7 Step Social Media Strategy
Are you using Social Media but not really getting the results you want? Or is there a deathly silence around your Facebook business page, and no-one seems to respond to you?
There are a few key steps you need to follow to get great engagement on Social Media, and turn your Social Media activity into a lead generating system for your business. Get them in the wrong order, or skip a step, and that might be why you’re not getting the results you deserve.
Here’s a simple version of the 7 Steps To Social Media Success (that you can use today to increase engagement and get more leads). Click here if you prefer to watch the video
#1 Determine Your Goals
Why are you on social media?
- To build community
- To generate leads for your business
- Build your mailing list
- Build awareness of your brand
- Promote your products and services
- Get in front of your ideal clients
- Promote your free giveaway
- To drum up a following for your cause
Be very clear on WHY you’re on social media and what results you want to see. Just hopping on and surfing around the funny pictures, and catching up with your pals is great fun, but won’t build your business!
TOP TIP: Allocate a set amount of time, maybe 30 minutes a day, and spend it working towards your social media goal.
Which platforms should you be on?
That’s easy.
- Where are your clients?
- Which platform do you ENJOY spending time on (because you want your positive energy to shine through!)
TOP TIP: Pick one or two platforms ONLY and master then. Trying to market your business on multiple platforms will just dilute your efforts, exhaust you, and seem half-hearted to the different communities you’ll be interacting with. Cross-posting the same posts to multiple platforms isn’t a good idea either. Each platform has it’s own vibe, feel and community, and posts will look different to reflect that (for example, cross-posting from Insta to Facebook will mean tons of hashtags on the post, which works on Insta but not Facebook).
#2 Define Your Ideal Client
Again, it’s all about clarity. Who are you targeting? Who exactly are you helping (and how), and what problem are you solving for them?
TOP TIP: If you try to market to everybody, you’ll succeed with nobody “Jack of all trades, Master of None”. Think of it like this: If you needed brain surgery, who would you want to operate on you? A general practitioner, or a brain surgeon!? Identify your ideal client in terms of demographics, AND the characteristics of the clients or customers you most like working with.
#3 Find Out Where Your Ideal Clients Hangout And Go And Join Them there!
Rather than the Field of Dreams approach (build it and they will come) which can be hard work (as anyone who’s tried generating web traffic from scratch will know) go where your clients are already congregating.
There are Facebook groups, hashtag threads, and various other communities online (Clubhouse anyone?) so the problem isn’t finding your clients, it’s deciding which ones to pick.
#4 Create compelling Content
Content means your posts – the information, articles, blog posts, infographics and other ways of showing up, so you show your audience you’re an expert in your field, and that you can help them answer their burning questions and solve their problems, or move them towards their dreams.
TOP TIP: Need ideas for creating content? Here are some ideas.
TOP TIP: If you love writing, create your own blog.
TOP TIP: If you want to build a community, start a Facebook group or Clubhouse chat.
TOP TIP: Great sources of content (for those days when you don’t feel like writing) are Trending topics on Facebook and LinkedIn, Google Alerts and curated sites like Feedly.com
TOP TIP: Think multi-media – think Live streaming, video, gifs, images and quotes as well as written posts
#5 Join The Conversation
Start engaging, chatting, listening and getting into the minds of your ideal customers. What are they talking about, concerned about, looking for help with? Be generous with your advice and time and GIVE before you ASK for anything (which includes sharing your links!).
TOP TIP: If you need help starting the conversation on social media, here are 15 ideas to get you going.
#6 Monitor and Measure Your Results
I like to look at my stats every month and adjust and refine my marketing as I go. Here are some questions to ask yourself:
- Where are you getting the most traction?
- What type of posts are most popular?
- Do shorter or longer posts work better for your audience?
- How often should you post?
- Do link posts work better than photos, or inspirational quotes?
The answer? You have to test, test, test. Think of it as a fun experiment!
TOP TIP: Promote your best material on your page for 30 days and then check your Facebook Insights (or Google Alerts) to see what’s worked and what hasn’t.
TOP TIP: Study the social media pages of people who inspire you and get ideas for your posts.
#7 Turn The Handle
Success on social media is all about consistency.
- Post consistently
- Respond and engage consistently
- Build your community and following by turning up consistently.
15 or 30 minutes a day on one or two platforms, is better than a huge blitz of interaction one day and then silence for weeks!
TOP TIP: Make sure you’ve optimised your Social Media Profiles.
TOP TIP: Automate your social media for maximum results and effectiveness. There’s a wide choice of scheduling tools now – some that work across all the platforms (such as Buffer, Hootsuite, Edgar, PostPlanner) and some that are platform specific. I can’t recommend one, although we use Buffer, but this article will help you decide which might work best for you.
BONUS TIP
Start small and build your social media up from there. Here are a few of my favourite tools and resources (and most of them are free or low cost) so you can market like a pro without breaking the bank!
Click here for my recommended Social Media resources
NEED HELP PUTTING THIS INTO PRACTICE FOR YOUR BUSINESS? Get in touch and let’s chat.