SMM
Social Media Marketing
“Social media marketing is more than generating content”
What is Social Media Marketing?
Social media marketing is more than generating content. There are so many factors that go into how to utilize it and where to focus your energy. It is a low-cost and highly effective tool for generating leads and much more, and it is often the only way to reach certain younger demographics. We know that social media has taken over the lives of so many regarding how they gather and process information, but how does that apply to your specific business?
1. Brand Recognition
Social media has such a wide range of users that it automatically puts your brand in front of the eyes of millions of potential customer just by existing online. Not everyone is using the keywords that will pull up your website in a search engine, but everyone has a friend of a friend of a friend through social media who is interacting with the industry that your business works in. That means that the potential for one share to reach a customer miles away from your grasp is high. If you incorporate paid advertising and boosting posts, then you are looking at a new kind of marketing animal.
2. Low-Cost
Creating social media accounts is free, and since that is the first and most important step – that’s a pretty great start! Any small business is going to lean more heavily on social media for this reason, and they are not wrong to do so. However, you need to have a solid content strategy in place for those costs to stay low. Part of what makes it low cost is that your activity determines your number of followers. As long as you are liking, following and commenting then you are increasing your number of followers and engagement without spending a dime.
3. Easy Access to Customers
The genius of social media marketing is that you always have a direct line to your customers at your fingertips. You don’t have to twist any arms or dig deep for specialized question and answer forums in order to find them, they are all already active on these mediums! For a business that does not want to spend a ton of money on lead generation, this is the best possible fit for seeking out customers and keeping them abreast of any new developments.
4. Improves Credibility
The more that you provide excellent content through your social media, the more status you are creating for your brand’s authority. Not only do you need to be providing content, but you need to be providing value to your followers and customers through the content that you are creating. Sometimes that means entertainment value for increasing engagement and building relationships but more often than not it is more related to coupons or blogs on your website about your product or industry. You also should utilize social media to build a rapport with other businesses that could be strategic partners for yours. Cross-marketing opportunities are abound in social media and should not be passed up. The more partnerships that you can create on these platforms, the more legitimate your brand will seem to the public.
5. Better Relationship with Customers
Regarding that entertainment value previously mentioned, you can see the brands that are more successful and utilize social media well tend to post a lot of memes and jokes along with their branded content. You don’t want to overdo this because you want customers to take you seriously, but there is nothing wrong with a little bit of levity in the world of social media! You also need to make sure that you are engaging with customers on your platforms by responding to their comments and having a dialogue with them. That is what makes them feel valued as an individual rather than part of the wide net that was cast for more followers.
6. Better Awareness of the Market
Social media platforms are like the windows into the soul of your target markets. In order to know exactly what they want, what they are frustrated about in regards to your industry and more, you have to be engaged in the trenches with them. The more of a presence you have on social media, the more likely you are to stay ahead of the trends and make adjustments to your marketing strategy accordingly.
7. Higher SEO
8. Increase your Traffic
Including direct links to webpages on your site is really important with social media marketing and its effectiveness. If you have a blog or new product, don’t just create a graphic or promote it as a separate entity. Make sure to place a direct link not only in the post, but also in the bio when applicable. Leaving links in the bio, especially through a link tree account can have a huge impact on the click through rates with each post. You have so much access to people through these channels, it is only appropriate for you to take advantage of it every step of the way!
Bottom line
Social media can be a gift or a curse, depending on whether or not you know how to use it with intention and strategy. If you slap together content without thinking a plan through then you can easily burn yourself or your team out with building time consuming and ineffective content. Understanding the benefits of social media for the long-term profitability of your business is important for building a strategy that will last for years to come.
To learn more about the SMM / Social Media Marketing and how it can help your internet business, please don’t hesitate to contact us