The dawn of a new year is the perfect time to take a good look at your business’ communication strategy. You can reflect on your past strategy, create a plan for change and get everyone on board for the transition. Maybe you made even more progress last year than you expected, and you’re ready to scale. Maybe you have new business goals that require a different marketing approach. Or maybe you spent last year gathering data and you’re ready to instill the necessary changes.

Regardless of your specific circumstances, there are some key methods all organizations should make to improve their voice. Here are three ways to hone your business communication strategy in 2019.

1. Use Social Media to Your Advantage

Social media provides insight into your audience that you can’t find anywhere else. By listening to what people are saying about your business, you can determine what you’re doing right and, more importantly, where you need to improve. When it comes to customer service on social media, take Murphy’s law to heart: If anything can go wrong it will.

Have a contingency plan in place for any potential missteps. While you don’t want negative reviews or commentary out there, you can take the opportunity to solve a problem before it gets out of hand. When others see how you dealt with the situation, they’ll have more trust in your business.

If you notice that customers are facing the same issues over and over, it may be time to update your business strategy. You can use social media to publicize any changes you’ve made, which lets your audience know that you’re listening — that you’ve heard them and you’re taking action.

Here are a few more ways that social media benefits business:

●     Gather a community of fans who will spread word-of-mouth marketing.

●     Increase brand awareness, which is especially important for new businesses.

●     Increase sales, especially when they can be integrated into the platform, like with Instagram’s shoppable posts.

●     Source potential employees for your company who already understand and love what you do.

Ultimately, social media lets you tune into all segments of your audience, from current clients or customers to those who are just starting to show interest in your brand. It’s also one of the most cost-effective business tools you’ll find, which is great news for entrepreneurs, small businesses, and any company that’s striving for success with limited resources.

2. Create a Culture of Transparency

Both B2B (business-to-business) and B2C (business-to-consumer) companies know that their external communication should be transparent. Otherwise, it’s extremely difficult to show your customers that you’re trustworthy. Without trust, your customers may browse your products without actually going through with a purchase. They may decide against providing their email address on your landing page. Worst of all, they could go with your competitor instead of you.

That transparency is important with employees as well. Your internal communication channels should be just as transparent as your external ones. The better your employees understand their purpose, the more engaged they’ll be, and engaged employees perform better and drive results.

As an employer, your first step should be to clarify the brand’s core values and the company’s business strategy. You can do this through meetings, events, and exercises that illustrate your business values, using eye-catching visuals that demonstrate the main points. Still not sure that your team is clear on the company’s business strategy? Survey them to find out which aspects they’re aware of and identify where there’s a gap in understanding.

3. Prioritize Interdepartmental Communication

Odds are that your intradepartmental communication — between everyone within your department — is strong. Even if there are improvements to be made, you know how important it is to have great communication when it comes to the people who work closely every day.

Interdepartmental communication — between your department and other departments — is also important, though. There will be times when departments have to communicate to share essential information or collaborate on a project.

In 2019, departments shouldn’t be siloed any longer. The company as a whole is one machine; in order for it to run efficiently, there has to be clear, respectful communication from one department to another.

If you’ll be creating a strategy to improve interdepartmental communication, start by asking your employees for their suggestions. Your employees, regardless of their role, know the most about the social dynamics of their workplace. Something you may want to add to your calendar is a standing company-wide meeting. Getting everyone together in one space lets you crowdsource feedback and learn which issues are most pressing for your employees. It also helps everyone get a candid view of what other departments may be experiencing. Plus, you never know when an employee from one department will suggest a great solution for another department.

In 2019, social media is going to play an even bigger role in listening to and communicating with your audience, including both current and potential customers. When it comes to the inner workings of your brand, there will be a greater focus on transparency and teamwork across all departments.