'Social media isn't working for me!' is a phrase we've heard countless times. Unfortunately, it's true. You can't just trawl through social media with no tactics or plan and expect to get results.
Using social media can be intimidating. We're all different, which means we all use it differently. Some people love live streaming, while others only shop and share content through sites like Instagram and Pinterest. More than 4.7 billion people (as of October 2022) use social media, but some aren't using the right strategies to get what they want from their accounts. In this blog post, I'll share with you the 6 key factors for success on social media that will help your business grow and increase your bottom line.
1. Define your customer or target audience:
If you're new to social media or have been using it for a while, and you're feeling like things aren't going as well as they should, it could be because you haven't defined your target customer.
What is a target customer?
A target customer is a person who will buy your product or service. It's the person who needs what you're selling and wants it enough that they'll spend money on it.
Why is defining your target customer important?
Defining your target customer helps you to figure out how to reach them and speak to them in a way that resonates with them. It helps you create content that's specific enough to attract those customers but broad enough that anyone can find value in it (because if no one finds value in your content, then no one will click on it). And once you know who the people are who want what you have to offer, then all of the marketing decisions become easier: from where to post on social media platforms and websites, how often to post, what kind of content will work best for attracting those customers (and avoid repelling others), etc.
2: Which platform is your audience on:
Knowing which platform your audience is on is important for social media success because it enables you to tailor your content to each platform's unique audience. By tailoring your content, you can make sure that the people who matter most to you are hearing what they want to hear—and they'll be more likely to engage with and share your content as a result.
For example, if you're a clothing brand, Facebook might be where you post photos of models wearing your designs. Instagram might be where you post videos of people talking about their favourite clothes from your store. Twitter would be the place for quick updates about sales or new arrivals. And Snapchat could be for quick behind-the-scenes looks into how a specific garment was made or how it's being worn by influencers.
It's important to choose one platform for each type of communication so that you don't dilute the impact of any one message by spreading it across multiple platforms at once.
3: What kind of content do they value:
It's important to know what kind of content your target audience values because it will help you create better content.
You can't just throw stuff up there and hope for the best. If you want to see results, you need to create content that your audience is actually interested in seeing.
Let's say you have a blog about cooking for beginners. You've been doing some research on the subject, and you feel like you have a pretty good idea of what your target audience is looking for. But what if they're not? What if they want recipes for more advanced meals? What if they don't care about how to make pasta sauce without tomatoes?
If you don't know what kind of information they're looking for, then how can you give them what they want? Answer: You can't! And that means no conversions.
So how do we get around this problem? The answer is simple: by asking our potential customers what they want!
4: Measure your marketing activities:
Social media marketing is all about numbers.
You could have millions of followers, but if you don't have a way to measure your social media success, you won't be able to tell what's working and what isn't.
One of the most important aspects of social media success is measuring your ROI: return on investment. How much are you spending on marketing and advertising? And how much are you getting back in sales? It's important to keep track of these numbers so that you can make informed decisions about how much money to spend on advertising and where it would be most beneficial for your business.
There are a number of ways to measure your ROI: sales data, customer feedback surveys, web traffic analytics reports, web visitor heat maps...and more! Once you've got your data in hand, then comes the real work: interpreting it into actionable insights that will help improve your social media marketing results.
5: Benchmark yourself against the competition:
Benchmarking yourself against the competition is a great way to gauge how you're doing in your social media strategy and can help you identify areas for improvement.
Social media is a rapidly changing place. The ways that people use it are constantly evolving, and companies are always looking for new ways to engage with their audiences. In this environment, it's easy for someone who's new to social media to feel like they're not doing well. But if you compare yourself against other companies that have been around longer than you have—and whose strategies are more established—you'll be able to tell if your own strategy is working.
It also helps you identify what works for them so that you can incorporate similar tactics into your own strategy. For example, if they're doing something really well but it doesn't seem like something that would work for your brand or audience, then don't bother trying it out!
Of course, one of the best ways to benchmark yourself against the competition is by looking at what they're doing right now—and then figuring out how to improve upon those tactics! You can do this by carrying out some social listening. Do this in both a proactive and reactive way to always be a step or steps ahead of your competition.
6: Conversations and community:
We've all heard the saying: "It's not what you know, but who you know."
That saying is especially true in social media. The more people that are a part of your community, the more people will see your content and share it with their own communities—which means more eyes on your brand, more people interacting with your content, and more opportunities for engagement.
But how do you build a community? It's not just about posting images of the product you offer and the price. You need to make sure that you're creating conversations around your content so that people are able to join in and start conversations with other members of the community.
And what's even better than conversations? Conversations between different groups within a community! It's important to encourage this kind of engagement so that everyone feels included and connected when they're using your platform.
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