Social media marketing is all about having an organized strategy. Without some organization, you'll just be posting on various social media platforms without getting the desired results.
Before you can organize your social media strategy to actually work to your advantage and grow your business, you must first understand the three most important things: who your target audience is, what their needs are, and what your marketing goals are.
The truth is, using social media to grow your business is the strategy that all serious companies are using and that's why it's essential to keep your social media strategy well-organized.
With all this in mind, there are five important steps to keeping your social media strategy organized and this short guide is here to help you understand those steps and make the most of your marketing efforts.
There are numerous reasons why a brand would want to be on social media. Some companies are there to serve their customers, others are hoping to drive more traffic to their website, while some companies are just there for the sake of promoting their services and products. Most companies are using social media for nine good reasons:
The truth is, your strategy should include a handful of ways to achieve your goals, so think about what your main goals are and what you want to achieve, as this will help you organize your strategy and get the best results.
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To understand your target audience, you must know who they are. Your understanding is crucial here as it's an essential part of when, where and what you're going to share to get your target audience engaged with your brand.
More importantly, understanding your potential prospects means to better answer their needs and requests, which is a certain way to build brand trust. There are countless ways to help you understand your customers, but we'll mention the six most important ones:
The understanding of your target audience helps you decide the right type of content to share with your potential prospects and loyal consumers. To make the right decision, you need to consider two things:
If you're selling fitness gear, you'll want your potential customers to stay up-to-date with the latest fitness gear. That means, that you only share your latest fitness products on your social media channels to get your audience more engaged.
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Determining where you're going to share the content is perhaps one of the most important steps in organizing your social media strategy. Choosing the right social media channels for your content is as important as understanding your target audience.
You don't have to be present on all social media platforms, as you won’t have enough time to create truly engaging posts. Instead, select a few social media channels to better focus on the quality of the content, so that it is on point and relevant to the preferences and needs of your potential prospects.
Remember, growing your business means expanding your consumer base and this is where the quality and visibility of your shared content matter the most.
By constantly sharing high-quality, relevant content, you get a good opportunity to generate more leads, attract more potential prospects and grow your consumer base, which generates more revenue in return.
The best thing to do for starters is having a complete profile on the biggest networks such as LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. These networks show up on the first page of Google search results most frequently, and this will make it easier for your potential prospects to find your brand online.
Selecting the right social media channels includes the understanding of your target audience, as your selection depends on the channels they use. Then, there's also the fact that certain social media channels support certain content types.
We all know that Instagram is the best for posting pictures while YouTube is the best platform for videos. There are also niche platforms where industry-specific brands post their products, services and other content related directly to their niche.
Most companies use blogging as an additional channel of posting industry-related news and interesting facts to further engage their growing audience. Starting a blog is pretty easy and blogging can help you get the most out of your social media strategy.
Now that you know who, what, and where, it's time to talk about when or the right time to share your content in order to reach the biggest number of viewers. To choose the best time to post, again, you need to know your target audience.
When is the exact time your potential customers prefer to use social media?
For busy 9-5 office workers, it’s usually between 6 and 8 pm, as that’s when they get home from work and want to relax on the sofa. For younger audiences and creative types with flexible work hours, this might be anywhere between 12 and 3 pm.
There is no universal best time to post your content, every audience is different, but you can find the best time pattern by fully focusing on the behavior of your target audience, as this will provide valuable insight into when they prefer to use social media.
So, now that you know the key steps you need to take to keep your social media strategy well organized, the only thing left to do is to execute your strategy.
This includes filling your social media profiles, the right voice, and tone that will resonate with your target audience, as well as post types that work the best for your potential prospects.
This is essential to growing your business, as you can have the best social media strategy ever but if you don't execute it properly, you won't get far. Timing is everything when it comes to social media, as different users have different habits and behaviors. If you understand both, success is guaranteed.