Social media has rapidly become one the most effective tools for marketing and advertising your business. Creating a successful social media campaign allows businesses of all kinds to reach consumers on both a national and international level in real-time. Whether you’re using social media for a small business or revamping your current corporate marketing strategies, the most important aspect of social media is implementing a plan. According to Neil Patel of Entrepreneur, one of the biggest social media mistakes is not having a clear strategy. Patel writes that businesses should begin by asking themselves 6 main questions:
- Do you know who your target audience is?
- How do you plan to talk to them?
- Do you know how your social media campaign ties into your traditional marketing plan?
- Do you know who is going to staff your social media efforts?
- Do you know your social media business objectives?
- How will you measure your success?
Elaborating on Patel’s points, knowing your business objectives and also knowing how to reach your target audience are the most vital questions. If you don’t keep these questions in mind, even though your name and products will be out there, the campaign probably won’t yield the successful results that you want for your business. In addition to having a concrete plan at least one employee needs to visit their company’s viral outlets daily to be aware of new consumers, competitors, trends, and ideas. Social media is the perfect way to keep up with marketing trends in order to ensure that your business continues to grow, and best of all, it’s FREE!
The obvious sites to consider utilizing in order to launch your social media campaign are facebook, Google+, and Twitter. These have been the frontrunners in social media but according to Jason Falls of Entrepreneur, newer sites such as Pinterest and Tumblr are expecting to rise to the top within the year. Pinterest provides a creative way to let others into your business by having members “pin” pictures to boards that you have organized by categories. It allows members to interact and follow whatever you choose to share on your board. Meanwhile, Tumblr provides a catalyst to enable your corporate blog to reach countless consumers.
While every one of these social networking sites may not be compatible with your business, it’s undeniably valuable to be open to social media and find which networks work for your needs and goals. So jump on the social bandwagon and start creating your business’ social media campaign today!
