What to Do First When Creating A Social Media Strategy
With the number of active users on social media skyrocketing, the need for a great social media strategy is at an all-time high. Social media has evolved into one of the most efficient ways to increase brand awareness and establish customer relationships for business owners. With one click of a button, your message has the potential to reach millions of people worldwide. Knowing where to start with your social media strategy can be the hardest part.
Here’s where Meredith Fields, and Reputation Sensei team member, recommends you start. A special thanks to Meredith for contributing this blog post.
Define Your Social Media Strategy Goals
Whether you want to establish your brand’s voice, increase sales or website traffic, or simply engage with customers, identifying a specific goal before diving into the world of social media marketing is vital. Without a clearly defined plan, there is no way to know if a strategy is right for your business. Your goals should be centered around metrics that will have a measurable impact on your business. Using the S.M.A.R.T. framework is a great way to form an achievable goal for your brand. S.M.A.R.T. stands for:
Specific – Is your goal clear? Replace “Increase engagement” with “Increase reactions on Facebook by 50 percent.”
Measurable – Do you have a way to measure improvement through metrics?
Attainable – Is your goal achievable with the existing skills and resources?
Relevant – Is your goal applicable to your business and will it actually be beneficial?
Timely – Did you set a realistic deadline to achieve this goal?
Social media goals created using the S.M.A.R.T Framework will help you understand how to start and develop your marketing strategy, making it easier to track your progress and measure the success of your business!
Where is Your Audience Located?
A common mistake businesses make is trying to be present on every social media platform. While we understand why you may feel this way, it’s better to focus your efforts on the platforms that your primary customers currently use.
Facebook: Aside from being one of the oldest social media platforms available, Facebook is the most popular with more than 1.8 billion daily active users amongst all age groups. Facebook advertising allows businesses to target defined audiences by interests, age, behaviors and location.
Instagram: Instagram has established a name for itself as one of the most popular photo-sharing apps. With more than 1 billion users each month, Instagram is a great tool to increase brand awareness by using compelling visual content and graphics.
YouTube: As one of the largest search engines on the Internet, with more than 2 billion monthly logged-in users, YouTube helps increase your brand’s voice and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) through the use of engaging video content.
Twitter: With more than 145 million active daily users, Twitter allows you to grow and interact with your audience, drive traffic to your website and promote tweets to boost engagement and brand visibility.
TikTok: Content creation through TikTok is fairly new, but with approximately 14.95 million daily active users, it’s a great way to showcase your business’ creativity. Using trending sounds, filters and hashtags in your ads can help your content reach a larger audience, while establishing your brand’s voice.
LinkedIn: With almost 800 million members worldwide, LinkedIn can help you build brand awareness and relationships through networking. By sharing engaging content and participating in industry discussion, you can generate leads, drive traffic to your website, and market to potential customers and partners.
You should look at each of these platforms and ask yourself, “Which of these would help me reach more customers?” For example, if you are focused on business-to-business (B2B), LinkedIn and Facebook are great places to start. Instagram and TikTok may be ideal to reach new customers who represent a different demographic. Focusing on the most widely used social media platforms allows you to spend your time and money in the most efficient way possible.
Get Started with Your Social Media Strategy Today
A great social media marketing strategy starts with a plan. Get “smart” with your goals, hone in on your audience and let Reputation Sensei help! Contact us at (770) 263-7455 or request an online review today.
Special thanks to author, Meredith Fields, and Reputation Sensei team member.
