You know social networks provide unique branding advantages—but do you know how to make the most of your social media marketing efforts? Starting out with a clear vision is the best way to build a strong social media marketing campaign. Follow these three easy steps to fire up an engaging social media campaign for your brand.
Step 1 – Identify your campaign objectives.
Identify your needs by outlining the specific objectives of your brand’s social media campaign. Be specific. Define the tone, duration and scope of your social media campaign.
Tone – Work with what you have. Let’s say you’re using social networks to promote a new product by a well-established brand. A tone of excitement will be important, but don’t overlook the opportunity to draw attention to your company’s credibility with a tone of confidence in your brand’s product.
Duration – Determine the appropriate length for your social media marketing campaign. One of the advantages of social networks is that starting fresh doesn’t have to mean starting over. Let one campaign overlap another within the same brand. A short-term social media campaign for your brand’s new product gives you plenty of opportunity to build brand awareness and generate a buzz for your company.
Scope – It’s important to understand your target market’s geographical location. How far are you trying to reach? Social media marketing gives you the freedom to reach a global audience just as easily as a local one. If you’re promoting a launch party for your new product, you’ll want to get the word out in your surrounding community. If you’re hosting a webinar for business owners featuring livestreaming branded content, you may want to attract a wider geographical audience.
Step 2 – Identify your target audience.
Not all attention is created equal. Be sure your message is hitting the right mark. This takes ‘defining your scope’ one step further.
Create a profile of your target social media audience. One of the most useful tools in social networks is the ability to gather and analyze information quickly. Facebook’s highly-targeted advertising, for example, allows you to direct ads to users based on personal data.
Here are some important demographics to consider:
Age Range
Income
Education
Interests
Location
Knowing exactly who you’re trying to reach will give your campaign the best chance for success.
Step 3 – Identify characteristics from each of the social networks.
Create a chart that displays the characteristics of various social networking sites. Use a three-colored scale to fill in the chart with the following ranks: good, fair, poor. This will simplify finding the right social networks to match your needs.
While many of the characteristics may overlap, it’s important to understand there are some subtle differences. For example, a Twitter presence may be more successful at reaching a new, untapped base, while Facebook is great for maintaining loyal customers.
Once you start rocking, don’t stop rolling.
When it comes to social networks, you get as good as you give. A well-focused and highly-targeted social media campaign will connect you with the right audience, but your job doesn’t end there. It’s extremely important to maintain your social media presence.
If keeping up with your social networks is going to be a challenge, be sure to put the process in the hands of social media marketing professionals. In the end, a poorly maintained social media presence may do more harm than good, and that’s a tune you don’t want to sing.
