If you’re looking to stand out from your competition, social media is one of the most effective forms of marketing you can use.
Before you jump right into posting, take the time to create a social media strategy that will serve as the foundation of your marketing plan.
Whether you have a brand new business or have been in the industry for years, this strategy can help guide you, keep you focused on your goals, and give you time to focus on your business.
The following five tips will enable you to get started and let you make the most of social media for your brand.
I _ Creating context for facts
With more than 4.2 billion people using social media worldwide, you have your work cut out for you if you want people to stop scrolling and pay attention to your brand. Making your content stand out will help you get your audience’s attention. Here are some ways to make sure your content is as engaging as it can be:
- Make it authentic with real pictures and videos
- Use images and videos that tell a story
- Create original content
- Keep it short and sweet
- Use hashtags to help people discover your brand
II _ Know your audience
As a brand, you need to know your audience if you want to reach them on social media. It’s not about simply picking a platform or two and posting; you need to think about how your brand story applies to your audience before even thinking about the platform.
To know your audience, ask: Who is my target customer? Are they active on social media? What kind of content do they like? Knowing who they are and what they want makes it easier for you to determine which platforms to reach them.
III _ Focus on community
To build a community that cares about your brand, you need to understand what they like, not what you want to sell. It’s a common mistake for businesses to create social media accounts and blast out content without knowing who their audience is or about what they care.
To truly convert your audience into advocates of the brand, you need to treat your followers like a community of passionate experts, not a group of consumers you’re trying to sell.
Take some time to learn about your ideal customers individually and what they like and dislike, not just what they buy.
Ask yourself: What do they spend their free time doing? What kind of music do they listen to? What types of movies do they watch? What websites do they visit? How would you describe their sense of humour?
The more specific you can get, the easier it will be to craft content that resonates with them.
IV _ Think long-term
Don’t just think about this week or month when planning your social content. Consider the year as a whole to decide on the brand stories you want to tell. Plan your overarching social narrative around various events and opportunities you can leverage throughout the year while leaving room for spontaneous posts that happen authentically.
Some brands will use a calendar format or bucket system where they divide up their content into different categories like “promotions,” “promotion announcements,” and “offers.” The buckets allow brands to plan what kind of content they want to share each month and give them a sense of how much work they need to do daily to keep up with it.
V _ Be prepared to move fast
Social media requires thoughtful planning and careful execution if you want to be able to move quickly in its fast-paced world.
You must ensure all key stakeholders are aligned on the approvals process and channel strategy from the get-go to prevent any frustrating red tape. Early alignment allows for a quick reaction if you need to post in a hurry.
This means having a plan established for content creation, approvals, promotion, and lead generation so that if something goes viral, you have the right people in place to respond quickly.
Social media should be a valuable tool in your marketing arsenal, but it can be challenging to boost engagement without a proper plan. Following these five tips and tricks can help you get more out of social media, optimise your strategy, and build an engaged following — allowing you to make the most of social media for your business.
