In today’s age of social media craze, individuals and businesses alike are essentially “missing out” if they are not on social media. Between updates, general knowledge, statistics, connecting people and businesses to one another, and so much more, social media plays a vital role in our day-to-day lives. If you are a business and have not developed a presence on social media, trust us, you are behind your competitors. The purpose of this blog post is to educate businesses the role social media can play and the best marketing strategies to focus on for each platform. 

 

 

One of the most important factors to having a social media strategy is it allows you to measure, report, and take action. As you begin posting, you can pay attention yourself or use a social media analytics tool to keep track of what is working and what is not. The longer you follow your analytics, you can pinpoint what you audience engages in the most and what they essentially want to see out of your page. Maybe your audience likes educational posts, tips/tricks, inspirational or motivational posts, company updates, following your social media analytics will allow you to give your audience what they want. 

 

Furthermore, social media gives you a great place to engage with your audience. Consumers, even those browsing on social media, want to be heard. They want to feel that their opinion matters. As a company, you want your audience to know they matter to you! One of the best ways to do this is to engage with your audience. Keep them updated on what the recent updates with your company are, promotions, things to look for in the future, or simply applying to those in your comment section. 

 

Another reason to have a presence on social media is it forces you to be consistent. Being consistent on social media is important because it gives your audience a voice they come to familiarize themselves with. For instance, if you are talking to millennials, you will want a slightly different voice and vernacular than the baby boomer generation. Understanding your audience’s demographics will help you communicate with them in a way they understand. 

 

 

Facebook is constantly changing, so simply keeping up and utilizing its updates will keep you ahead of your competitors. Some simple suggestions include utilizing messenger, creating Facebook groups to connect with your followers even more, and go live. Going live is a great way to either spontaneously interact and keep your audience engaged or plan to promote when you are going live to get buzz behind it. 

 

 

One of the biggest tips we can offer for Twitter is to maximize the space you are given. With only 250 characters allowed, providing a clear, concise message is more important on Twitter than any other platform. Sometimes the best way, with such a small space is to utilize videos and pictures to get your message across. 

 

 

Instagram is a great place to promote new products/services, use hashtags, and utilize their story feature. Other platforms are introducing stories, but Instagram is by far the most used platform for stories at the moment. For stories, our suggestion is to stay consistent. Instagram stories are chronological, meaning when you post one it becomes the first thing on viewers feeds, so it keeps you relevant.  

 

Understanding the importance of building a presence on social media and utilizing these tips are a great way to get started. Continue to do research and don’t be worried if your current strategies aren’t working because they are meant to change. If you are having a hard time getting engagement, invest in paid advertising. It may cost you money, but it is a sure fire way to get your posts noticed.