Social media is an important part of my everyday life. I spend 20 minutes a day on engaging in a two-way conversation with my audience, particularly on Twitter as this is my preferred network.
Whilst my 8 years in social media have given me the knowledge to effectively market online, you, as a small business might have spent your time learning other skills. If you’re new to social media, or enjoy reading about social media, below are 30 simple and effective social media tactics based on an infographic written by Feldman Creative, and designed by Info Brandz.
- Keywords
Make sure your social media accounts are using keywords or phrases that are relevant to your business.
- Imagery
All of your social media visuals need to be brand consistent, creative and designed with your target customer in mind.
- Understand Your Target Market
Part of using social media, is identifying what is most important to your target market, and delivering this across your social media platforms.
- Thought Leaders
Learn from your peers, and those who are thought leaders, or authoritative figures in your industry.
- Consistency
You need to be posting frequently on social media. I post 5 times a day on Twitter, once a day on Facebook, and Google+. Chose a structure, and stay consistent with it.
- Hashtagging
Hashtags are extremely important when it comes to social media and in particular, Instagram. Only use hashtags that are relevant to your business.
- Invest in Images
When you are sharing visual content on social media, it needs to look great. I use a tool called Canva to help me create great visuals for my website, and my overall marketing.
- Don’t Be Faceless
Share images of you, and your colleagues on your social networks. This makes you approachable, and shows your audience that you are a real person, and a real brand.
- Two-Way Conversations
You should be using social media to build relationships with your community, and thought leaders in your industry.
- Be Friendly
You must always be friendly on social media. Don’t use the online world to share negativity – this will only ruin your reputation online.
- Get To The Point
Don’t ramble on social media. There is a character limit for a reason. Be concise, get straight to the point and don’t post unless you have something worth sharing.
- Don’t Hard Sell
Social media is not about the hard sell. There is a limit to how much self promotion you should do online. Unless you are benefiting your audience, you should reconsider sharing.
- Be Authentic
Be real on social media. Use your own experiences, and always have the same tone of voice.
- Ask Questions
To truly understand what your audience wants from you on social media, ask questions or run polls. This is the most powerful way to gain insight into the mind of your target customer.
- Giveaways
If you are using social media for lead generation, consider giving something away for free as a prize, and in return ask for a name and email address.
- Collages
Different styles of images show variation and creativity. Think about infographics or collages as a way of sharing information about your business.
- Timing Is Everything
When is the best time of day for you to post on social media? This is something you must know. There are some great tools that can help you analyse this, so that you are reaching as much of your target audience as possible.
- Real-Time Interactions
I always make sure to reply in real time, to anyone asking me a question or having a conversation with me on Twitter. You should be doing the same to make sure your brand has trust online.
- Shout Out To New Followers
Always keep an eye out for new followers of yours and make them feel welcome, by mentioning them on social media, and thanking them for their follow.
- Monitor and Respond
You should be monitoring what people are saying online about your brand. If it’s good, talk about it and if it’s bad, take the conversation offline and deal with it in a professional manner.
- Promote Events
I use social media to promote all of the events or trade shows I speak at. It is a great way to engage with your following, and bring a member of your community offline, to meet you in person.
- Special Offers
Think about ways you can offer a discount on your product/service specific to your audience. This will make them feel special, and a part of your community.
- Pop-Ups
I use a tool called Openr to bring up a pop-up whenever someone clicks on a specific page of mine. I want to keep my audience as engaged as possible, which is why I offer something completely free of charge like my “social media lead generation strategy” and in return I ask for a name and email address.
- Perfect One Network At A Time
Don’t spread yourself too thin. Focus on making sure one network is living up to your expectations, before moving onto the next. Your time is precious and if you spread it too thin across too many social networks, you will never achieve your goals.
- Lean From Your Analytics
Use Google Analytics to measure your success. Knowing what works, and what doesn’t for your business is the difference between having 1 sale a month, to having 1 sale a day.
- Work Collaboratively
Work as one with those around you. Your team is your support system and for your social media to be a success, your team needs to be on the same page.
- Be Patient
Don’t rush. Social media does not deliver quick results, and it certainly does not fix a broken business. Understand that social media takes time, and your first approach may not always work.
- Stay In The Know
Social media is constantly evolving. You need to stay in the know as much as possible. Do your research, find out what’s changing, and what’s new for each platform.
- Have FUN
Social media doesn’t have to be a chore. Whilst you may find social media difficult to use for your business at first, you must have fun and enjoy it as much as possible.
- Outside Help
If you are really struggling with social media, and find that it isn’t giving you the results that you need, seek help from an expert.
If you are looking for expert advice, I would love to offer you a 30 minute complimentary call to see how I can help your business grow. Please contact me here, if this is something you are interested in.
You can see the full infographic here.
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