context of social media: Maybe you get upset with detractors or people posting negative reviews or comments.

It’s easy to feel angry when you feel attacked, right? If someone says something about your business that’s not true, or worded meanly, you might feel like hurling back a few strong words. And it can easily turn into a public or private argument with a customer.

Although it’s tempting to get into a word battle with people online, there’s no way to win in this situation. You might as well start yelling, “I know you are, but what am I!” Arguing with a customer only gets them more upset and makes you look defensive.

The cure: Go scream in a pillow if you must, and then collect yourself. Be cool, all you cool cats and kittens. Respond professionally. Invite customers to take a conversation offline. Look for ways to solve the problem rather than focus on the words that made you angry.

When you’re patient and choose your words carefully, you always win. You’re either going to make the customer happy, you’ll be the one taking the high road, or you’ll maybe say goodbye to a customer you’re happy to see leave. You might even find ways to improve your business if you look for them.

Deadly Sin #6: Envy

In the context of social media: Perhaps you’re jealous of competitors. You envy their success, so you’re trying to be like them.

When you focus on trying to imitate others, you fail to differentiate yourself. Why be a sheep when you can be a shepherd? You have something unique to offer that your competitors don’t. You have some kind of competitive advantage — what is it?

The cure: Don’t be jelly. You can and should keep an eye on what your competitors are doing so you don’t fall behind. But you should use those observations to make your business better, to offer something different and to set yourself apart. Put on that shepherd’s cloak and be a leader.

Deadly Sin #7: Pride

Pride can take on many forms in the context of social media:

Not asking for help, thinking you can do it all yourself because no one can do it better than you. While that may be true, you’re going to burn yourself out if you do business this way.
Boasting excessively, to the point where you fail to see any potential flaws. Because everybody loves a business that can’t get enough of itself, right?
Not taking criticism well, even when it might help your business. So maybe you’re having flashbacks to junior high when your teacher took a red pen to your heartfelt essay about water conservation. Well, she was only trying to give you some constructive feedback, and so are the people who leave reviews (even if sometimes it’s not so constructive).
Letting ego run rampant. Your selfie stick is always in your back pocket.

We know you’re amazing at what you do. You wouldn’t be in business otherwise. Consider, however, that there may be times when pride is getting in the way of your success.

The cure: Be open to the idea that other people have value to add to your social media. Set the ego aside, and focus on a mindset of collaboration — with your team, with your followers, with your community. Turn the spotlight on others, and eventually, it will shine right back on you, you beautiful human.

Franchise Social Media Made Simple

Having a digital agency that always has your back can help you avoid the deadly sins of franchise social media and stay on track. Rallio works with franchises in all different industries to improve their social media, online reputation and brand management — from corporate down to the location level.

To get started and chat with our social media experts, fill out our online form or reach out to sales@rallio.com.

Tags franchise social media, social media marketing

Social

Health and Medical

What is your location doing to keep everyone healthy and safe? Take photos of your staff at safety stations in your office, complete with hand sanitizer, gloves and masks.
What are some of the FAQ you get about COVID-19? Post a video with an employee answering a handful of the most common questions your lab tends to get.
The CDC now recommends wearing face masks out in public. Post a video showing your followers how to make their own face masks using cloth, bandanas, scarves and other household materials. Remind them to wash their hands before and after wearing a mask!
Share an inspirational quote or personal story related to COVID-19! Everyone could use a pick-me-up during this challenging time.

https://www.facebook.com/ARCpointLabsofSantaFeSprings/photos/a.874354019284335/2856450044408046/?type=3

Online Education

Do you have a teacher or tutor who has gone above and beyond recently, maybe helping a student boost their grade? Post a photo of them with a shoutout to thank them for their hard work!
What colleges are your senior students planning to attend? Share photos with them wearing their college sweatshirt, holding up a logo or mascot, or somehow showing their school spirit!
As students engage in distance learning, some schools are distributing yard signs for their grads. If you have any graduating seniors, ask them to send in photos with them posing by a “Class of 2020” yard sign or a homemade sign.
Kids need your help right now, but so do parents! Share an inspirational message or quote to let them know you care and you’re there for them in these uncertain times.
Do you have a Facebook group for your local customers? Let them know how to access it! (Let us know if you need help setting up a local Facebook group to offer extra at-home learning support and resources for children and parents.)

We are grateful to our incredible Orange High School PTA for surprising each student in the Class of 2020 with a yard sign! Thanks to OHS PTA Senior Parent Representative Miki Beachler for coordinating and safely distributing (from a distance!) these yard signs. #TeamOrange pic.twitter.com/KAXaQqaPcY

— Orange_Schools_OH (@Orange_Schools) April 17, 2020

Retail Shops

Remind your customers of the contact-free options you have available at your store, such as curbside pickup.
In these uncertain times, it’s important to express gratitude for your team. Post a photo of them with a “thank you” message to let them know how much you appreciate their hard work and why you’re grateful for them.
With many people working from home, they’ll love doorstep delivery and other local options to access the products they need as they shelter at home — from pet products to work-from-home items such as printer supplies. Take a photo of a delivery driver preparing to make a local delivery.
Ask followers to snap photos of their home office setup, with tips on staying productive, ergonomically correct and healthy at home.
If you’re open, make sure you communicate that message to customers with your hours of operation and any restrictions you have in place for social distancing.

https://www.facebook.com/cwoftc/photos/a.442057212831058/1035986576771449/?type=3

Automotive Services

Are you making any deliveries or picking up vehicles for service? Take a picture of your delivery driver wearing their protective gear before they head out!
Host a Q&A on your page! Take a photo of one of your experienced team members, and prompt your followers to ask them some tire-care or service-related questions.
Record a quick video to demonstrate how to check tire tread depth! Explain how the “penny test” is a simple way to see when tires need to be replaced.
You can post other safety videos or tips, too — like how to check tire pressure, what to do if a tire blows out while driving, or even how to change a tire if you’re feeling ambitious!
Thank a customer for a great review! Your current online reviews are so important right now for inspiring confidence in your business. It’s also a best practice to respond to all your reviews, both positive and negative, and reposting a review on your social media pages only adds to the reach.

ANY size, ANYWHERE! We can get it done for you and get you back on the road. It’s just that simple!…

Posted by Rubber On Wheels on Thursday, March 26, 2020

Cleaning and Restoration

Do you have any old photos from team events? Post a throwback photo along with a caption expressing gratitude for your hard-working team, and invite your followers to comment on anything they’re grateful for right now.
Make sure you express gratitude for your customers as they continue to do business with you. Post a simple “thank you” with a photo of your team to let them know how much you appreciate their loyalty.
What are some of the awesome local jobs you’ve done lately? Highlight one or two of them so customers can see the great work you’re doing in the community.
Post a “thank you” to your hard-working team members, perhaps with a throwback photo of past team events or conferences.
Whether you’re open or closed right now, you can brighten up newsfeeds with an inspirational message or quote.

Need More Social Media Content Ideas? Let Us Know

Hopefully, this will help spark some ideas of ways you can bring life to your social media pages. Feel free to contact us if you’d love getting a weekly email with content ideas delivered to your inbox. We’ll do the thinking so you don’t have to spend time figuring out what to post, and you can focus on running your business! #winwin

As you’re taking care of social distancing, Rallio is here to take care of your social media engagement — with no initial fees. We have many different solutions for all types of businesses to help them navigate the COVID-19 crisis with greater ease. To get started, fill out our online form or reach out to sales@rallio.com.

Tags coronavirus, franchise social media, social media marketing

Social

4 Ways to Tweak Your Social Media Marketing for COVID-19

Post author By Rallio
Post date April 15, 2020

No matter what the industry, COVID-19 has affected businesses everywhere, along with the consumers who buy from them. Given the global impact this virus has had, it’s important to adjust your messaging and social media marketing to reflect the current times — whether your business is booming or struggling because of COVID-19.

Instead of a hard sales pitch, it’s about softening your message and looking for ways to be of service. The term “We’re all in this together” has become a rallying cry of people everywhere — from all industries and walks of life.

And actually, this is the perfect time to recognize that the hard sales pitch was never a very effective way to capture your audience’s attention.

Rather than use social media as a blatant promotional tool, think of it as a platform for being authentic, honest and real. Recruit the power of social media to help you tell your story, support your customers and serve your community, and you’ll be met with enthusiasm from your audience.

Follow the tips below to be more impactful with your social media marketing regardless of your industry — not only now during COVID-19 times, but going forward as well.

Tip #1: Think Gandhi, Not Rocky

You’re not stepping into a boxing ring with Apollo Creed. Knocking your customers in the face with the hard sell is only going to turn them away.

That was true before COVID-19, and it’s even more true now.

People will resonate with messaging that addresses the current reality. For many, that reality includes dealing with financial and emotional challenges like they’ve never seen before.

For others, it may mean dealing with loss and grief if they’ve lost loved ones. It could mean isolating from family or putting themselves at risk as essential workers.

Since you don’t know what each of your customers might be experiencing right now, you simply need to speak to all of them with compassion and gritty realness.

Imagine yourself as a storyteller, someone who engages your audience with compelling plots, twists and turns, surprise endings and fascinating characters. Be the type of account someone wants to follow and engage with. The deeper they get into your “story,” the more they’ll remember you and want to buy from you.

You can be playful, motivational and sometimes humorous, too. Give them something to do with all that time at home — dance party, anyone? Zoom cocktail hour? Wacky science experiment for kids? Whatever you do, do it from the heart. Be a friend, not a salesperson.

CBS Sports nailed it with their inspirational ad speaking to our collective longing for sports, greeting us simply, “Hello Friends.” Grab your tissues, y’all.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCt6shOqfSo

Tip #2: Do Stuff You Wouldn’t Normally Do

Think free shipping and deeper discounts. Go the extra mile with customer service. Make every customer feel important and significant. On a more thought-provoking note, trust that what you give away will come back to you tenfold or more.

Customers are paying close attention to how you are taking care of them right now. You should be treating every customer, follower and lead like royalty.

It’s the way service should be — we’re just hyper-aware of it today. You better believe your customer will remember you including a handwritten note and a free dessert with their takeout order. Thank them by name for supporting your business, and sign it with your own name, too.

Yes, it’s April and you’re not thinking about creating the type of offers you would normally only dish out on Black Friday. But we’ll say it louder for the people in the back: These are not normal times.

When you tailor your offers for a COVID-19 audience, you are letting people know you care. You’re putting people before profits. And those people will remember your kindness.

Every time you offer free delivery, free trials, free gifts with purchase and other freebies, you gain your audience’s trust. You’re instilling confidence in your business — the type of confidence that will translate into repeat sales and positive reviews.

Tip #3: Take a Fine-Toothed Comb to Social Media Marketing

If you already have posts and ads scheduled to go out, be sure to give them an extra once-over. For the reasons stated in tip #2, you don’t want anything going out that doesn’t speak to the current COVID-19 reality.

You can either tweak your scheduled content or come up with new posts and ads altogether. For instance, if you had content set to go out that talks about enjoying spring travel, you can adjust it to speak to people who are staying home instead.

Take Airbnb, a company that obviously relies on travel. With stay-at-home orders in place, they’ve had to shift their focus to virtual experiences. In the April 9 post below, Airbnb introduces “Airbnb Experiences,” explaining that you can “take a flamenco class with Lidón in Madrid, participate in a tarot card reading with Mak in Austin, or visit a colony of penguins in Cape Town—all from home.”

(By the way, this is another example of a company pivoting to address COVID-19, as we’ve covered in several previous posts about the pet, online education, food and fitness industries.)

https://www.facebook.com/airbnb/posts/10158336490662458

Look at your recent content that’s already gone out, too. If something seems insensitive or no longer applies, you can delete it. Or if an email slipped out with inappropriate messaging, send an apologetic follow-up to practice damage control.

Be hyper-aware of every piece of content and communication that’s going out. Run it by a second and third set of eyes if you can. Being extra cautious will help you avoid offending anyone.

Tip #4: Get Strategic With Ads and Search

This is also a good time to look at your ad strategy for any opportunities to showcase high-performing content. Those “storytelling” posts you’re creating? Boost them to put them in more of your audience’s newsfeeds. Take advantage of the increase in traffic as more people go online to connect with friends, pass the time and discover new content.

Consider search, too. If you’re running PPC campaigns, add in COVID-19-related search terms to account for new search behavior. Everyday searches like “international travel” and “tax tips” will now include the additional terms “coronavirus” or “COVID,” for instance, as people look for the most up-to-date information on the global pandemic.

A caveat: The trends around COVID-19 search are rapidly evolving. This is not a “set it and forget situation” by any means. Keep yourself up-to-date on the most current search information to be sure your PPC campaigns stay relevant.

Google’s Coronavirus Search Trends page is one useful resource. Check back daily to stay in the know about how COVID-19 is being searched around the globe in different sectors.

Tags coronavirus, franchise social media, social media marketing

Social

The Pandemic and Fitness Businesses: How Social Media Can Help

Post author By Rallio
Post date April 10, 2020

When the day came that fitness studios had to shut down due to COVID-19, they were left with only a couple of choices: Keep going and figure out how to go digital, or shut down, lay off employees, and hope they’re able to recover if and when they reopen. At this point, maybe your fitness business is finding itself somewhere in between. And that’s totally OK.

With the surge in fitness businesses taking their classes and workout routines online and onto social media, you might be asking yourself if there’s still room for you. The short answer is yes — absolutely. What’s more, it’s not too late to jump aboard this quick-moving trend if you haven’t already.

Working out at home has become one of the few things we have control of today. Even with a stressful situation happening in the world around us, we can still break a sweat and do our part to stay home, stay healthy and stay on top of our workout routines.

As a fitness professional, you have an opportunity to pivot your business and serve people in a time when they’re craving your digital presence more than ever. Those who maybe didn’t pay much attention to your social media before may now be actively seeking it out — to find workouts, tips and connection with the fitness community they know and love.

You can’t be there in person, motivating them to sink lower in their squats or pick up those heavier weights. But you can certainly grab their interest and keep them coming back to your social media pages. When all is said and done, you can even have a whole new line of business when you’re able to welcome students back into your physical location.

Key Takeaways:

You can stay connected with your fitness community not only through online classes, but also short workouts featuring your instructors.
Be as creative with your business right now as you are with your workout routines. Don’t limit yourself just to the same old things you’re used to doing.
Social media gives you so many tools to create connection, and your audience is looking for it. Take advantage of this time when you have their attention and they’re craving any interaction they can get with their favorite fitness studio.

But First, Some Housekeeping

Even though your physical location is closed right now, you should still keep up with your social media marketing. Doing so will keep you connected with your audience and ensure you’re able to minimize the damage from being closed. First, though, you’ll need to do the following:

Let your customers know that while you are closed, you are still open online. Communicate regularly about what virtual classes you’re offering and at what times. Pair your social media communications with emails so there are multiple touchpoints with customers.
Update your physical location’s hours anywhere your business is listed online. Rallio’s Business Listings feature will let you quickly update your hours across the web — a real time-saver, especially considering Google My Business has limited functionality currently due to COVID-19-related staff shortages at Google.

Now Let’s Get Moving

Going online is the most obvious way to keep your classes going. Get yourself on YouTube, Zoom, Instagram and Facebook Live with classes people can take in real time or access later. Include workouts families can do together, too! Some studios are offering free content in exchange for members keeping their subscriptions active. Others have created all-new subscription services. You can decide what makes the most sense for your business.
Think of how you can be of service to essential workers. Post a series of free, short videos that healthcare workers, grocery employees, law enforcement and other essential employees can do if they’re able to take a quick break.
Take advantage of trending hashtags like #MondayMotivation and #swolemate to get your community involved. Ask members to tag their favorite workout buddy with the #swolemate hashtag and your business tagged in the post.
Get hyper-local. Your students are missing their favorite instructors. Show a more personal side of them with posts featuring their home workout spots and setups. They can also post short videos and tips, such as alternatives to weights if people don’t have them — from filled-up water bottles to soup cans and wine bottles! By the way, make sure you design workouts that can be done at home by people who might have limited equipment — not a bunch of exercises involving heavy gym equipment. (This might seem obvious, but we’ve seen some fitness pros posting “home workouts” that show them doing routines on machines at the gym. Hmm.)
Have fun with it! Peloton posted an image asking followers, “Choose Your Instructor House.” The post got great engagement from its loyal community as they decided which house full of instructors they’d hang at. How can you creatively present your instructors and staff to generate engagement with your community?

https://www.instagram.com/p/B-xfvE_Ac_e/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Get Creative

Rent out equipment. It’s just sitting there at the gym, right? Help your members by renting it out (some places are sold out of workout equipment), and you’ll help keep some cash flow at the same time.
Or, sell equipment and pair it with an online subscription. Boxing club Boxhaus is offering workout bags delivered to doorsteps and paired with a new subscription app to access classes members can do at home — looks like a brand-new line of business to us.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B-pyGvkJReu/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Create additional revenue streams like online workshops and trainings. We’re seeing yoga studios shift their teacher trainings online. Offer nutrition coaching with the help of certified nutrition experts. Like we discussed in our article about online education, you have something to teach — so now is the time to take it online and get paid for it.
Cook something healthy in front of your audience. Yes, they want to see that.
Offer freebies to newcomers like a free first class, free first week or free trial of your subscriptions. Create downloads like workout plans and healthy recipes you can offer free with signup.
Don’t forget about reviews — both asking for them and posting them on your social media! As we wrote in this article about online reviews, it’s critical that you have current reviews posted, not reviews from several months ago. You can also use our Revv app to send out surveys and gather positive feedback right after members complete a workout.
Partner with other businesses. If you’re offering yoga content, collaborate with a HIIT studio, for example. Tag each other in content to help support local businesses and extend your reach.

Host Events

Create live Instagram and Facebook events for a “Sip and Shop” or happy hour. If you sell any kind of products, you can showcase them here and offer curbside pickup or free local delivery. Have a couple of instructors model clothing for sale, describe the benefits of any supplements you sell, or demonstrate how a product is used. Never before have you had this kind of captive audience hearing about your products — normally they’re running out the door after class, right? Right now, they’re eager to interact with you.
Post a virtual challenge and boost it! For example, fitness chain The 12 is hosting a 21-Day Virtual Challenge with a $25 buy-in, with 100% of proceeds benefiting local efforts to purchase supplies related to COVID-19. Participants are encouraged to post their own workout videos and tag The 12 on Instagram and Facebook — great for generating local engagement.
Go live at specific hours of the day. Post short five-minute workouts to help your audience break up their time at home. Include kid-friendly workouts to get little ones moving along with their parents!
Post a “treasure hunt” kids can do at home. It might just keep kids busy long enough for parents to squeeze in a workout! You could also post downloadable puzzles, coloring pages and art projects (glitter-free, of course!). Ask your followers to upload pictures in the comments!

https://www.facebook.com/placentiafitbodybootcamp/posts/934893400262359

Friends, you’ve been training for this moment since the day you could lace up your sneakers. This is a marathon, not a sprint, and we’re all in this together, eager to cross the finish line and get to the other side of COVID-19 even stronger than before.

Remember, the fitness community is one of the strongest, most inspiring groups of people around, and you’re a huge part of it. Hey, if this guy can build a home gym out of wood, you can do anything you set your mind to.

https://www.facebook.com/NowThisNews/posts/3318915464865221

Do you have a fitness business? What are some other strategies that are working for you right now? Leave a comment below for a chance to be featured on our Instagram page.

Tap Into the Power of Social Media

Rallio Dashboard — Our social media management tool was built specifically for franchises and multi-unit businesses. It lets you control your brand’s social and review pages from one simple spot, as well as syndicate content to different types of franchisees and set permissions.
Rallio Local — Technology is great, but humans are better. Rallio Local combines the power of the Rallio technology with the creativity of real people. Receive weekly custom, local content, custom responses to your online reviews, social ad campaigns and community management. We pair you with a Social Strategist to deliver hyper-local content that gets seen by your audience through fully managed ad campaigns.
Rallio Activate — Leverage the power of your employees to reach customers like never before. Incentivize them with rewards programs that you create, and collect assets into your brands image library. Have them submit their own photos and videos to earn points, and publish your brand-approved content on their personal profiles.

To get started, fill out our online form or reach out to sales@rallio.com. Let’s keep you growing even as we navigate the current challenges.

This is the final article in a four-part series exploring ways to respond to changing times, digitize your business and blow up your social media presence. Check out the other three articles about food, pet and online education businesses for additional inspiration.

Tags coronavirus, franchise social media, social media marketing

Social

The Pandemic and Food Businesses: How Social Media Can Help

Post author By Rallio
Post date April 8, 2020

Food, glorious food. It’s one of the few things that isn’t cancelled right now, and for that, we’re incredibly grateful. If we have to be at home all the time, at least we can take comfort in a hot plate of mac ‘n’ cheese or chocolate chip cookies, right?

Seriously, though, we’re all grateful for the people working tirelessly to make sure everyone has food to eat — not only the grocery store employees putting in extra hours and risking their own health, but also the restaurants and quick-service eateries remaining open for takeout and delivery.

If you operate a food business, this is truly your time to shine on social media. As you’re making, serving and delivering delicious meals, you can also be delivering messages of positivity and hope as you grow your business even in these challenging times. This article, the third in a four-part series exploring how businesses can pivot right now, will help you highlight the great work you’re doing as a restaurateur during the COVID-19 crisis.

Key Takeaways:

If your business is still open, you need to communicate with your customers about what to expect when ordering from you — from your hours of operation to the safety precautions you’re taking.
Customers aren’t just craving your food; they’re craving mouth-watering posts that tell them about your deals, free delivery and family specials. Feature your employees and customers for a hyper-local feel.
Now is the time to be creative rather than letting COVID-19 limit your thinking. You can partner with local businesses digitally on social media, or host live happy hours and food pairings to create greater connection with your audience.

But First, Some Housekeeping

By now, you’ve had to make some tough decisions about closing your doors to dine-in patrons. You’re either closed altogether — in which case you should still keep up with your social media marketing if you hope to reopen — or you’re staying open for pickup and delivery.

It’s critical that you let your customers know what’s happening so they know what to expect. For starters, make sure you’ve communicated your hours of operation. You can do this in a couple of different ways:

Post about it on your social media pages to tell customers when you’re open and make it clear you’re offering only pickup or delivery. Many businesses are offering free delivery right now, either directly from their restaurant or through third-party delivery apps.
You should also update your hours anywhere your business is listed online. Rallio has a Business Listings feature that will let you quickly update your hours across the web — a real time-saver, especially considering Google My Business has limited functionality currently due to COVID-19-related staff shortages at Google.

And Now for the Fun Stuff

Aside from posting about your hours, you can have a lot of fun with your social media. Here are just a few ideas of what you can post.

Obviously, at a restaurant, it’s all about the food. Snap photos of your mouth-watering creations! Include the chef in your posts — maybe shoot a video of him describing what ingredients he used. You can also include your employees: Take photos of them with their favorite dishes! Or share any photos your customers have posted with their favorite meals.
Take advantage of trending hashtags like #TakeoutTuesday and #TheGreatAmericanTakeout. Invite your customers to support local business by ordering takeout from you instead of crowding into grocery stores. Ask them to upload photos of their dishes with the hashtag — you could even turn it into a contest by selecting a random winner of a gift card to your location.

https://twitter.com/junebugcleary/status/1247658070353862658

What kind of safety precautions are you taking in light of COVID-19? Tell your customers about your cleaning and food preparation protocols. Let them know all your options for pickup and delivery.
With customers’ permission and proper social distancing, you can snap photos of customers as they pick up their food. Tell them “thank you” for supporting your business!
Don’t forget about reviews — both asking for them and posting them on your social media! As we wrote in this article about online reviews, it’s critical that you have current reviews posted, not reviews from several months ago. Customers want to know what to expect from your business today, and your reviews give them the confidence they need to place an order. With GMB not posting new reviews currently, you may have to take other measures, like directing customers to other review platforms. You can also use our Revv app to send out surveys and gather positive feedback right after a sale.
Now is the perfect time to lean into family-friendly options that bring households together. All-in-one meal kits and take-and-bake meals with instructions give families something to do together as they’re sheltering at home. Snap photos of your meal kits and caption them with what’s included, prices and why families will love eating these dishes together. For instance, Rubio’s posted a fun video of their Family Taco Kit featuring Ralph Rubio’s tips on washing hands and assembling meals — as well as what he’s binge-watching right now!

https://www.facebook.com/rubios/posts/10156906825916976

Are you giving back to healthcare workers, police, families in need, any other people in your community? Maybe you supply lunch once or twice a week and post all your photos of these special deliveries.
How about a live happy hour on Facebook or Zoom where you walk your patrons through a meal and how to pair it with a good wine or beer? Make menu recommendations for all the different people who might be in a household, from little kids who eat nothing but chicken nuggets to adults wanting a gourmet experience at home. Create opportunities for live interaction in a time when people are eager for human connection more than ever before.
Could you partner with other businesses for giveaways and promotions? In another post, Rubio’s gave fans a chance to win a yearlong Disney+ subscription in exchange for follows, likes and tagging friends. It doesn’t have to be a big business like Disney, either. You could partner with local businesses, tag each other in content, and help support each other and extend your reach even further.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B-p1ggUHeBe/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Tap Into the Power of Social Media

Rallio Dashboard — Our social media management tool was built specifically for franchises and multi-unit businesses. It lets you control your brand’s social and review pages from one simple spot, as well as syndicate content to different types of franchisees and set permissions.
Rallio Local — Technology is great, but humans are better. Rallio Local combines the power of the Rallio technology with the creativity of real people. Receive weekly custom, local content, custom responses to your online reviews, social ad campaigns and community management. We pair you with a Social Strategist to deliver hyper-local content that gets seen by your audience through fully managed ad campaigns.
Rallio Activate — Leverage the power of your employees to reach customers like never before. Incentivize them with rewards programs that you create, and collect assets into your brands image library. Have them submit their own photos and videos to earn points, and publish your brand-approved content on their personal profiles.

To get started, fill out our online form or reach out to sales@rallio.com. Let’s keep you growing even as we navigate the current challenges.

This article is the third in a four-part series exploring ways to respond to changing times, digitize your business and blow up your social media presence. Watch for our future vertical-specific articles to learn how to adapt for the current economy.

Tags coronavirus, franchise social media, social media marketing