Facebook. Instagram. Twitter. LinkedIn. Reddit. YouTube. Let’s Talk Social Media.
Of course social media was designed so we can be social with each other and communicate across multiple platforms. However, social media is also a branding and marketing tool that’s sure to help grow your business. Jonathan Long, Founder of Uber Brands explains the impact of social media on business and branding in his article 6 Must-Do’s for Effective Social Media Marketing saying, “Social media marketing should be effective and affordable, and when done correctly, it can help scale businesses of all sizes.”
Every minute of every day, there are meaningful conversations happening on social media. To willingly exclude yourself from this expansive atmosphere as a operator or owner of a business is a disservice to your company and your brand. These platforms are important to use because there are real benefits to them–benefits such as a direct line of communication with your customers. Your presence on these platforms also signal that you’re active in the social marketplace.
Social Media For Marketing
Creating a Social Media Marketing Strategy for yourself is the first step into jump starting your plans. Your Social Media Marketing Strategy should consist of these steps:
- Goal setting.
- Determining your audience.
- Choosing your platform.
- Creating content.
- Implementing your plan.
- Tracking and measuring your results and progress.
- Make adjustments.
- REPEAT!
Tips on Using Social Media
Here are some tips that have helped me personally use social media more effectively. If you keep these in mind, you can easily and effectively post and promote your content and brand on social media.
Visuals are a Huge Deal: When it comes to posting on different sites like Twitter and Facebook, the more images you have the better your engagement with the public will be. Also remember, apps like Instagram, Snapchat and Pinterest are solely based on images so visuals are a must.
Have A Good Headline: Whenever you’re posting content, the first thing people will see is the title you use. You can post all the amazing and beautiful content in the world, but if the title isn’t attractive, readers may simply bypass your posts.
Customize Posts According To The Platform: Always remember, whenever you’re posting content, make sure you’re using all the features provided on a particular platform. Using images, headlines, content description and any other platform specific attributes will be very important for a successful post. The goal of every social media marketer is to ensure they’re able to catch the eye of their target audience.
If you optimize the posts that you make in the best way possible, then you can be pretty sure that your posts will be very successful and will get the attention and success that they deserve.
Post at The Perfect Time: It’s important to figure out the peak times your target audience is active on your chosen platform. When you learn those peak times, that’s when you need to publish your posts. Create a schedule for posting on social media platforms so you’re not missing out on posting at those peak audience times. Even though this can seem like common knowledge people like yourself already understand, it doesn’t make it any less important to point out. Surprisingly, there are marketers out there who tend to overlook this crucial detail.
Make Multiple Posts: When it comes to posting content, you need to make sure that you’re regular and consistent with your posts. There are studies that suggest this marketing technique should be added to the social media strategy of any business. This means you need to post multiple times in a day in a deliberate and consistent manor. So, make sure you’re prepared to post this way. If so, it will be easy to have proper and meaningful engagement with the visitors that see your posts. However, you need to make sure you don’t overdo it. Remember, simple posts multiple times a day and you will be all set for sure.
Ask More Questions: If you want to use social media effectively, make sure you have meaningful content in the posts you create. Just dropping links will not be enough. Make sure you’re communicating with your audience in a meaningful way which can promote or facilitate responses from them. Find out what’s important to them. You’ll be surprised at how responsive your audience will be when you start engaging with them. Try posing questions on topics that matter to them. Remember, it’s more than just talking at people, it’s talking with people.
With the help of these tips, you should be able to use social media in a more result driven and effective way. You can attract more people to your company or brand with your posts along with the other forms of engagement you use.
Remember, these platforms are tools for communicating. In a world where technology is so pervasive, utilizing these communication platforms can bring enrichment and added success to your business. We pray that these tips help you in generating more leads and conversions via social media marketing.
Do you use social media for your business or brand? Do you have any tips you’d like to share? Are you apprehensive about trying to use social media as a marketing tool? Please leave a comment or story you would like to share. We’d love to hear from you!
