A strategy for social media? Isn’t that only for “the big guys?” Absolutely not! The need for a strategy applies to businesses of every size. In fact, a plan could be even more critical to smaller businesses with limited time and money to allocate towards marketing efforts of any kind. So, take the time to evaluate what you are doing, where you are spending your money and your time, who your audience is, what your message is – and determine what tools are the best choice for your business. Then, take the time to put a plan in place.
“There may be no magic formula for social media success. But there are strategies you and your organization can employ to build a winning social media team,” said Valerie Touchstone “What works for one business is not going to work necessarily for another business. It’s important to have a plan and revisit it several times a year to see if any adjustments are needed.”
Here’s a few tips:
*Why.
Figure out why you’re on social media, which platforms work for you and how you’ll measure success. One of the first things we do is discuss why a client is on social media and how they will measure success.
*Review the stats.
There are so many good platforms for measuring what is working and what is not. From the free tools on each platform to paid services, be sure to pull reports and adjust accordingly.
* Writing Matters Here Too.
Nope. Just because it’s social media, sloppy writing isn’t going to work. In fact, content matters more than ever. Writing succinctly is more difficult – every word matters and any form of social media highlights the need for clear, compelling, concise and memorable writing. And for that matter, content isn’t all writing, videos, podcasts, infographics and more need to be part of your mix.
* Find Your BrandVoice.
Lose the stuffy organizational voice. Please. Better yet, establish your brand voice and stick to it. Sure, tone can vary widely within an organization. Still, if you’re replying to a comment or if you’re interacting with someone, just talk.
* Tick Tock: Timeliness Counts
Someone asks a question or posts a comment that needs an answer on the weekend? It can’t wait. Think through the options and have a plan for after hours responses. Most business don’t need a 24/6 in person response, but response time does count. [And, automated responses can help until someone can check]
* Team Empowerment.
While someone asking for information plays out in public on social media, empowering employees to always take care of the customer on the spot is worth its weight in gold. Set up a framework and ground rules and let people rise to the occasion.
*Budget appropriately.
Nothing is free. In the beginning, social media was the land of the free for businesses, but not so anymore. To ensure people who follow you see your posts, boosted posts and paid ads are part of the budget – as are people to create consistent, compelling content.
*Stoke the Fire
The amount of content needed for social media can be staggering. We work with clients to create a content calendar and the needed assets such as articles, videos, podcasts, gifs, photos and captions – all designed to achieve goals.