You can’t escape social media; every time you check your smartphone, there’s likely to be some form of notification linked to SM.
As a marketer, if you’re not using these platforms, you 're missing out on the lion’s share of customers. If a social media presence isn’t part of your go-to-market strategy, you aren’t going to have a successful marketing campaign.
So how can your business profit from its exposure to social networks? Here’s how to get started.
Facebook
Love it or hate it, Facebook’s 2020 quarter 1 growth in revenue means you cannot exclude it from your social media go-to-market strategy. By the end of the year, 1.69 billion users are expected to be on Facebook. This is a market you can’t avoid to miss.
Facebook also has the most extensive demographic range. 82% of Millennials say they use Facebook, as does 76% of Gen-X, and 59% of Baby Boomers.
Polls, photo tags, and simple questions are ways that social media users love to interact with businesses. Take advantage of these as often as you can. You can also learn more about what your customers (old and new), like or don’t like about your product.
Lastly, get your content as creative as possible, make it interactive, limited in time, and utilize video as much as possible.
Your customer base will explode once you get your social network marketing done right.
Illustration: Freepik
As a marketer, if you’re not using these platforms, you 're missing out on the lion’s share of customers. If a social media presence isn’t part of your go-to-market strategy, you aren’t going to have a successful marketing campaign.
So how can your business profit from its exposure to social networks? Here’s how to get started.
Set Social Media Goals
First and foremost, you must decide what the purpose of the marketing strategy is. Do you need more paying customers, do you need more brand awareness, or do you just need a more significant online presence?Web Traffic
A social network presence will bring more people to your website. Clickable links are one of the aspects of marketing this way. The purpose of being seen on social media is to grab the attention of the viewer, and you may only have a few seconds to do this before they browse to another page.Brand Awareness
You want people talking about your product or service. Social media does this. You’ll reach a far greater audience by being visible on these platforms. Not everyone sees your website unless you have a phenomenal SEO team. So get your brand out there and have people talking about it.Promotions and Urgency
Social networks are great when you want to advertise something for a quick sale. Excited buyers tend to make snap decisions, so a short sale time works wonders here. Drive the customer back to your site, maybe even with an exclusive PIN. This helps to generate a sense of uniqueness for this product at this price.Decide On Your Target Market
Now that your business strategy is in place, it’s time to choose your audience. While being present on social media is a must, you need to know your target market. Not every SM platform has the same user base.Facebook also has the most extensive demographic range. 82% of Millennials say they use Facebook, as does 76% of Gen-X, and 59% of Baby Boomers.
Female Audience
If your target market is women, Pinterest and Snapchat are your go-to sites. They boast more substantial numbers of female users. Pinterest also claims that 83% of weekly ‘Pinners’ made a purchase based on what they saw on this site.Gen Z
This money-spending demographic of those born after 1995 love pictures and visual stories. Instagram and YouTube are your marketing partners here. You want to create visually stimulating advertisements that get their immediate attention.Make Engaging Content
Now that you have your purpose and decided where to advertise, it’s time to get creative. Hopefully, you have included in your go-to-market strategy what your ads will look like. This needs to be a very clearly thought out campaign.Interactive Content
The way to put your brand name out there is by using hashtags (#). Create a couple of themed hashtags and get your customers using them. Hashtags are also a great way to track your visitors.Polls, photo tags, and simple questions are ways that social media users love to interact with businesses. Take advantage of these as often as you can. You can also learn more about what your customers (old and new), like or don’t like about your product.
FOMO
Just like urgent fire sales, fear of missing out (FOMO) works really well on Facebook and Instagram via the ‘stories’ component. After 24 hours, these vanish, so placing a product advertisement here with expiry at the same time as the story will generate quick sales that will amaze you.Short-Play Video
Videos catch your audience’s attention much more than pictures and words. Keep them short, up to 60 seconds. You could even consider ‘micro-commercials,’ which are currently all the rage on Facebook.You Need Social Media
Your go-to-market strategy for consumers must include some form of exposure on social media platforms. Decide first what your objective is, such as traffic, awareness, and sales. Ensure you choose the right place for your product or service to be seen by your target audience.Lastly, get your content as creative as possible, make it interactive, limited in time, and utilize video as much as possible.
Your customer base will explode once you get your social network marketing done right.
Illustration: Freepik
