Marketing Experts Top 5 Social Media Tips
For any business, social media can play an integral role in getting your products and services in front of the right audience. But casually posting a photo on Facebook when you happen to think of it is no longer enough to stand out among your competition. To maximize your marketing efforts and reach your goals using social media, take a look at the top 12 tips from several social media experts.
Let’s jump right in!
1. Choose the Right Social Media Platforms
When it comes to social media, there are more platforms to choose from than ever. But don’t just settle for the social networking service that you personally enjoy most or the ones that get the most press.
Ask yourself if that trendy new platform is relevant to your audience before you make it the focus of your social media marketing campaigns. Then, invest your marketing resources in a few platforms that your audience is already active on. And confirm that each has a content moderation policy in place to prevent content that contains hate speech, illegal activity, discrimination, nudity, violence, or other offensive content that could be harmful to your audience and your brand.
2. Become an Expert on Your Audience
Although quality content may look different from brand to brand, it should always compliment the brand’s style and voice, and convey that you know your audience better than anyone.
To become an expert on your audience, use your social media channels to post questions. It can be as simple as asking “What flavor would you like us to add to our product line?” on Twitter or as engaging as a poll on Instagram stories. The responses you receive to these questions and surveys will provide valuable insight into their preferences.
3. Stand Out From the Competition
Looking at how successful companies are utilizing social media can certainly be helpful. It’s not, however, an effective use of resources to research a luxury watch brand’s marketing strategy if you’re a local car repair shop. Instead, take a look at your competition’s presence and content online.
Then, apply your brand’s unique value proposition (UVP) to your own content, communicating how you’re different from the competition, as well as how your products or services will meet your audience’s needs. Depending on your demographic, it’s beneficial to use social media content to communicate how your brand offers the best quality and / or the best prices. Your content should also convey that you understand your clients’ budget, values, and lifestyle.
4. Schedule the Right Amount of Content at the Right Time
It may not be enough to just post on social media at random times, a few days a week, when it’s most convenient for you. Take it up a notch by posting when your clients or customers are most active. To begin, make sure that your social media accounts are set up as “business accounts.” This will enable your company to review Insights, especially on Facebook and Instagram.
“Most Active Times” is one of the most important metrics to review, as it will tell you when your followers are most active. You can then use Buffer, Hootsuite, or another social media management platform to schedule posts for when your followers are typically on social media.
5. Harness the Power of Captivating Images
Your prospects are on social media for entertainment, or to connect with friends and family. They are not on social media to read advertisements and be sold to. And millennials in particular detest the idea of being sold to. To avoid featuring content that feels like an ad, use captivating but relatable visuals. Images that are grainy or out of focus won’t stand out in a social media feed, but photos that are blatantly staged, filtered, and photoshopped will attract attention for the wrong reasons. The key is to strike a balance between photos and videos that are high-quality without appearing too polished.
To move your clients or customers to take action, feature products or services being used by individuals just like them in photos and videos. And if you choose to include copy in these images, do so sparingly and make sure it functions like an engaging headline with a few words or a sentence at most.
