Continuing with our “Why social media” series… we want to begin with some of the important points to note when creating (or revising!) your social media strategy.
First – be really consistent. Choose just a couple of platforms and post regularly to them; and keep your posts balanced (promotion/creation/curation). It’s important to really understand your clients/prospects and post the right number of updates per day to be top of the mind, but not an annoyance.
Secondly, do not make all of your posts about yourself, and only about yourself. The example I always give is that of a networking event, your social media channel should not be a channel for you to speak alone. Like a networking event, you are effective when you’re asking questions of those around you, engaging and learning about them. Social Media is no different. Poll your followers, ask questions, and respond to the answers (even just with a thank you!).
Here are our top 5 reasons why you shouldn’t wait another day to implement a social media strategy for your business:
- Search Engine Optimization – SEO is a method of getting more traffic to your website for free, in an organic/natural way of influencing search results on search engines. Further, by including Social Media into your SEO strategy (keeping in mind that your “about” section on Facebook is searchable) can lead to link building; as people share your posts on social media, and your post includes a link to your website, connections between your social media platforms and website are reinforced.
Since search engines like links, and love keywords, Social Media can play an influential role in your overall strategy to improve your ranking. While there are multiple social media channels available to businesses, we recommend choosing two or three social media networks to post to regularly and do it exceedingly well. Do some research on the metrics of the users of the different platforms and find the ones that resonate with not only your brand, but your target market as well. Keep in mind that some people do product/company searches within a social network, not necessarily Google, so having a presence on the platform positively influences the likelihood you’ll be found.
- Increased brand recognition – by using more channels to expand your brand, you will have increased brand recognition. Add to this the shared photos from your loyal followers, and the reach of your brand also increases.
- Improved brand loyalty – companies that are active have an active fan following, feels personal and more connected. Social Media provides you with the venue for superior customer service, listening and responding to your prospects, which gives your brand a face. Customer service isn’t just about responding to complaint, but also responding to product questions to ease in the decision making between your product and the competition’s (increasing your ability to convert leads to sales). Social media can also create a community around your brand and your products further enhancing brand loyalty.
- Increased inbound traffic – by using more channels to get your message out, you can reach larger audiences, this in turn leads to more clicks back to your website. Add a lead magnet to the mix, and you’re collecting and qualifying even more leads!
- Decreased marketing costs – Digital (even paid) ads are cheaper than print. Further, using the metrics built into Facebook, its easier to A/B test and track your campaigns, as well as alter your messaging if results are not aligning with your goals. This can lead to richer customer experience and customer service (forming a community around your product).
And one last bonus tip: Social Media Marketing takes time, not just in the creation of incredible content, but also in terms of results. While we’ve all seen those posts that go viral, and pages that consequently get a ton of new followers, most businesses see a slow and steady increase in followers with a well considered and consistent strategy.
