According to statistics from Creativo.com, 40% of people now communicate more online than they do face-to-face. The world is obsessed with social media to such an extent that, every minute of every day, there are 100,000 tweets posted, 684,778 items of content shared on Facebook and 48 hours of video content uploaded on YouTube.
What does that mean for your business? You can reach a significant number of consumers on social platforms but, since everyone is doing it, you need to do it effectively and with a plan. The latest Social Media Marketing Industry Report reveals that 83% of marketers view social media as important to their business and three-quarters of respondents claim they have seen a boost in website traffic after devoting just six hours per week to social marketing.
To make social media marketing work for your business, experts say that first of all you need to create a company voice and communicate your messages through it. Your company voice is the way your brand will be seen online, so make it distinctive and appealing to your target audience.
Once you have established a recognisable company voice, think about what you are going to post by developing a content schedule. This should specify the topics and images you will post, with new content appearing at least once a week.
Also, rather than focusing on attracting new customers, you should be looking at ways to engage current fans and followers. By building loyalty and trust with those who are already interested in your brand, you increase the chances of making them like and share content, thus helping to build a larger base of fans or followers.
