Creating a Social Media (SM) campaign has the same basic structure of a traditional campaign: identify your best, most likely to engage audience then craft the message and choose the channel accordingly. Identify the objective, set a time period and define what success looks like (clicks, likes, call, sign ups, sales, etc.). The major difference is how/where to invest your time and effort as opposed to a cash budget for paid placement. Setting a SM budget is also the same as traditional advertising. Spend as much as you can while creating a positive Return On Investment (ROI). The great thing about SM paid placement is you can experiment with very low dollar amounts to find the right message, channel and timing that creates the best response then add budget to your tested formula. You can’t do that with traditional advertising because you have to buy ads, TV time, etc. at full price every time to get the size, same placement. SM allows you to find what works then ramp up your spending. Budgets starting as small as $25 can be very effective on SM.
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Finding ideas for SM campaigns is as easy as going to Google. Search for keywords associated with your business or product like “marketing” or “running shoes” to see what types of articles come up. This is what is interesting (based on traffic) to people who search for what you’re providing.
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When using hashtags pay attention to which SM channel you are using. The most effective use of hashtags are on Instagram, then Twitter. Facebook gives very low value for hashtags. Use a hashtag that is memorable and associated with your business specifically like #RickCooks for Rick’s Restaurant or #AcmeCares for Acme Products. Using a hashtag too generic like #Marketing or #Hamburgers will not be directly associated with you or can be hijacked by competitors or trolls.
The 2 most common Social Media mistakes are 1. always selling and 2. “one and done” approach to messaging.
It’s Social Media, not Selling Media. Tell a story, give an experience, create an attitude, embrace a lifestyle. Connect with your audience in deep, powerful ways for true loyalty. Once they like and trust you, they will want to buy from you with no hard sell needed.
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Don’t stop at a single posting of a message, link or idea. In fact, repurpose the same content over and over again. Long version pages or blog post, short versions, pull quotes for SM, links with different headlines, etc. to keep using the same content, messages and ideas many times over. Major brands run the same TV commercials and print ads over and over, short and long versions. Do the same with your social media content. The key is consistency in topic and approach. Stick to core topics and always keep the same “voice” for your brand. This can be serious, funny, helpful, sarcastic or any other style that matches your brand identity.
- The rules for Facebook change more than other platforms. Keep up with what FB is currently giving value to such as photos, video, live streaming, etc and use these tools as much as possible.
- Twitter is much more consistent. A/B test tweet subjects, time of day and number of post per day until you find your audience best engagement points.
- LinkedIn users want post to be professional and business-like. Keep this in mind at all times. You can receive a lot of negative feedback for trivial or personal post. Utilize LinkedIn articles to repost and repurpose content from your website or blog.
- Instagram is a visual platform, but your text is just as important. Start with a great image, but experiment with short, medium and long text post for engagement. Don’t forget the #hashtags, Instagram users are most likely to find SM post from accounts they are not following via hashtags much more on Instagram than any other platform.
