Social Media Marketing

Follow us on Instagram and Twitter. Find us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Tik Tok. Subscribe to our Youtube channel. How many times during the day do you hear or read these sentences somewhere? In a very short time, social networks have taken a very important place in our lives, both private and business. There are more and more people, but also businesses that connect through social networks. As the time people spend on social networks is very large, marketers have seen it as a great place to promote and communicate with consumers Nowadays, for your business to survive, but also to develop, you must be present on one of the platforms. But don't think that just being present is enough, it is even more important that you are active, communicate with users, and regularly place interesting and interactive content.

In this lesson, we will learn...

steps we should take before we start posting on social media, what kind of media can it be, and what are the benefits of using social media marketing.​

Resource: Pixabay

Benefits of using social media marketing

How can you contribute to your business by using social media? Because of:

1. You develop brand awareness through a wider reach
2. You are expanding your network, which allows you to win new businesses (partners) and customers
3. You improve your interaction with loyal customers
4. You get better customer information
5. You gain more influence

Steps you should take before you start posting on social media.

Before you publish your first post or story on any of the platforms, there are steps you should not skip.

Set clear goals and the purpose of your presence on the platform

As in any other segment of business and social media marketing, you must have clear goals that you will lead. It is necessary to define SMART goals. To be specific (Who? What? Where? Why?), measurable (how else will you monitor whether you are on the right track), achievable (goals must be challenging, to pull you forward, but they must be such that you can achieve them), relevant (how does that goal fit into your overall business strategy?) and time-limited (you need to specify certain time frames within which the goal should be achieved).

Resource: Pixabay

Create a strategy for the content you will place

The content you publish on social networks must be interesting, interactive so that you can have a conversation with consumers. Content and conversation must be consumer-oriented, not just talking about you. Also, the content must provide a certain value. Content that gives value can be: motivating, inspiring, interesting, educational, exclusive. Create content that will set you apart from the competition and help you stand out.

Resource: Pixabay

Determine which platforms you will be visible on

Every day there are more and more platforms. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Youtube, are some of the most popular platforms users use. Each form of content is shared on each of these platforms. For example, video content is shared on Youtube, Instagram is recognizable by the fact that the content is primarily photo and video. Based on the content you want to place, and on which platforms your target audience is located, you will define the platform on which you will be present. Once you start communicating on social media, don't forget to regularly monitor, analyze, and measure the results you have achieved and compare them with the goals you have set.

What kind of media can it be?

The media are divided into paid, earned, and owned media.

• Paid media is any paid activity that directs activity toward one of your platforms. These can be promoted posts on social networks, advertisements.
• The media in your possession are your profiles on social networks. The content on these networks is exclusively yours, you are the creator and responsible for the content that is placed on these media.
• Earned media is nothing but a free promotion. These media are your fans and users who respond to the content they like. Likes, tracks, shares, comments, ratings, reviews.

Mistakes made in Social Media Marketing:

1. You have no SMM strategy
2. You only sell your products
3. One-way communication without listening
4. You talk to the wrong people
5. You send identical messages through all channels
6. Irregular publishing
7. Don't follow what people say

Conclusions

“The best advice for anyone trying to grow on social media is to be real and to be consistent. People will connect more with you if you stay true to yourself and who you are. Create a schedule where you have a balance of pictures and videos that people will love. Just have fun with it and don’t be afraid to take risks.”

- Lele Pons, Venezuelan-American artist and social media creator

Here you have the contents of the lesson in PDF: