There are over 3 billion social media users worldwide. How many are following your brand? All your social media should serve a purpose, every like, comment, reply, or post.
A social media marketing plan is not a sprint. It is a marathon. The plan will take preparation and a long-term vision. The more specific your plan is the more effective the execution will be.
What do you want to get out of your social media? You may want more customers, brand ambassadors, or a larger voice in the industry.
Whatever your goal is, there are specifics that will go into your strategy.
If you are seeking to grow your brand and increase brand awareness, then focus on interacting with your audience. You want more followers and for them to share your posts.
f you want to turn your customers into advocates, then the focus is on getting them to be captivated with your content. You want them to comment, mention it to others, and share. You will create brand promoters. Brand promoters turn into purchasing clients.
If you want to reach your consumer and improve customer retention, then the emphasis is on testimonials. Share them on social media and ask for them. Testimonials are powerful for existing and potential customers.
Know who they are and what they are doing. Take notice of their most successful posts. Also, study what they are lacking. Are they on all the social platforms? If they are not on one platform, start there and create a following where there isn’t a voice.
Look at your favorite brands and follow them on social media. Take note of what you like and why? Are there goals similar to yours? How are they engaging, interacting with followers? The reasons you like them are the same reasons their followers like them.
Who is your ideal customer? Create content that they will like, comment, and share. Your followers are real people who are looking for something. If you can give them what they need, then they will be loyal and turn into customers. Providing solutions to problems they have.
Content is king. Content is used in all areas of brand creation and marketing. Quality will always outweigh quantity.
Acting without a plan is a sure way that your effort will not get you the desired results. Create a monthly social media content schedule. Your schedule will include the content, hashtags, images, where you are posting it, and what time your posts will be. By creating a schedule, you are maximizing your time.
When creating a schedule, 80% of the posts should inform, educate, or entertain your audience. 20% of the posts should be directly promoting your brand.
Tracking and measuring your social media marketing plan is an ongoing task. You will want to test different posts, campaigns, and strategies against each other. Which posts drive the most traffic. When the goal is to drive leads and sales, conversions will demonstrate effectiveness. The data will show website clicks and email sign-ups.
When you leverage the power of social media, you will find that you are increasing your traffic, getting conversions, and ultimately your revenue will increase. Consistency is the key. When followers understand what to expect from your brand, they will be fans.