Similar to any other online marketing method or channel, the same focused initiative towards Social Media Marketing should also be laser focused as well as goal oriented. If you continuously dedicate too much time and effort while providing too little value, or have set unrealistic goals for yourself, that can quickly turn your social media marketing strategy towards a void which will become completely useless and a waste of time.
So here are several ways on which you can avoid spending pointless effort and time on your social media marketing activities which doesn’t work. Instead, you can produce viable results.
Creating Valuable Useful Content
This may be a “Content Writing 101” basic as well as an over saturated tip, but that’s because it’s true. Absolutely no one will read or listen to you if you’re simply continuously talking or writing about yourself, or you just continuously push your product beyond annoyance.
You need to build a solid foundation as well as a following by offering your readers insightful useful information. Allow your content to demonstrate not what’s so great about you or your brand, but provide detailed benefits and value on what your product can do for them.
Choosing Dynamic Media Rather Than Text
Choose to use more dynamic content, such as videos or images over text. They will always have a higher chance of attracting a lot more attention and going absolutely viral.
You Can Be Social, But Be Professional As Well
No one really cares what you ate for breakfast or dinner, or when you’re going to the fitness club to work if off, unless of course you happen to be a chef or a fitness trainer. Also, never talk at your friends, followers or fans, but talk with them. Never preach from the top of your soapbox pointing down to them, but rather be just be one of the guys, a member of the gang. Try having conversations instead of giving lectures.
Be Relevant In Your Market
Make sure that you always try to stay at least one step ahead of your followers or fans needs as well as their pain points. Then subtlety lead your market space by offering timely solutions along with valuable advice which tackles or solves the issues that they are currently facing, and will continuously face tomorrow, but not yesterday. Try helping your users to solve their problems, try gaining access to their most important issues by extracting information, and then connect with one another.
Recommend Fellow Fans, Experts Or Content Creators
Freely share quality useful content from other content providers that you know with your followers. Interview people as well as fellow experts in your field who are able to provide value to your followers and fans. Then tell those content creators when you “shouted” about them on their site or blog’s comments section, or send them an e-mail. Also encourage your users to actively join into conversations as well as allowing them to post comments on your blogs by integrating discussion services such as Disqus, disqus.com.
Recruit Your Social Media Users
Try adding a social media component to all of your offerings which encourages your fans, friends, followers and users to create as well as share viral media content about your product or service, along with its results with all of their social networks.
As an example, an event-planning or catering business can host something like a mobile photo contest at their events, or a fitness gym can offer coupon discounts to their customers and visitors who posts their weekly weight loss results on Facebook.
Always Draw Your Friends And Fans Back To Your Site
Don’t allow Twitter and Facebook to make more money for themselves than they already do. When it comes down to it, they really don’t care that much about you, so return the favor. At the end of the marketing day, all those massive fans as well as followers mean absolutely nothing to you unless they visit your site, convert from a visitor to a customer, submit their contact information, or generate you immediate revenue.
Make Sure You Track Everything
Have a system for your social media marketing efforts. Don’t just “tweet” on Twitter or “share” on Facebook just for the sake of tweeting or sharing. Make sure that your tweets are solely designed to drive Web traffic to your site and use consumer engagement.
Use useful analytical tools such as Bit.ly, Google Analytics or HootSuite.com to track exactly who or what is bringing the visitors to your site. Say that your local travel agency on Facebook may of just found out that Tuesdays is the best day to launch some type of a poll to determining the “Trip of the Week” Sale, and Thursday may be the best day of the week to offer the “Last Minute Travel Deals” to their followers.
Find out and continuously test what works, and stop doing what doesn’t work. Then use what you found out by creating a social media time table calendar and build an useful production sharing schedule.
Using Your Competitors Social Media Efforts
Make sure that you know your immediate competitors and then subscribe to all of their social media feeds. You can then stay informed and up to date regarding all of their posts and promotions. Anytime that they happen to point out any new features or a new service, develop ways on how you can combat or counteract their positions.
They may be promoting a brand “new” unique service by writing a press release, but you’ve already actually had a similar service for several weeks. Although they may be offering a new lower price, but your price is always lower. Take full advantage of any weakness that you can exploit and then share it with others on the social media market.