Social media is a key part of any marketing strategy, whether you’re an influencer, an international company, or a consumer brand. It’s easy to get started (especially if you start with these four questions), but here’s what you need to do to manage your social media preference.
Choose your platform
Social media is often referred to as a singular entity, but there are several different platforms that you can join. You can choose one to focus on, or you can have a presence on several. The main four are the following:
Twitter: Most brands should have a Twitter, as it is a great platform for sharing news and engaging with followers.
Instagram: Visual brands and influencers do best on Instagram, as it is a photo-sharing platform. It is also a great place to show off your company culture to potential employees.
Facebook: Companies can achieve a lot through Facebook and its advertising opportunities. It is also the perfect platform for hosting communities and discussions.
LinkedIn: Business influencers and companies do well on LinkedIn, and some marketing done on this platform can double as recruiting.
Curate content
What are you sharing on your social media? Hopefully, it’s content that reflects your brand and is interesting to your target audience. For example, if you’re a dog food brand, you could share pictures of your customers’ puppies on Instagram. Because who doesn’t love puppies? But you don’t want to always be searching for content, so here are a few tips to make the process easier:
Create a list of topics. If you know what your followers are interested in, create a list of those topics and use that as a guide when looking for content to share.
Set up Google Alerts. If there is a specific topic that your brand focuses on, create a Google Alert. Google will then send emails to you whenever a new piece of content mentions that topic.
Bookmark your favorite websites. When you’re searching for content, you’ll probably find several websites that you like. Bookmark those websites for easy searching later.
Take a break. It’s good to take a break sometimes, and this is the perfect opportunity to explore the internet and find content. When you allow yourself to go down the rabbit hole, you may be surprised by how many amazing things you find.
Have a personality
We know you have a personality in real life, so don’t be afraid to let it shine on social media! Chances are, you wouldn’t follow a brand on Twitter that only posted mundane updates about its products. So, make your posts interesting! Include fun images, GIFs, or crack a joke every so often. You don’t have to follow in Moonpie’s footsteps, but don’t be afraid to have fun, either.
Engage your followers
No one likes a one-sided conversation, so be sure to get your followers involved! Ask questions in your posts, or even use a poll to collect responses. The key is to start a conversation or join into a discussion that is important to your brand. Doing this will show that your company values the opinions of your customers and followers.
Use a scheduling tool
Constantly posting on social media can feel overwhelming, so we find it’s best to use a scheduling tool. There are several options out there, some free and some paid. Some examples include Hootsuite and Sprout Social.
Social listening and engagement
You can also use tools like Hootsuite and Sprout Social to take a pulse on social trends and happenings. It’s important to keep tabs on trending hashtags and national days that your brand can engage with.Speaking of engagement, these tools can also help you engage with your followers. If a customer reaches out with a question via social media, you’ll want to respond to them quickly, and these tools will help.
Metrics
Last but not least, it is essential to monitor and analyze your social media metrics. There are several tools that help with this (Sprout Social, etc.), but most social media platforms also provide some metrics as well. You can learn so much through this information, from what times your audience is most active to what posts and topics perform the best. Through these learnings, you can continue to improve and grow your social media presence.
What are some more ways that you manage your social media? We’d love to hear from you in the comments!
