Let’s face it, over the last 9 years I’ve been in business, things have changed rapidly including social media, technology, and marketing strategy. With the accessibility to a worldwide audience that the internet brings, speedy delivery of information and products, and the rise of internet marketing, businesses are now moving from traditional marketing methods and seeing a greater increase in ROI via digital marketing.
Don’t get me wrong, whilst in some instances traditional marketing (leaflet drops, newspaper/magazine advertising) is still a viable option, new methods of marketing often yield a far greater result as we are now able to reach a target specific audience like never before, really measure the return on any investments and of course, connect to a larger volume of potential customers.
Think about it; if you’re a niche business, for example; a Vegan protein powder company and you leaflet drop to 20,000 houses locally to you it not only takes time and resources to hand-deliver 20,000 leaflets but most importantly how many of those 20,000 houses you’re targetting are going to be into Vegan protein powders? Chances are not that many, and with that comes wasted advertising spend.
Let me tell you a true story here. My first business was a 6 figure turnover dog boutique store selling high-end products for dogs. I won an entrepreneurial competition in 2014 and the prize was £50,000 worth of local newspaper advertising. I added a unique code into each advert for a discount off and let me tell you, if I had of paid for that advertising I would have been absolutely heartbroken. The response to the adverts didn’t generate a fraction of that value back. However, sat armed with my Facebook page and my engaged audience, the same advert online reached and returned a far greater ROI.
3 Important Reasons Why Social Media Is Essential For Your Marketing Strategy
Get really specific
We are now able to tap into real specifics based on people’s likes and interactions on social media which means even for the most niche businesses we can now open up a larger global audience and with a much smaller marketing budget. Let’s face it, social media is free and if you can create a marketing strategy which utilises your social channels organically your marketing spend doesn’t have to be huge at all (you can even build 7 figure businesses off the back of a zero marketing budget spend!)
That’s why incorporating social media into your marketing strategy is essential for business success. It can be as simple or as complex, as you make it, just ensure that your strategy means your business is on social media with a purpose and you aren’t throwing resources, time and expenses wasting any time on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Linkedin, Snapchat or any other social channel. Make sure to be smart about who is checking out your content, and you could even use the best site to buy Instagram likes to grow the attention to your page!
Benefits of social media marketing
Not only can you target your ideal customer (not sure who your ideal customer is? We’ve got a download for that) and run a higher converting campaign on a smaller budget. You can also utilise social media for even more purposes;
- Converting followers and customers into loyal advocates for free word of mouth (social shares/comments) marketing.
- Use bloggers and influencers to tap into their audience and get them to promote your brand through campaigns and affiliate marketing. If you are wondering how to find influencers for your brand, influencer marketing platforms such as Humanz, Grin, and Upfluence can help you here. These platforms offer filters that allow you to select all requirements and find the best person who will fit your brand. Depending on your company size your choice can vary from local nano influencers to macro influencers.
- Opt-ins to your newsletter, building a newsletter subscriber list allows you to market your message instantaneously with the click of a button.
- You can showcase your products/services whilst also building customer rapport, creating a community of people who buy into you, the person behind the brand. Show authenticity and that you’re real. Let people get to know you.
- You can communicate authority through sharing valuable pieces of information, contribute to conversations and show what your business can offer to customers
- Provide unparalleled support. By being active and answering queries (and complaints) online this speeds up the process for many potential customers and whilst in the public domain may also help others with similar queries. By going out of your way and being positive, helpful and humourous you can really increase your exposure and again attract free word of mouth marketing
- The insights you can obtain from engagement from polls and questions can help you serve your customer base better.
Creating a Social Media Marketing Strategy
Creating a strategy for SMM is bespoke to your business, there isn’t a one size fits all approach (contrary to what some Social Media Management companies may have you believe). Yes, there are tried and tested methods and hacks that work, but a platform that might work for you might not be as successful for your competitor.
Therefore it is imperative to not post at 8 pm on a Wednesday because your friend says it’s a good time, it’s imperative that you analyse all your social media data and post at a time your audience is mostly online at. Grab your FREE Social Media Strategy Guide
Drop your email address into the box below and we’ll send you our free Social Media Strategy guide immediately to help you create an impacting marketing strategy for your business now.
What do you post?
That’s a great question because many businesses think posting anything to get it out there is a great strategy. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Whilst keeping the content flowing and remaining at the forefront of your customer’s minds is essential nobody wants to see awful pixelated images of somebody else’s memes on your feed.
If you’re posting a quote because that’s what creates the most engagement then make sure it’s in your branding colours and typeface and it’s your style. Keep everything on brand! Instead of constantly posting stock photos with white backgrounds (YUK for social for your information!) post lifestyle shots with your product in situ.
It’s so thorough!
I know! I get it, but imagine being able to actually target the whole world for free? If you create the perfect social media marketing strategy that compliments your business you’ll receive an uplift in customers and sales and done properly you’ll be able to get other people to do your marketing for you, with no charge.
Now that’s the dream, right? Creating a social media strategy doesn’t have to be complex. In fact, you can create a strategy in half an hour! I’m not even kidding! If you’re looking for how to achieve that and tie it in with your existing marketing and your website marketing then The Academy can show you just how to do that!
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