Social media marketing can become a black hole for small and independent business owners.
It is so easy to get sucked into the social media vortex.
Before you blink you’ve spent hours on social media for your business only to get minimal returns on that time investment.
In today’s video, I discuss how to put together a social media strategy for your business that won’t consume your days.
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For me, deciding which social media platform to focus the majority of my attention has been difficult.
There are aspects that I enjoy about all of them.
I have also had success marketing on nearly all of them.
I have had to decide which one or two platforms is best for my business growth.
For my business, it has been Twitter and Facebook.
Right now, today, that is where I spend most of my time on social.
Tomorrow… that, I won’t promise to any social media network.
Being nimble and having the ability to redirect your efforts is important when you consider how to put together a social media strategy for your business.
How To Put Together a Social Media Strategy in 5 Steps
1. Where is your target market?
If you want to promote your business on social media then you need to know where your customers are spending their time.
The easiest way to do this is to create a customer avatar.
Think of the perfect customer.
Let’s say you have a weight loss program and products specifically designed for men. Look at the following example…
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Example of a Customer Avatar:
His name is Dennis. He’s a 46-year-old executive for an IT consulting firm. Dennis is 80 pounds overweight and has unsuccessfully attempted to lose weight using 10 programs over the past 15 years. He craves sweets, snacks on junk constantly and eats out of habit more than hunger.
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You have a product line that includes a sweet tasting meal replacement shake and snack line that will allow him to satisfy the cravings.
This will help him to slowly control the snacking habits which will keep him in your program and to finally lose the weight.
So where does Dennis most likely to spend his time on social?
As an executive probably on LinkedIn.
Being in his mid 40s he’s also likely to be active on Facebook.
If you were going for a younger crowd you might spend more time looking on Instagram and Snapchat.
That’s where your strategy starts.
Define your target market and figure where they hang out.
2. Decide what type of content your target market will find interesting.
The content you create needs to resonate with your target market.
What topics are they talking about on social media?
What kinds of images and videos will they find interesting?
Consider these questions and then decide what type of content you can commit to creating on a regular basis.
Whatever content you create has to stand out. It has to grab the attention of your target market.
Be bold. Get creative. Encourage people to engage.
3. Schedule your posts.
Having fresh content on your social media accounts is a must.
You can’t post once a week and expect to be found in a noisy digital world.
There is so much content out there you have to keep your message in front of your followers.
The frequency of your posts will vary depending on the social media platform.
Here are some recommended posting frequencies.
Using a scheduling service like Hootsuite, Status Brew or Buffer can help you stay on top of your social media posts.
Just be sure not to automate all of your posts. You need to be present on social media, not just a robot.
People can sniff that out easily and ignore your content.
4. Engage with your target market.
It’s critical that you ask for engagement in your posts.
However, you also need to get out there and make engagement happen.
What groups can you join on Facebook and LinkedIn?
What hashtags could you search on Twitter?
What images should you be commenting on in Instagram?
You have to get into the conversations of your target market.
That engagement allows your target market to learn more about you.
It allows them to get to know, like and trust you.
That’s how you build a following.
That’s how you find customers.
5. Execute consistently.
Nothing works if you don’t.
It takes work to create and maintain an effective social media strategy.
Consistency is everything!
That means consistently creating content, consistently engaging your target market, consistently scheduling your posts and consistently adapting to your target market.
Work, work, work.
Execute your strategy every month, every week, every day.
Execute consistently and ensure the success of your strategy.
Knowing how to put together a social media strategy is the easy part.
Execution is what generally trips up marketers.
Follow the above steps and create a social media plan that will build your business.
Which of the 5 steps above do you find the most challenging?
I would love to hear how you work your strategy and what you have found to be successful.
I hope you found some value learning how to put together a social media strategy for your business.
If you did please like, comment and share.
To Your Success!
Steve Stark
Call Any Time: 262-378-3192
Skype: sbstark
Add me on Snapchat! Username: stvstark
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