Social Media Revamp – The ins and outs
Read about the ins and outs of social media and how it can benefit your business. These 4 key tips will help you revamp your social media marketing strategy or help get you started!
Social media is an integral part of how people communicate today. Let’s face it, most people are online and connected more than ever!Smart businesses and brands are not only integrating social media into their marketing, they are creating marketing plans where social media is central. Why? Because they understand that everything revolves around connecting with their audience through the right channels.
Creating, implementing and keeping up with social media marketing strategies and trends can be a challenge for many businesses. We have compiled some helpful tips to help you revamp your social media marketing strategy (and for those of you without one – these 4 key tips can help get you started).
We often hear clients say “My business is ‘out there’ on social media. I have a Twitter page, a Facebook page and a YouTube channel—but I don’t really know what I’m doing and I don’t have a strategy for using social media to drive business.”
Can you relate? Many businesses are in the same shoes! Many have wanted to make sure to get on the social media bandwagon, but in truth have no idea how social media works. You will find that although you have social media pages, they are either not growing, lack followers or engagement and have no leads and sales.
When using social media you need to consider how it into their overall strategy and how to manage or optimize it.This begs the question: How do you shift from having a basic social media presence that just puts you “out there” to leveraging social media as a channel to build awareness of your business, drive growth plus customer engagement and/or generate new leads?
1. Create a written strategy (if you do not have one)
Many small businesses have been going with the flow and using a basic a social media “strategy” that consists of a posting a few times a week and perhaps promoting a post here or there. This might have been okay back in the day when social swas new and untested.
This method is not very strategic and it won’t yield results. At Mango Bites we include social media strategies and plan in the marketing plan for clients. When a client comes to us with a campaign we always recommend a marketing plan as writing out a strategy and plan ensures we are thinking about all the angles that are necessary to cover for the campaign to be successful.
We also offer social media management services on on a monthly basis . When it comes to social media management, consistency is key. To keep customers engaged and grow your following on your channels, we consistently post quality content and engage with your target audience, community
groups and platforms.
2. Have social media objectives
Have a few objectives for your social media that you can most likely achieve. If you decide that the primary goal is to build awareness about your brand you may want to set objectives based on quantity and quality of follows, shares and/or referral links to your website.
If you decide the objective is to find new leads, you could set an objective to use social media to attract new quality leads each month, or you could set an objective to test whether social media affects the number or quality of leads coming through your website.
3. Decide which channels will meet your objectives.
Today you may have a presence across multiple channels, but through research about your audience you might find that you need to utilize some more than others to achieve your objectives. Try and understand where your prospective and current customers will be hanging out and having conversations, then choose your social media channels accordingly.
If you already have existing social media channels look at your current audience and analyse what has changed since you first started business? Or look at your audience closer and see if you are able to narrow it down to a more specific audience? – If you don’t know your audience you are likely not marketing to them
Think about your business and products or services and identify one target customer from your audience. Create a persona, which is a full biography, for this ideal target customer. If you have multiple products and services create a persona for each major segment. Next, assess the social media channels you are on. Which channel makes the most sense to focus on for your target persona? Creating a clear target audience for each channel will make curating content much simpler. Your content will be more effective because it will be tailored for your target audience.
4. Conduct an audit of your channels
To start your audit, create a new section for each social media channel you are active on, including one for your website as well. Now address the following:
Brand Message – Does the messaging on your channels match the current image for your company? Oftentimes, we adjust our goals over time and fail to adjust the approach on our online channels. Make sure that all of your online channels have current profiles that match your brand image and message Also, check that you are using optimized keywords in your profile description.
Images – Are your images for cover photos, profile photos and any other visuals on the channel consistent? Do they match your overall brand look and feel. It’s important that each channel is unique but that it is consistent with your image As your brand evolves you need to remember to replace images. This is why an audit is so important. Now is the time to address any design elements that are out of place. Make a list of new images, graphics and anything that you need to have created to update your channels.
Metrics – Are you using a spreadsheet to track your goals and key performance indicators (KPI’s) on different channels? If so, what is the data telling you? How is your interaction on each channel and how is the audience growing? Is it the right audience to match your target audience for that channel? Do you feel like your past goals are being reached? Are they the right goals? If you are not tracking KPI’s now is the time to start! This data is valuable over time and without it you will have difficulty assessing what to change in the future.
Shared Content – Are you sharing the right content? Does the content you share meet the needs of your target audience? Remember, with social media it is important to be personal and connect with your audience. If your audience is interacting with you, are you replying and working that relationship further? If they are not interacting with you, why is that? It is important to review the content you are sharing to ensure that you are providing your audience with content they find valuable. This is one way you will get more engagement and over time increase your brand recognition and sales. Also note the content that works and what doesn’t work.
Conversions – Do you have lead generation forms set up on your website? Is your website converting? How many people come to your website from social media channels, and has this increased or decreased over time? As part of your KPI tracking, use Google Analytics to assess your conversions. Now is the time to address your website conversions or lack of conversions due to missing forms or other conversion opportunities on your website.
Competitors – It’s a good idea to take a look at what your competitors are doing and compare this to your own social media presence. Are they growing a presence online? Are they building a following? Does their audience engage with them? What kind of content do they share? Many times, businesses forget to look at what others are doing to help fuel their own creativity and inform them of things to avoid. Never copy your competitors, but do seek inspiration to fuel your own approach.
Managing your social media effectively allows you to get the most out of this powerful tool. Consistently creating and publishing valuable content can help you establish authentic connections with your target audience. Social media marketing helps you reach new audiences that are most likely to be interested in your products or services.
Contact us today if you’re ready to take your social media marketing to the next level!
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