5 Practical Social Media Marketing Tips for 2020
As digital media grows the way we market ourselves needs to change in order to adjust and maintain a steady footing in our markets. Marketing and public relations are vital in order to maintain an emotional connection with stakeholders and therefore increase your market reach. While there are many new ways to market to the masses today, there are many forgotten tactics that we can use to increase coverage, reputation, traffic and eventually build our brand beyond what we could imagine. With the decade coming to a close it is time for companies and organisations to take a fresh look at their marketing strategies and examine what they can do differently in order to increase their reach, reputation and clients.
Social media plays a key role in marketing today and will continue to do so tomorrow, so in this blog we will examine five new or revamped ways we can develop or use our social media to achieve our goals.
(1) Reinvent the Press Release
We need to remember that it is not just companies who have had to make the leap to social media. Traditional media such as newspapers, radio stations and news channels have also had to transition to social media and this has greatly expanded the reach of their audience. We are able to use this to our advantage when releasing a new product or when we wish to hold a community event.
Press releases are a great way to show the media what is going on in your company or organisation and they should be used as a way to advertise as well as build a relationship with the media.
Why not write a press release asking the media to publish and share the information on their digital platform?
(2) Focus OFF-Facebook
Do you remember MySpace? How about Bebo? Social media is always changing and adapting. There is no guarantee that what is here today will remain tomorrow.
While many companies are Facebook heavy it is vital that we keep all our options open. If your company focuses very heavily on Facebook but not as much on Instagram or Twitter then it is time to work on spreading your efforts across different platforms.
There is nothing worse to a consumer than seeing a thriving company that is active on Facebook, yet has an empty Instagram page. This can show a lack of effort on your part.
It is up to you what social media websites you choose to use and they should be used by your clients. A company selling ‘Skinny’ Matcha would probably not benefit much from advertising on LinkedIn whereas an HR firm looking for experienced consultants would find LinkedIn very useful when marketing themselves.
(3) Go Beyond a Graphic.
Consumers today have shorter attention spans than they used to and yet desire something more than a graphic image to grab their attention.
While there is value to having a good collection of graphic images, info charts and posters to grab your consumers attention, if you focus on Gen Z clientele you may need to up your game.
Creating short videos with upbeat music (30 seconds or less) or, GIFs that are unique to your company will draw in younger clients and keep their attention while they absorb your message.
Another great way to attract new clients is through utilizing VR technology. Creating videos that can be used with a VR headset will give you an edge and if you can create virtual tours of the company or events it gives the consumer the feeling of really being there. This builds the emotional connection between yourselves and the consumer which will positively influence your reputation and their desire to remain loyal to you.
It is important to focus clearly on something that will capture your target audience. While many companies use tactics aimed at Millennials, Denise Villa reminds us “Gen Z has arrived – and they’re very different to Millennials”. Plan appropriately!
(4) Examine your Competition
There is a famous saying “keep your friends close but your enemies closer”. We can change this saying to fit our roles and job by saying “keep your clients close but your competition closer”.
If your competitor is doing better than you are, you need to be able to analyse and assess what they are doing to remain one step ahead. If you are ahead of your competitors you should be able to examine what mistakes they are making to ensure you do not make them yourself.
We need to stay ahead by analysing others and also analysing ourselves. The market is ever-changing and if your competitor has new strategies or tactics you want to know about them, especially if they could draw clients away from you.
Keeping a close eye on your competitors will also allow you to gain insight into changes in consumer behaviour. You will be able to see if trends are the same across multiple groups of clients, or potential clients, and plan accordingly.
(5) Introduce Two-Way Communication
The best way to know what your clients wants is to let them tell you!
Social media is a great way to gain feedback from clients and gain an insight into their needs and wants. These insights can create avenues to explore new marketing tactics that will be more effective and efficient.
While many companies welcome feedback and do monitor their messages and comment threads on social media, you can actively encourage participation between the clients and your organisation through the use of live chat, a live Q&A video, polls and many other useful features.
Encouraging feedback allows a client to feel valued and like their opinion is being considered. This also allows you valuable insight into the mind of your client.
Steve Jobs made a valid point when he stated “get closer than ever to your customers. So close that you tell them what they need well before they realize it themselves”. Two-way communication allows us to get into a clients mind and plan ahead to achieve this.
Author: Naomi Wells
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