By John Huang
Social media is growing and in fact, 93% of Australian has a Facebook account. A social media platform is free to set up however it takes time and effort; thus it is a journey for organisations. Social media can be a road to increase brand equity and customer loyalty or go the other way if manage poorly. Therefore, I hope my social media guide will help you to your journey of success.
Before you start, here are 5 things you should consider before starting out.
- Secure the real estate – Account and group names on social each social media platform you are planning to use. There were businesses that struggled when their “official” names are already taken. Therefore, before you create your social media plan, you need to secure your real estate.
- To earn community attention, offer real value – Think in your customers’ shoe, what do they like to see and which social media platforms do they use?
- Mistakes and complaints will happen – It is inevitable to avoid negative comments and issues. Therefore, how you respond to them is critical.
- Learn – Research on what your competitors are doing on social media, what content is appealing to their customers in term of likes and comments.
- Plan! – Your social media platforms need to have a consistent brand presentation. It should create synergy with other integrated communication elements.
Next step is to choose which social media you want to establish. The most popular social media and how to evaluate success are listed below:
Blog – According to Kaplan, this type of social media are special types of websites that usually display date-stamped entries in reverse chronological order. This is useful for increasing brand awareness and to encourage comments and engagement with your customers. Furthermore, Kaplan found that one of the main reason for customers to visit blogs is to express their disappointment with company’s offering. Therefore, small business owners must plan a way to address these matters when arrives.
Key metrics – Audience growth – unique and return visitors, subscriber growth.
Facebook – enables your business to engage with influencers, promote upcoming events, increase brand awareness and customer acquisition. Furthermore, you can add competitors names to the moderation blocklist!
Key metrics – Number of followers, likes, engagement and comments, shares and new followers.
Twitter – Allow your business to listen and respond to relevant conversations in real time. You can use hashtags, especially for your events. Furthermore, communicate issues with your customers to support team and ensure follow-up.
Key metrics – Followers, mentions, retweets, favourited tweets and impressions.
Pinterest – This platform enables you to share a mix of relevant imagery to raise brand awareness and engagement. Furthermore, it can create customer acquisition.
Key metrics – Pins, repins, followers, purchase from pin.
Youtube, Vimeo, Vine, Instagram video – Online video platforms that allow your business to showcase your brand culture, personality, and products/services to potential and current customers.
Key metrics – Views, share, page ranking on Youtube from key terms.
Instagram, Tumblr, Flickr, Snapchat – Photo sharing sites that are beneficial to showcase your marketing events, your products to increase brand awareness and engagement.
Key metrics – Likes, shares, comments, referral traffic and view of photos.
My advice is to start small, go with quality over quantity. You may think social media is free and easy to implement. However, social media is time-consuming and require quality content and constant monitoring in order to become successful.
Reference
Kaplan.A, Haenlein, M (2010) Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of social media, Kelly School of Business
John Huang 