3 Easy Ways to Jumpstart Your Social Media Strategy

Are you getting the exposure your brand deserves on your social media channels? You create posts daily, but not getting the “Likes” and comments you’d hope for? No need to panic. Follow these quick and easy tactics to implement tips to get a jumpstart to your social media channels.

1. Create a Plan of Attack

Too many small businesses create social media channels because they simply think they have to. Once the channel is created, updates are posted irregularly with no plan and oftentimes social media channels get abandoned after the person who set up the channel leaves the company or takes on new responsibilities (sound familiar, right?). The key to success is creating a solid social media marketing strategy.

No need to get overwhelmed; simply start by creating a content calendar in Google docs so that other people in your company can access the spreadsheet and potentially also help draft content. A content calendar will help to keep your content organized and allows you to plan for each day’s content topic. Consider posting at least once a day on each social media platform. This should ideally include posting updates to the most common social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn and maybe also to Pinterest and Instagram. After you have created your content for the week, an easy way to schedule your content is through a tool called Hootsuite. Hootsuite allows you to both monitor multiple social media channels as well as schedule out your future posts. Hootsuite is free for up to five social streams and $9.99 for six or more social streams; totally worth it. Another great social media scheduling and posting platform is Oktopost, in particular if you’re active on LinkedIn.

2. Consistency is Key

One of the biggest mistakes small businesses make with their social media strategy is not providing consistent content. Social media only works if you spend the time to build and nurture it and sync it up with your overall content marketing strategy. Consistency with your messaging shows your followers that you are reliable. Stable and strong companies don’t leave their followers in the dark for days or weeks without high quality content. When looking for new content topics, remember to follow the 80/20 rule. 80% of your content should be from outside sources and 20% should link back to your website. An example of this can be a new blog post, a product or services page, or a dedicated landing page where someone can only take one action such as requesting a white paper or webinar recording.

3. Be Genuine

People click the “Like” or “Follow” button for a reason. Your virtual brand should match up with that of your physical one. This is where creating a social media brand voice comes into play. What is the vibe of your brand? Whether you take the more humorous or serious tone with your brand, make sure you’re consistent with your overall brand strategy in your social media postings. A great way to find your brand voice is to ask yourself, “What are the best adjectives that describe my brand?”. Once you’ve answered this, you are well on your way to social media brand success.

Social Media, SEO, and Digital Marketing Resources

These three tips are just the tip of the social media strategy iceberg. For additional information, I invite you to view our complimentary social media, SEO, and digital marketing webinar recordings or to sign up for our mailing list to learn about upcoming complimentary webinars, workshops and other events.