Spoiler alert – you can't post and ghost! Yes, you heard us right. Social media goes beyond just setting up your profile and then posting a cute meme.
A successful online presence will benefit your target audience and you! Not all brands need to be on every social channel; use your platforms wisely! Focus on the channels where you know your audience hangs out. Posting on platforms where your target audience doesn't hang out is a waste of resources. Social media is a crucial element of your brand's marketing strategy, and in this blog, we will share effective ways to boost your social media presence to gain followers and increase engagement!
Establish Goals For Social Media
Before setting up social accounts and posting, establish goals for your social media and metrics to track progress. If your brand is emerging, brand awareness is a great objective. Maybe you'd like to increase traffic to your website; social media is a great tool to drive traffic to your website.
Whatever your objectives are, a great starting point is to establish SMART goals for the milestones you'd like to meet.
Specific: Drive traffic by 15% to the website through social media ads over the next six months.
Measurable: Monitor those metrics through Google Analytics and Meta Business Suite.
Achievable: Our goal of a 15% increase in traffic is a reality based on the timeline and advertising budget.
Relevant: Through this goal, our brand will see an increase in brand awareness because of social media ads and boosted website traffic.
Timely: We've given ourselves two quarters to meet our goal of a 15% increase in website traffic.
Establish SMART goals in advance! Set objectives that bring goals to life and will help keep your social media team focused.
Connect With Your Audience
In a world full of digital content, it's easy for a brand to get lost in the noise. Use social media as an opportunity to reach out and touch your target audience; this allows them to see that your brand exists. Keep in mind that social media is the closest contact you have with your target audience. Reach out to them by providing them with content they can engage with to (hopefully) convert them to customers.
Here are a few easy ways to create connections with your audience:
Do live videos.
Share memes your audience can relate to and want to share.
Replying to comments.
Participate in discussions in the comments section.
Create polls & quizzes.
Create targeted online ad campaigns.
Advertise product sales
Be Consistent With Social Posting
Random social posting creates random results. To track your success on social media effectively, stay consistent with the posting. Be proactive and stay ahead with a content calendar. Whether you manage content through a spreadsheet or tools like HeyOrca and Hootsuite, a content calendar allows you to create posts days, weeks, and months in advance. They're an excellent tool for brainstorming topics that enable you to see your content on a bigger scale.
There's a common trend many brands fall into with social media; they start off posting regularly, then their posting gradually decreases. Maybe it's because they lost the momentum or did not see the results as quickly as they'd like. What's tricky about many digital marketing efforts; results are not immediate, especially with social media, they take time to build, and that’s why consistency is key with social media.
Also, don't bombard followers with multiple social media posts daily. Using a content calendar can easily spread your postings out over multiple days, helping you create a healthy balance for your post schedule.
Building A Following Takes Patience & Persistence
Results take time. One way to expedite the process of gaining followers is through online advertising. Facebook and Instagram ads let your target audience know you exist. Email marketing, print ads, and brochures with your social media handle effectively get the word out about your brand.
If you're a brand that is just starting, it makes sense to push your brand on as many social channels to build your following. The challenge with that approach is that if you're gaining followers outside your audience, it's hard to convert them into customers. Also, those followers will die off. The two channels that are the most reliable place to find your followers are Facebook and Instagram.
Optimize Your Social Channels
Consistency is key with social media. All social channels should have the same contact information, links, and tone to match your branding. An unoptimized social media account will only hinder the growth of your accounts. For example, an Instagram account with low-quality photos, limited information, and inconsistent posting will not gain traction and deter followers.
Think of your channels as an introduction to your brand and a funnel to your website. Anyone who stumbles across your page should instantly recognize your brand. If they're new to your brand, you want there to be enough information for them to understand who you are.
Simple ways to optimize your social channels:
Implement relevant hashtags.
Include a consistent bio across platforms.
Use high-quality graphics.
Create online advertising campaigns.
Add links to your website and certain pages you want to be seen.
Mayday! Mayday! Refrain From Pushing Sales
Making all your social media content centered around sales can be easy, but try to avoid that! Here at GROW Marketing Agency, we like to follow the 80/20 rule; 80% of the content we post on social is standard, engaging social content. The other 20% is sales-related content. It is important to let customers know when you’re having sales or what new products have been added to the inventory.
Instead, add a call-to-action at the end of the post. This helps the viewer decide their next move–social media is a chance for you to connect with your audience - don't ruin it by pushing posts that are ads! The goal is to convert followers to consumers. To do that, you need to earn their trust. Provide your followers with engaging, relevant, shareable content.
Don’t Be Afraid To Try Social Media Trends
It can feel cheesy to hop on certain social media bandwagons, like making Tik Tok dances and Instagram Reels. Those silly moments allow followers to build trust with your brand and increase engagement.
Don’t stray away from using hashtags; specific hashtags expose your brand to particular audiences. Try using branded hashtags, they’re a great way to get your brand out, followers can use them, and branded hashtags allow you to keep track of your posts.
Social media is a highly effective tool when done correctly. More people are turning to social media to influence their buying decisions. Think of how persuasive Instagram ads can be! By incorporating goals for your brand, a content calendar, and researching your audience, you’ll find that you’re moving closer to meeting your objectives.
If your brand needs help implementing a social media practice, GROW Marketing Agency has a talented team of social media gurus who can help you bring your brand to life!
Contact us today to reach new heights!
Do you already have social media accounts, but need help resurrecting them from the dead? GROW Marketing Agency offers a social media audit and strategy session, to evaluate current performance, content analysis, identify opportunities, and so much more!
About the Author:
Katheryn Hunt is a sales-‘growing’ enthusiast. As the CEO of GROW, she partners with small to medium businesses in the United States to develop and deploy sales and marketing strategies that generate revenue. Katheryn has a diverse business-building background; and has surrounded herself with an elite marketing team who specializes in “Growing” business start-ups, healthcare and long-term care companies, capital equipment manufacturers, retailers, and service-based industries; through value-based selling and compelling marketing stories.
GROW Marketing Agency is a St. Louis-based Sales and Marketing Agency specializing in Website, Digital Marketing, & Business growth solutions. We help companies increase their revenue by creating the pathways that lead customers to the heart of their business. Individually tailored and guaranteed to deliver results, our growth strategies save clients time and money while increasing their market share.
