It is without a doubt that since the advent of social media platforms, the engagement rates for these platforms has done nothing but skyrocket due to the increase in internet use, tablets, and smartphones.
As a result, social networking is one of the most popular online activities across the globe, with 71% of internet users using their favorite platforms on a daily and weekly basis.
According to Statista, the forecasted user base for these networks will rise from 2.7 billion in 2019 to 3.02 billion by 2021, clearly indicating that social media remains a reliable vehicle for engaging a large target audience through content marketing.
Beyond being able to nurture relationships with a massive audience, a company that utilizes social media content marketing effectively, will be able to build brand awareness, influence prospects, and drive engagement to one’s product, business, or service.
Here is how you can leverage social media platforms effectively to make your content marketing strategy shine.
- Always Optimize For Each Individual Platform You Are Using. A major mistake that a lot of marketers make when spreading their content across their social media pages is not optimizing for each social media platform. Although automation of content is definitely something you want to do with regards to scheduling out consistent content, it is not recommended for spreading out the same content across all platforms. This is because each platform has their own audiences with specific expectations and preferences. An audience on Facebook may want curated content in their newsfeed, whereas, an audience on Instagram is looking for photos and live stories. LinkedIn is for professional content and job-related content, while, Twitter is more for news and GIFs. So, if you have an Instagram account and a Youtube account for your business, you will want to put photographs on Instagram and videos on Youtube, while news-related information could go on a Twitter account.
- Consistency Will Maximize User Engagement. Being consistent in how often you post to each social media network is paramount to keeping your audience engaged, however, you also need to be consistent in the tone, message, and aesthetics of your brand, product, company, or service. When these elements match up together, you will build your brand identity naturally, and a cohesive brand identity gives your users a personality to engage with. They will know who you are and because of that, you’ll gain traction.
- Identify Where Your Content Is Relevant. Although it may seem like an excellent idea to have a social media page on every single platform, it doesn’t make sense to if your content doesn’t fit there. Figure out which platforms fit the type of content that you are putting out into the world, as any content that is spread on inopportune networks, will only be a loss on investment, both money and time wise. So, for instance, if you are running a bookstore, your content will fit really well on Pinterest and Instagram, but not so much on Facebook.
- Use Analytic Metrics to Determine Which Content Works. Social media networks have this amazing metric system built right into them, with which you can derive insight into your audience. Take a look at your content, see who is engaging with it, what the demographics are like, and then optimize it for what is working. Maybe big pictures and a call-to-action button works the best on getting people to your blog, or maybe a Youtube video does an excellent job of getting people to your products page. Utilize the content that works based on the metrics that social media kicks back to you.
- Consider Promotional Posts for Your Content. Posting your content on social media platforms is not enough nowadays. If you want high conversion rates, you will need to get your content in front of everyone through promotional advertising. Paid ads will bring more visibility to your content and it will increase your reach. If you do use promotional posts or sponsored posts, you will need to customize the strategy you use for each individual platform based around that platform’s preferred content.
- Remember to Always Engage Your Audience! Once you have figured out which type of content works best for your website/business and on which platform, you will need to grow your social reach through engagement. This will show your audience that you are authentically interested in connecting with them. You can do this by re-tweeting or sharing your influencers posts, by featuring your partners on your social media profiles or even just simply liking and commenting back to your audience. Valuing your customer by responding will go a long way to building a positive reputation.
- Consider Re-Purposing Viral Content for Other Platforms. If you have one piece of content, say a written article, that gets a lot of views, comments, and likes on LinkedIn or Facebook, consider re-purposing it into content that can be shareable across Youtube or Instagram. An article can be transformed into an infographic and placed on Pinterest or it can be made into a Youtube video. Doing this will help you reach new audiences with your content.
Social media is ever-evolving, and thus, the strategies and tactics that worked in the past may not be as effective today. It’s important that you stay ahead of the curve when it comes to What’s Working Now. Join the EZMetrics Mastermind to access our digital marketing library that will help you generate an unlimited supply of your perfect customers.