Developing, designing, and executing an effective social media campaign isn’t an easy feat. But social media campaigns are a crucial component of effective branding and advertising. For social media success, be sure to keep the following in mind.
1. Choose the most effective platforms.
The majority of social media users do have a Facebook account (the social media network has roughly 1.5 billion users across the globe and over half of all marketers have found a customer via Facebook). But beyond Facebook social media usage preferences vary significantly by demographics.
Don’t just assume that your target demographic is using a particular social media site. Do your research.
For example while Twitter is most popular with those between the ages of 18 and 29 living in urban and suburban areas, the majority of Pinterest users are females between the ages of 25 and 34 with annual household incomes over $100,000.
The bottom line is that a 20-year old college student and a 72-year old retiree are likely choosing to engage with brands on different social media platforms, and in different ways.
Most brands don’t have unlimited resources at their disposal when it comes to developing and executing a social media campaign. By carefully targeting specific demographics on specific platforms brands can make campaigns much more effective and much more precise.
2. Identify channel specific short-term and long-term objectives.
The success of a social media campaign depends on its clarity and its precision. Identify what you are trying to achieve with each social media campaign. Are you trying to boost sales? Is the goal to increase visibility? Do you want more followers? Use short-term objectives as stepping-stones meet long-term goals so you can easily track progress.
3. Focus on fostering customer engagement.
Social media engagement can be roughly broken down into four broad categories: a follower liking your content, a follower sharing your content, a fan commenting on your content, or a follower tagging you in content. The terminology for these varies a bit depending on the specific social media platform.
For example on Twitter when a follower shares your content it is known as a “re-tweet” while on Instagram it is known as a “re-gram.” However while the terminology might vary the concepts behind the terms are pretty similar, and no matter the social media platform engagement is absolutely crucial.
So, how can you foster engagement? Focus on what you can do for the follower, not what the follower can do for you. The trick is to create content that is compelling, relevant, and interesting. Many social media marketers find it useful to develop content that fits into one of the following three categories:
- Useful: Think about how what you are sharing will be of use to your target consumer. Will it help them save time? Will it teach them something new? Will it help them to save money? Whether it is a new quick and easy dinner recipe or a great coupon, consumers are always appreciative of content that they can use in their everyday lives.
- Thought-provoking: Whether it’s a fascinating article about a tending news topic or a bit of wisdom if you can make consumers think they will appreciate it.
- Humorous: The bottom line is that consumers like to laugh. However, do keep in mind that you will want to avoid any kind of crude or vulgar humor.
Again, precision is important here. Make sure that you are tailoring content to your target demographic. Different demographics have different needs and interests so you need to figure out who you are trying to target when developing a social media campaign.
4. Make sure content echoes your brand’s voice and values.
Whether you are posting a picture on Instagram or are tweeting an interesting article all of the content that you post should clearly reflect your brand’s voice and values. One of the easiest ways to do this is to establish a clear and concise mission statement, and guide all content creation around this mission statement.
And remember it’s about what you can do for the follower, not what the follower can do for you. Starbucks is an excellent example of a brand doing this well. It is no secret that Starbucks is a social media giant, especially when it comes to Instagram and Facebook.
The company’s simple, consumer-driven mission statement—“To inspire and nurture the human spirit– one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time—“ is without a doubt one of the reasons why.
5. Create a content calendar.
One of the biggest social media blunders is sporadic posting. The key to enhancing social media visibility and facilitating consumer engagement is regular posting. If you abandon your social media accounts for weeks at a time your consumers are much less likely to find you relevant.
Once you have a timeline down for a campaign and have identified major milestones it is time to create a content calendar. Identify what you will be posting, which networks you want to publish to and when you will be posting it. Always include specific days and times.
Tools like MavSocial allow you to create a complete content calendar and then schedule your posts across multiple channels, to go at the times you selected.
From MavSocial | Social Media Marketing Software for Business
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