Social media is an important part of any business’s marketing strategy, but keeping your social media efforts focused and running smoothly can be challenging. You may be trying to manage too many platforms at once, or your social media efforts may not be reaching the right people. The good news is that there are some simple steps you can take to make sure your social media strategy is working and doing what it needs to do.

1. Define your objectives.

Before you start creating a social media strategy, it’s essential to define what the goal of that strategy will be. What do you want to achieve? Do you want more followers on Twitter or Instagram? Do you want more engagement on Facebook and LinkedIn? Or maybe all three of these things are equally important to your business. The clearer your objective(s), the easier it will be for us as a team at Something Social to help meet those goals with our services!

2. Plan ahead.

Planning is essential to success, and it helps you achieve your goals in Social Media. If you do not plan well, then chances are that your strategy will fail or become ineffective over time. Planning helps avoid mistakes by identifying potential problems before they happen. It allows us to prepare for the unexpected and avoid wasting time trying to fix things later on when it’s too late. 

Be proactive instead of reactive. Also, because we planned ahead of time, our money won’t go down the drain because we didn’t think about certain aspects before committing resources to them (for example: having an influencer campaign without having a budget).

3. Envision the future and long-term benefits.

The first step to creating a long-lasting social media strategy is envisioning the future and long-term benefits. So, what do you want your business to look like in five years? If you’re not sure, it’s time to think about it! 

How do you want your brand or product represented online? What value will social media bring to your business in those three years–and beyond? Are there any benefits that might surprise you (like better customer service or increased sales)? These are all questions worth considering as part of this process.

4. Set realistic social media strategy goals.

Make sure you are setting goals that are attainable and measurable. Set realistic timeframes for each of your objectives, and then break them down into smaller tasks or steps as necessary to achieve them on schedule.

Marketing metrics are easy to measure and track, making them an excellent way to monitor progress toward your goals. The most common metrics include impressions, click-through rates (CTR), conversions, cost per acquisition (CPA), and return on ad spend (ROAS).

5. Assess your brand and its audience persona(s).

What do you want to achieve? What does the customer want from you? What is the value you bring to them as a business, and how can this be communicated in a clear way on social media platforms?

What do your customers look like? How old are they, what gender are they, and where do they live (geographically)? These factors will help determine which social media platforms are most appropriate for reaching out to them.

6. Define your target audience(s) and their characteristics.

To do this effectively:

• Define your target audience(s) and their characteristics, including demographics and interests, to help determine where you will post content, what type of content you will use and how often you will post it.
• Determine who would be interested in seeing the product or service that you’re promoting.
• Understand what makes this person or group unique from other potential customers (e.g., age range).
• Know what media they consume most often (e.g., podcasts vs. video).

By understanding these things about your ideal customer, it will be easier for you to create campaigns that speak directly to them and build trust over time with relevant information that they want/need now!

7. Determine who is responsible. 

Determine who is responsible for managing social media accounts, which platform(s) they should use and whether they should work around the clock or have a designated time of day when they can check in on posts.

Decide whether you’ll need more than one person to manage your accounts. If so, decide how much overlap there will be between them and what kind of support system you’ll need in place to make sure no one is overwhelmed with their workload or feels like a single point of failure if something happens to them (like getting sick).

8. Write it all down.

The most important and final step in creating a social media strategy is to put pen to paper–or even better, to open up a document on your computer and write it all down. This is the point where you take all of your ideas and put them down in one place so they can be easily referenced. This document will become your go-to guide for social media strategy, so you want to make sure it’s well-organized and easy to read.

We hope these tips will help you create a successful social media strategy. Remember that the goal is to create an effective and efficient plan that you can use to reach your goals. With careful planning, good communication and specific goals, you’ll be well on your way to success in no time!

Wanting a customised brand or social media strategy created just for you? Book a free Brand Consultation today!