What are the 6 components of successful social media marketing?
Social media is a powerful tool and has become a staple in today’s society. It is essential for entrepreneurs to use this platform to their advantage and create content that will attract attention from potential customers.
If you’re not familiar with social media marketing or don’t know where to start, click here to read about 5 solid reasons why you should love social media marketing.
Social media marketing can look like a daunting task, but it does not have to be. Specific components will help make your marketing on social media a success.
COMPONENTS OF SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING
Social Media Examiner says there are 8 key components of successful social media marketing, but we are putting them together as 6 core components for entrepreneurs and small business owners.
1. IDENTIFY GOALS AND SET OBJECTIVES
Before jumping into social media marketing, what is your goal for social media marketing? Do you want more sales or just more branding awareness? Are you looking for something specific such as finding new leads or getting people interested in your products from home? Once you identify your business goals, it is easy to set marketing objectives for your social media marketing.
Identifying goals and defining objectives help you decide on the content strategy to adopt for your social media platforms. Ensure the objectives tied to your goals are SMART.
2. IDENTIFY YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE
The world of social media is constantly changing. With the constant evolution in technology, consumers are on their phones more than ever. To be successful with your marketing on social media platforms, you need to identify your target audience and tailor your message accordingly.
Business owners need to update their social media strategy and engage with their target audience through updates that are timely and interesting for them to see.
For help with identifying target audiences and building personas, this comprehensive blog post will get you started.
3. KNOW YOUR COMPETITORS
Do you feel like your social media marketing is not reaching the right audience? Are you feeling lost in a sea of competitors on social media?
As social media marketing becomes a larger component in any business’s marketing strategy, it is imperative that you know how your competition is using this powerful medium so you can get an edge on them.
When you check out people in the same niche as you are, observe what they are doing right. Take note of it and implement it for your business (adding your personality and creativity). If you observe that they are lacking in a specific area, capitalize on that in your marketing, thereby setting yourself apart.
4. CHOOSE YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS
For many business owners, social media marketing can be a challenge. It’s difficult to know which platforms are best for your business and what content you should post on each platform. Hence, many business owners make the mistake of setting up shop on every major platform. While this may look like a way to get visibility, it is also a great way to fail at social media marketing.
What do you do?
Take a look at each platform and its features. Then identify how these help you with achieving your business goals and set marketing objectives. Also, you want to be where your target audience is.
For example, Facebook is great for businesses that want to reach a wide audience. The platform boasts over 2 billion active users each month. So, if you’re looking for an advertising platform with many potentials, then Facebook may be it!
5. PLAN YOUR CONTENT
Do you want to know a critical secret to successful social media marketing?
Content!
Creating great content is the most important part of a successful online presence. Content is the king on social media. It’s been said so many times that it can be hard to take seriously, but if you’re looking for a way to engage your audience and grow your business, content is key.
If you are finding it hard to create great content, read my blog post on creating engaging content, or contact me to learn how I can help.
6. DEFINE YOUR BUDGET, CHOOSE RESOURCES AND ASSIGN ROLES
Business owners and entrepreneurs need to allocate a budget for social media marketing. This will allow you to have an effective presence on the internet, which is critical in today’s online world. Budget is not only about money, you need to budget your time too. You don’t want to be spending all your time on social media, so you need to define how much time you can give to it.
Beyond the budget, choose the resources that will make your marketing successful. These can range from content creation tools to social media management tools, amongst others. Identify what these will cost you, if any, and know the services that you’ll be outsourcing.
If it’s not just you in your organization, assign roles and let each individual know and own their part in the overall marketing strategy. This ensures that things get done and move smoothly without issues.
CONCLUSION
Social media is a great way to share your content and ideas with the world, but it can be tricky. The 6 components of social media marketing are essential for any business or entrepreneur looking to get started on the right foot.
Start by setting goals and objectives, knowing who your target audience is, researching your competition, deciding which platforms to focus on (or all!), planning out your content, then allocate budget and resources accordingly.
Leave a comment below and share it on your social media profiles so that all your friends can see how easy it is to get started with social media marketing today.
