Whether you’re just turning on your computer for the first time or have been online for years, you may be wondering what changed about social media and how you can make the most of it for your marketing strategy.
While it’s true that the format has changed, the strategies remain the same. To ensure your success when marketing via social media, you need to map out a plan and be persistent in executing it.
If you’re looking to learn more about networking and how to grow your network to grow your business, this guide will help you set up a strategy and find the right tools to make your business grow.
The Evolution Of Social Media
Although social media has existed in some form or another since the early 1900s, the modern iteration really came into its own in the early 2010s.
Thanks to the convenience of online shopping and the growth of mobile technology, business owners redoubled their efforts to reach consumers on their phones. The result? The “mega-brand” was born, with a billion active monthly users on platforms like Facebook and Instagram.
Forrester predicts that by 2022, mobile messenger and social network apps will account for 25% of digital marketing activity. Additionally, 82% of Americans between the ages of 12 and 64 now use TikTok. This is compared to 65% in 2018 and 58% in 2019.
Why Are Online Networks Preferred?
When you compare online networks to their offline counterparts, you’ll notice a number of differences. First, you’ll notice that the platforms are open. This allows anyone to join and post content, meaning you can reach more people than you could possibly know on your own. Second, you’ll notice that the majority of posts are relatively brief. This is because users on these platforms tend to post as a way to share something valuable with their followers. Third, many posts are shown in “broadcasts”. This is akin to a TV news show where everyone gets a chance to speak. Finally, when you login to a network, you’ll notice that your homepage is a carousel. This is because users prefer shorter bursts of content rather than long articles.
The Advantage Of Online Networks For Marketers
Whether you’re a marketer or content creator looking to engage with potential customers, clients, or contributors, the sheer volume of people you’ll be able to reach can be overwhelming. Think about how many people you could potentially reach if you had a mailing list of 1 million names.
With that many people, you’ll be able to break down general demographics and psychographics to pinpoint exactly who you should be targeting with your content. You’ll also be able to determine how to engage with your audience using various platforms and methodologies.
The Evolution Of Social Media For Marketers
Although it varies by network, the general format for a typical marketer’s home page on a social media platform is a news feed. This is where you’ll see the majority of your content, regardless of whether you have a blog or a YouTube channel.
If you’ve been on one of these news feeds for a while and are looking for a way to stand out, you can start by looking at the promoted posts near the top of the feed. These are posts that have been paid for by the company that owns the media channel, or they have been “boosted” by users on the platform. Sometimes the term “sponsored” appears next to the post. If you click on that link, you’ll be taken to a screen that explains what happened and encourages you to read more about it.
Keep in mind that not all promoted posts are created equal. You’ll want to invest in a few high-quality, in-depth blogs before you start trying to game the system by just throwing sponsored posts on your page.
How To Successfully Engage With Your Audience On Social Media
Now that you have the basics of social media under your belt and know what sorts of results to expect, you can start thinking about how to engage with your audience. Just remember that whatever you post on social media, you’ll want to be relevant to your audience. If you try to appeal to the masses on a video game network, you’ll be competing with professional gamers for attention. It’s generally a bad idea to pitch material that is too advanced for your audience. Keep in mind that these platforms are evolving and changing all the time, so you need to be prepared to reevaluate what works and what doesn’t.
The Power Of Voice & Video On Social Media
Although text-based posts are still popular on social media, users are beginning to realize the value of audio and video content.
This is especially true when it comes to marketing on niche platforms like TikTok. If you can use your voice and video to capture the attention of your audience, you can increase the chances of them engaging with your content. Additionally, you can use platforms like TikTok to create “mini-documents” that introduce your product or service, tell a brief story, or just entertain your audience. The videos can also be used to promote further down the line, whether that’s a blog post or an online store.
The important thing is that you identify a use case for audio and video content and find a way to use it to your advantage on your social media channel.
Use Your Connections
The advantage of having a large social media following is that you can use your connections to gain access to other creators, musicians, and companies that can help you reach more people.
On TikTok, you can find people who match your niche, and then follow them to see what content they create. Just remember that you should only connect with people who have a similar audience to you. If you follow someone who has a large audience across multiple platforms, you may end up with content that is totally irrelevant to your niche. Alternatively, you may end up engaging with people who don’t have the same interests as you. Whether you follow a fashion blogger or a sports enthusiast, make sure that they are people with a common interest in what you’re trying to promote.
Make Your Own Rules
With any new channel you establish, you’ll want to make sure that you’re familiar with the network’s policies. For example, if you’re using TikTok, you’ll want to make sure that you’re adhering to the platform’s API guidelines. Additionally, make sure that you’re not posting anything that breaks the law or infringes on the rights of others. While most social media channels are built around user-generated content, this doesn’t mean that everything posted on these channels is automatically legal or protected by fair use.
Create A Buzz
Just like any new channel you establish, you’ll want to create a buzz around your network marketing blog or business. This is important for drawing in potential customers and collaborators. To start, you can use social media to follow and connect with people who share your interests. Additionally, you can join forums and communities related to your niche and participate in conversations. Finally, you can reach out to bloggers and journalists who might be interested in covering your story. Once you have their attention, you can refer them to your website or social media channels for more information.
Use Analytics
To create content that is useful and engaging, you’ll want to use analytics. These tools allow you to track the performance of every single piece of content you create, meaning you can measure the results of your marketing campaigns and determine which methods are leading to the most promising outcomes.
Depending on the type of content you’re creating, you might want to consider using one of the many topic-specific analytics tools like Google Analytics, or if you’re creating videos, using a tool like Vidyard to analyze the performance of your videos.
Be Creative
Although you have a clear plan in mind for how you want your blog or business to grow, you’ll inevitably encounter roadblocks along the way. This is why it’s so important to be creative and come up with solutions when problems occur.
For example, say you’re using HubSpot to run your marketing efforts and you discover that blog posts about tech-related topics perform the best. This is great, but perhaps less useful to your business if you don’t have the in-house talent to create these articles or you don’t have the money to hire freelance writers to churn out content for you.
In this case, you could consider either paying for blog posts or using your own staff to write the content. The important thing is that you find a way to creatively solve problems and move forward with a plan that is working for you.