In just a few years, social media has grown from a curiosity to an integral piece of corporate communications. These days, business owners, large and small, bring in a team of specialists (yes, Envision Works is one such team) to create effective social media strategies and campaigns. If you’re building your own strategy, however, we thought this simple overview would be helpful. To fill in any blanks, or just have a discussion, feel free to call us at 800-295-1220.
Watch the Competition
To help you find your social media tone or voice, look at your competition. If there’s something you like about the social behavior of others, take note. How do they handle their followers? What are their social activities? By realizing the styles and posts you don’t like, you get yourself many steps closer to exactly what you do like.
Find Your Purpose
Don’t be social just because. Be social with a very specific purpose. Do you want to drive people to your website, blog or Facebook page? Do you want them to seek you out in the marketplace? Do you want to raise awareness? Focusing on your goal will guide you through all the elements of your campaign – what you do, where you do it, when you do it, the type of content you share, etc.
Get Automated
There are hundreds of social media management tools that allow you to easily load messages in advance and schedule them to go out exactly when you want them to. Obviously, this is convenient for global products and services. But even if you’re local, you don’t want to be posting messages every two hours; we assume you have other work to do. So take advantage of these great tools, and get more done.
Find Your Keywords
Using keywords, any business can feel the pulse of any industry. Keyword search streams, whether set up through Google alerts or any other application, and provide insight into what your customers think is trendy. This is also a great way to keep track of your competitor’s activities. Again, take advantage of the tools.
Work Well with Others
Don’t try to go it alone. Collaboration – in social media or anything else – can be very beneficial. Set clear expectations with your employees, then ask for their buy-in and participation. They could help with the management of your campaign, or simply lend some much-needed enthusiasm. If your social media management tool allows for team collaboration, that sets the table for greater group success.
Look at the Metrics
No longer is social media simply about building buzz. ROI is now part of the equation, even if it’s looking at the number of clicks or new followers vs. outright conversion. Set up a list of realistic metrics from which your campaign will be judged and communicate them to the group. It’s easy to have access to Google Analytics and Facebook Insights, so use these tools regularly to chart progress. The best part about social media is that if the metrics aren’t what you’d like, just try something else. Change your AdWords copy. Adjust your list of keywords. Create new banners. Try a different landing page. Changes are inexpensive and instant, and so are the results.