Introduction
Since its inception in 1997, social media channels have evolved from relationship management mediums and dating applications to business networking platforms and elite marketing tools. Today, companies ranging from apparel brands to real-estate brokerages find themselves focusing their digital marketing strategy on social media management because it enables them to communicate directly with their audience, an opportunity few savvy business owners can afford to miss.
Whether you’re enticing them with an offering or educating them on a concept, your social media posts must resonate with the needs of your customers and the objectives of your company. In this blog, we’ll explore 5 powerful uses for your business’s social media account and inspire you to be more strategic with your social media management.
1) Build Your Brand
Your profile is your platform. Remember that.
In the past, business owners were encouraged to tackle public speaking events or finesse their way into press releases to establish themselves as thought leaders in the industry and improve their PR. However, with the world-wide-web at our fingertips, nowadays, you can assert yourself as an expert in your industry by being diligent in your social media management.
Consistent content creation is the key to implementing an effective brand strategy via social media. The only catch is that the content must authentically add value to your audience. Assuming you know the ins and outs of your industry (as a high-caliber business owner should) and the consultant/agency you partner with knows how to navigate the various channels of social media to maximum effect, this will be no issue.
If the value of your brand isn’t something you’re familiar with, then take a look at our blog, “The Power of Branding”.
2) Cultivate Your Community
The most successful brands don’t just have customers, they have fans! Think Barstool, The Hundreds, and even Apple. By giving them something to follow (ie: a sort of channel for content and media) these companies encourage their community to keep an eye out for updates, offerings, and any emerging information regarding the brand.
Engagement is an essential component of effective social media management. Devoted customers want to interact with the brand and each other through social media channels and in real life. A time-tested method for this is merchandise – when you spot someone wearing clothing from a company you like, you’re likely to make a comment or spark up a conversation knowing you have at least one thing in common.
3) Navigate Your Network
Social media is ultimately a networking tool. By connecting with existing members of the community, like influencers in the space or companies you partner with, you get your brand in front of their audiences – simultaneously supporting their growth and your own.
In Brendan Kane’s book, “One Million Followers”, he describes the immense value of influencer marketing early on and continually references it as a core aspect of his proven digital marketing strategy. An influencer’s primary objective is to stay engaged with their well-curated audience. By connecting with them, often achieved through some incentive, you get your information displayed in front of that audience on a silver platter. This tactic is extremely effective because the influencer has already done the hard work – gaining the audience’s trust – so when they espouse your product, the information is well received.
Of course, influencer marketing can be quite costly and is not in line with every company’s objectives – but the core principle is generally applicable: when you partner with someone, you gain access to their audience and encourage symbiotic growth. Finding ways to add value to their audience encourages them to post your content or partner with you without any additional cost. So, identify strategic partnerships you’d like to form and figure out how to get on their feed.
4) Support Your Sales
Effective social media management will create posts that can be used as sales touch-points, drawing attention to important information that arises frequently in conversations between sales reps and prospects. The content must stand on its own, but opportunities to educate your audience about key concepts are always appreciated.
Curating a list of public offerings is an exceptionally powerful tool for any product-based operation such as an online store. In the jewelry and apparel industries, most companies use social media pages as a portfolio for their product. However, this digital marketing strategy is viable for a variety of businesses.
An example of well-utilized social media management in this capacity can be found in Smart City Denver’s Instagram, a real estate company that offers a personalized, digital apartment hunting service in Denver and other major cities across the nation.
5) Retain Your Relevance
You want your brand to be at the top of their mind when a prospect decides they need the product or service. The importance of remaining relevant in a prospect’s mind, even though they might not be immediately taking purchasing action, is all too often forgotten in the age of instant gratification.
Think about TV advertisements. Traditionally, they’re not designed to send prospects flying out of their seats and into the aisles of the retailer. Instead, they’re designed to burrow deep into the viewer’s mind so that when they are in a situation where they’re about to make a purchasing decision, ex: which bag of chips to bring home to the family – they remember the catchy commercial and are predisposed to select the brand that is most familiar.
Being top of mind is the central objective of extremely successful digital marketing strategies of the past. Marketers’ primary focus was in creating resonance between the company and keywords/phrases that keep the brand relevant and the value proposition easily recognized.
Conclusion
A professional social media management team seeks to accomplish these objectives and more simultaneously – according to the relevant business growth objectives, your digital marketing strategy should ensure that each post is layered with utility, thus ensuring you get the most bang for your buck.
Social media management often costs more than many business owners expect. Granted, most of these business owners have very little understanding of how dynamic these undertakings are! From the strategy to the engagement, managing a business’s social media is a complex ordeal – anyone who has tried to bootstrap the operation themselves can tell you that.
If your social media account isn’t increasing your bottom line, consider calling in backup. Our team of wordsmiths and networking wizards at White Wolf are eager to help businesses grow through our social media prowess, schedule a meeting with us today here.
