How to Set Up a Social Media Campaign
Social media plays a big role in marketing today. The amount of people using social media gives it the power to reach any market and demographic around the globe at no cost, however, this power isn’t easily mastered. Take the time to learn the best practices of running effective social media marketing campaigns. First, always start your campaigns by defining your goals. This makes it easier for you to create the right content for the right market. Once you have your goals set and have defined your target audience, you want to monitor your competition to get a look at their campaigns. What is working for them? What isn’t working for them? How can I make myself uniquely stand out from them? Answering these types of questions will give you an idea of where to start with your own content. It shows you what people are responding to without wasting time experimenting on your own and allows you to develop your own tone and authority. The next factor to focus on is your posting strategy. You want to show your expertise without being pushy about your products and services. Give your audience some “free” information to show your knowledge in your market. For example, you could share an article that has “do it yourself” information on a particular service you offer, the latest or trendiest news in your industry, or a quick tips cheat sheet. These posts show your expertise in your own industry without constantly pushing your own products or services and builds trust with your audience. A simple rule to follow is the 4-1-1 rule, which means 4 informational posts to 1 soft promotion and 1 hard promotion. Lastly, you want to take the time to listen to your customers. Use your social media platforms to highlight your business’s customer service. Show people that you listen to their issues and concerns and are willing to address them in public. This will build trust and loyalty in your brand. Social media can be an endless sea of noise and confusion, but if you apply these 5 key factors in to your social media campaigns, you will be sitting on a higher level able to stand out past the giant crowds.
- The first task for any social media marketing campaign is to define your goals. What are you trying to accomplish with your campaign? Are you aiming for more impressions? Are you trying to drive more traffic to your website? Do you want to promote your products? Whatever you goals are, make sure you define them. This helps to narrow down the target audience and start your social media marketing strategy.
- Monitor your competition to gain the competitive edge over them. Check the quality of their posts to ensure your content continuously has more value and make yourself stand out more. Keep yourself one-step ahead by finding weak points in their digital marketing campaigns, products, or services and exploit them. When you see customer complaints of your competitors’ products or services, seize those opportunities to show how your products or services are better. Always strive to stay ahead of the competition!
- The greatest advantage of social media marketing is the ability to reach an enormous audience at no cost. There are 3 billion people using at least one social media platform and with the variety of platforms available, you must know where to reach your target market. Inform yourself of the pros, cons, and social demographics of the different social media platforms to reach the most customers.
- Develop the right strategy to stand out among the enormous amount of traffic on social media. Use thought leadership in your posts to show your expertise in your market. Instead of being an annoying salesperson with constant promotional posts, create engaging posts to humanize your brand and involve your audience. You want to have a good mix between promotions and creative content.
- Use your social media platforms to highlight your customer service. Reply to both positive and negative criticism to show people you listen to your customers’ praise and complaints. This builds trust with the public and loyalty in your brand. Stand out by simply talking to your customers.