Social Media Marketing: What, Why, and How?

If anyone had placed a bet on the number of businesses that currently rely on the internet to run successfully, the person would be a trillionaire twice over. No jokes. The internet has evolved from being for a select few nerds to being for everyone. Some businesses are solely run on the internet, there’s no physical office space. Every business has an online presence these days. Brands are made or unmade on social media. Or, rather, they are made through social media marketing.

Table of Contents

What is social media marketing?

Social media marketing, or SMM, is a form of online marketing that involves creating and sharing content on social media platforms in order to achieve the marketing and branding goals of a business.

What does it include?

Social media marketing includes activities such as posting text and image updates and videos. It also includes other content that drives audience engagement as well as paid social media advertising.

How do I start Social Media Marketing?

Before you begin SMM, your business goals must be outlined. To properly outline your business goals, you must first answer the following questions:

Who is my target audience?

What am I hoping to achieve?

How does my target audience use social media?

What message do I want to send to my target audience using SMM?

You should note, however, that your business type will determine your social media marketing strategy.

Why should I engage in social media marketing?

SMM can help you:

Increase website traffic

Build conversions

Raise brand awareness

Create a brand identity and positive brand association

Improve communication and interaction with key audiences

Ain’t that music to your ears?

These tips will help your SMM

Content planning: you can’t post whatever you feel like. Brainstorm content ideas, do keyword research and find out what other businesses in your industry are doing to drive engagement on social media.

Valuable content: content is king in SMM. Make sure you post regularly. Offer valuable information that potential customers will find helpful and interesting. Content includes images, videos, infographics, how-to guides, etc.

Consistent brand image: Twitter runs differently from LinkedIn, and Instagram is not the same as Facebook, right? So, while you optimize these different platforms fully to the max, your business’s identity must remain consistent across all platforms. It helps you to be easily recognizable on the internet.

Sharing links: yes, you want your original, unique content to win your followers, fans, and devotees. But, there’s nothing wrong with linking your audience to valuable information from other sources. It builds a sense of trust and reliability and you may also get links in return.

Checking out the competition: your competition provides data for keyword research and other social media marketing tools. If your competition is using a technique that seems to be working, try it out, but do it better!

Checking your success: remember to track your success using Google analytics. Do this by attaching tracking tags to your SMM campaigns. You’ll be able to adequately monitor your success. Also, ensure to use the analytics that each social media platform comes with.

Good luck with your campaign!