HTH® Pool Care Makes Quite a Splash in Social Media

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One of the reasons people love their pools is they provide natural places to socialize and connect with family and friends.  So it seems natural that pool owners would swim to social media for similar reasons.  We at HTH Pool Care are finding that’s true.

We launched our HTH Facebook® page Memorial Day 2011.  By the time July 4 rolled around, the page gained over 9,000 fans.  Spurred by engaging content, contests and coupons, the page reached 10,500 fans by late July, and 12,200 by mid-August.  www.facebook.com/HTHPoolCare

While it is difficult to know for certain, we think the growth of the HTH Facebook page is something of a pool record.  We’re not aware of any other pool or water social media site that comes close in terms of size or early growth.

What’s the secret to a successful social media venture?  Like a great pool party, effective social media requires engaging conversation, fun, a few treats and a thoughtful, watchful host.  We try to provide all those things on the HTH Pool Care page.

Engagement is the key. We invite HTH fans to post their photos and experiences around the pool. In July, we launched our Pool Cuties Photo Contest, and so far over 200 people have uploaded photos of their children and pets in hopes of winning prizes like an XBOX® or gift cards to Starbucks® and iTunes®.

 The treats include opportunities to save money. For example, during the first few weeks of 2011, more than 3,000 consumers downloaded HTH product coupons through our Facebook page.

 Photos and videos are the most shared types of content in social media, so we post entertaining, branded videos on our page, which fans then share with others. It’s all part of the fun.

http://youtu.be/QavQGv036eU

http://youtu.be/EE9BxlALWDs

Perhaps the most meaningful part of the HTH Facebook experience is that it also provides a quick and easy way to get answers to questions about pool problems. Many pool owners are strictly do-it-yourself when it comes to pool and water maintenance, and the HTH page provides them with a new source of help.

When do-it-yourselfers need help, they typically look for help from friends, from the Internet or from a manufacturer. Thanks to the power and popularity of social media, the HTH Facebook page is able to provide all three sources of help in one place.  The HTH Customer Care team monitors the site and provides quick troubleshooting and assistance with answers to questions.

A measure of how successfully a social media site is serving customers is to monitor what they post. We love what consumers are posting to the HTH Facebook page . . .

“I did exactly what he told me to do and VIOLA! My pool is clear. My last post says 6 hours ago, so that’s about how long it took. I am sooo happy. Thank you for the WONDERFUL customer service. ” – Angela D.

“I’m so glad that I found this water test site . . . I thought the stabilizer was in the 3″ tablets and the chlorine. Never knew that there was a separate product used to stabilize. Thank you, now I can figure things out for myself.” – Ken A.

For anyone who wants to take the social media plunge for a product or business, there are some important factors to keep in mind:

1. Monitor the page daily and respond to comments accurately and quickly (within 24 hours, if not sooner).
2. Have a good system in place for answering questions. Anticipate the unexpected or unusual.
3. Post interesting, fun and helpful messages regularly. This helps ensure your content shows up in your fans’ News feeds. It also gives people a reason to keep coming back to your page.
4. Encourage your followers to share their photos and stories. Notice and comment on them when they do. It makes your fans feel appreciated.
5. Think about how contests and coupons can be used to help generate new fans and reward your current ones.
6. Keep it fun and positive. Keep the conversation going.