As the reach of social media grows, the world becomes more and more interconnected. Social media is no longer a just a tool for teenagers to message their friends – it’s now a valuable way for businesses to stay in touch with their client base. How will your company utilize social media technology to increase your reach and positively engage your clients?

Social media, according to Erik Qualman, is the future of employee recruitment. “Social media is simply a synonym for relationship building,” says Qualman. “It’s about engagement and trust. Social media is a great way to start or deepen a relationships with a client or customer.”

Mastering social media engagement is simple – it’s just not easy. Businesses often focus on pushing out their message as quickly as possible, rather than listening and responding to the needs of their customers. The most important function of social media is to build real relationships with customers, a message that can be lost in a sea of ROIs.

Keep reading to learn which companies have mastered the use of social media technology, according to Erik Qualman.  

1. Accessible Education: People from around the world are able to get an incredible education for free and edX.org is doing an incredible job of integrating existing social tools as part of the experience.
2. Learning Apps: Duolingo is also a great app that allows you to learn languages and compete against your friends as well as connect with people you don’t know who are also trying to learning a language. This peer-to-peer social learning is going to work in combination with the classroom; an incredibly powerful blended learning model.
3. Networking: LinkedIn has lowered its age limit to 13 to help give these kids access have information to high schools and colleges they are interested in. LinkedIn is going to be a huge data play to help us better determine proven paths to success.
4. Employee Regulation: Uber is also starting to run into some regulation in terms of drivers working more than 30 hours per week should be treated like full-time employees with benefits and healthcare. It will be interesting to see how this plays out in court and in the market.

As 2015 winds down, brainstorm new ways for your company to increase customer engagement through social media, or consider bringing a social media expert to counsel your team in 2016. Remember, the most important rule is to create a real relationship between your business and the customer, by engaging with your client base and building their trust.

Eric Qualman is the author of Socialnomics. Socialnomics made Amazon’s #1 Best Selling List for the US, Japan, UK, Canada, Portugal, Italy, China, Korea and Germany.

The content writers at BigSpeak Speakers Bureau are Experts on the Experts. They hold doctoral, masters, and bachelors’ degrees in business, writing, literature, and education. Their business thought pieces are published regularly in leading business publications. Working in close association with the top business, entrepreneur, and motivational speakers, BigSpeak content writers are at the forefront of industry trends and research.