It’s not enough to just have a social media presence and expect that you’ll see immediate results of any kind. To utilize your social channels to their full potential, you have to strategize and optimize your brand’s accounts. This is an ongoing process, and it should frequently be reviewed. Below, we’ve listed some of the top ways that you can upgrade your social media presence.
Harness On-Channel and Off-Channel Social Media
Generate and respond to content on your on-channel social media channels (e.g. your Facebook, Twitter, Instagram accounts). Remember to also respond to off-channel social media. These are posts created by other individuals or brands who are discussing topics of importance to your brand and customers. Get in there and add to the discussion – in a clear, thoughtful way!
Codify a Plan and Policy
Create a concise policy that defines goals, target audience(s), consistent tone and messaging. It should all relate to your brand’s key issues and values.
Don’t Be Too Self-Promotional
Offer tangible information of value that doesn’t always relate to your product or service. Provide tips, advice and other timely info. Integrate your brand and products in some of your posts and responses in a tactful manner. Social media is more about brand awareness and less about direct sales.
Cast a Wide Net
Maintain a presence on multiple social platforms where it makes sense for your brand. Monitor emerging services. For example, during the early days of COVID-19, many brands embraced the app TikTok. However, not every social platform is the right choice for your specific brand. Ask if it makes sense for your brand to be on a certain platform given your products or services and your target audience.
Mix it Up
Provide a lively content mix that meshes with your brand identity. Some posts should be topical, while others can be informative, funny, or touching. It all depends on your brand’s voice and your audience. Rotate types of content so your posts aren’t all similar to each other. Quality photos are a must. Infographics and videos can be even better for certain offerings and messages.
Foster Superfans
Encourage your biggest fans to post their thoughts about your products and the ways they incorporate them in their lives. Foster a relationship with them to increase their engagement with your brand. Ask for input and offer special deals to top followers.
Boost Selectively
Manage your budget for paid opportunities to boost posts. Identify content that is performing well and put paid dollars behind these items.
Measure Wisely
Measurement goes beyond counting followers. What to measure depends on your goals. For example, if you sell a product mainly through third-parties, you would want to increase impressions and reach. You might also review how frequent people are talking about your brand. If you sell directly on your website, clicks are more important.
- Key measurements for postings typically include:
- impressions
- reach
- clicks
- likes
- shares
- comments
- clicks
- Other things to measure can include:
- Share of Voice (the percentage of the overall conversation that’s about your brand or product)
- Tone & Sentiment (whether people are speaking positively or negatively about your brand)
- Referrals and Conversions (how many people landed on your website because of your social media posts, and how many “converted” into customers or took an action important to your brand).
Now that you have a solid foundation for how to upgrade your social media game, get to it!