What is a social media strategy? So glad you asked. As it just so happens, that’s our area of expertise (one of many).
More than 91% of businesses use social media. Some use it more effectively than others. Know what differentiates the opposite ends of the spectrum? A social media strategy. It’s the secret sauce for getting all that you can out of your social channels.
A little background… what’s social media for?
Well, there’s the obvious answer. Social media is for laughing at silly memes, watching adorable videos of puppies and ducklings becoming friends, and finding out which of your family members have some questionable views.
And while it may be fun to doom-scroll, social media brings way more to the table than some mindless entertainment. For a burgeoning business, social media is an integral tool to build your business and connect with customers.
Social can be used for increasing brand awareness, building engaged communities, selling products, measuring brand sentiment, providing customer service, and advertising (free & paid!).
With all that, why wouldn’t you use it?
So, what is a social media strategy?
Social media strategy is exactly what it sounds like. It’s your business’s plan of attack for approaching your social media channels. A strong social strategy will outline your company’s goals for using social, as well as the tactics you’ll employ to meet them.
You may have the same goal across your social channels, or you may want them to serve different purposes. Facebook and Linkedin could be used to drive traffic to your website, while Instagram and TikTok could be your outlet for building brand awareness.
Regardless of your plan of attack, your social media strategy doc should clearly outline who’s responsible for what. It should also establish a regular cadence for tracking performance and analytics.
How to create a social media strategy:
Alright. Time to show y’all how the sausage gets made. Here are four simple tips to create a social media strategy that lasts:
1 set some goals
First things first, you’ll need to know what the purpose of your business’s social media is. Again, scrolling through memes is great, but it’s not going to help people flock to your website. It also won’t help move any product.
Like any other aspect of business, succeeding with social media means setting some goals. And, though it should go without saying, those goals should be in line with the rest of your business objectives. Not to be too buzzword-y, but be sure to set yourself SMART goals.
If you don’t already know what SMART goals are, here’s your primer. They’re goals that are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant & Time-bound.
2 research, research, research
To be successful at social media is to be in the know. And in the know of everything.
You have to know your audience. What do they like? Where do they live? How do they live? Picturing the people you’re talking to goes a long way. Take everything you know about your target audience and build out an audience persona. Building personas will help you shape the content you share.
You have to know your competition. How do they sound? What are they sharing? What are they doing well? Or not well enough? Understanding what your competitors are talking about informs what you should be talking about. It will also help you find opportunities they’re missing. And places you can pick up the slack.
You have to know your own social media. What’s working? What isn’t working? Are you getting more engagement and traction on one social platform over another? Double down on your strengths. Shy away from your weaknesses. If something’s working, keep at it. If you’re not getting the results you wanted, make a change.
3 make it happen, cap’n
We should’ve said this a while ago, but if you don’t have your social media handles (AKA accounts, for those less internet-savvy) already, get them now. Seriously though, like right now. We’ll wait.
Okay, great. Onward.
Next up, find some inspo. Who’s out there making and sharing cool shit? Follow them. Learn from them. Borrow (read: steal) ideas from them.
Now all that’s left is to actually make some stuff. Simple, right? WRONG. Sorry for yelling, but it’s just not that easy. Before you whip out the camera and start playing Annie Leibovitz or doing dances you’re too old for, put together a content calendar.
Having a content calendar helps for two major reasons. First, it helps you find the right posting cadence. You don’t want to overwhelm your followers, but you don’t want to let them forget about you either. Second, it helps you determine your mix of content.
What types of content are you sharing on which social platform? What’s the purpose of each piece? Drive traffic? Build awareness? You should be able to find the answer to all of these questions in your content calendar.
Now that you’ve got the calendar, it’s time to create. And post.
4 revisit and adjust
Just as crucial as the prepping and the posting? The performance. There are plenty of metrics to track, and the ones you pay most attention to depend entirely on your business’s objectives.
There are awareness metrics, like reach, impressions and growth rate. Engagement metrics like engagement rate, amplification rate and virality rate. Video metrics like views and completion rate. ROI (return on investment) metrics like click through rate, conversion rate and cost per click.
And there’s more where that came from.
BUT. The important thing is to learn from those metrics. Analyze them and adjust accordingly. You might find that your audience engages most with your posts when you throw them up at 4:00 AM. Probably not, but who knows?
Or…
You can let us handle all of it.
Seriously. Like, all of it.
It’s kind of our bread and butter. From the planning to the shooting to the designing, we can do it all. We’ll create a custom social media strategy for your brand, manage your social platforms, and keep you up-to-date with in-depth analytics.
Like I said. All of it.
Let’s get your social media strategized
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