Image: Radley J Phoenix/Flickr
Social media marketing is a relatively new phenomenon and still very much misunderstood, even by those working in the digital world.
Many people still see ‘social’ media as exactly that – just ‘social’, something to be indulged in outwith the workplace and think of it as playing around on Facebook all day!
However, perceptions are changing and people are becoming more accustomed to social media being a part of their digital marketing. We are often asked ‘why’ by our clients – ‘Why does social media matter’, ‘Why is social media valuable to my business’ and ‘Why should we pay you to do this, I use Facebook/Twitter/Pinterest all the time!’
For social media to work for your organisation, you need to clearly define your goals, develop strong foundations, then build upon those foundations with a great strategy. That is what we can help you with.
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Only one piece of the puzzle
Creating exciting and relevant content is important, and social media provides a fantastic stage from which to share it with your audience. However, creating the content is only one piece of the puzzle – you also have to consider the timing of your posts, whether the images are relevant, which platform is going to be best for your message, is the language right for the platform?
Having a plan in place will help you make these choices, and getting them right will increase the likelihood of your audience engaging with you and sharing your content.
Sharing and engaging are key to a successful strategy. Posting shareable content on social networks can have a positive impact on your SEO too, as links and interactions can make a difference to how your website is ranked by search engines.
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Social media needs time to grow and adapt
It’s not enough to simply push your content on social media and hope for a fantastic, instantaneous response. A successful social media strategy needs time to grow and to adapt – you need to monitor and engage with your audience.
Social media may not always drive sales directly, but it is a key driver of micro-conversions (that is, steps a potential customer may take before they purchase, such as opting into your e-mail list). Strategically delivered, social media can drive brand awareness more quickly and to a wider audience than traditional marketing methods, and allow you to build up a trust with your audience – and your potential customers.
Social media marketers may love to play on Twitter and Facebook (and LinkedIn and Pinterest and Instagram…), but we spend most of our time studying and learning about the ever changing world of social media, and how it can be applied to YOUR business – so you don’t have to.