With various new clients and exciting social media projects kicking off over the past few months, the Five in a Boat social team has been busy in the world of paid posting and activity analytics.

Taming the beast that is social media isn’t always simple, but when done properly it can positively build your brand identity, generate leads and boost sales. And since we’re living in an increasingly digital world, social media isn’t something that modern businesses can afford to neglect.

Without further ado, here are our top tips to help you leverage the tools available to communicate your brand’s messages more effectively.

1. Set clear goals and track your progress.

With any social media project, you need to start by setting targets - ideally both the wider goals of the project (as aligned with business objectives) and the numerical values you aim to reach.

For the former, think about what it is you want to achieve - increasing website traffic? Developing product recognition? Showcasing company culture? Social media can be used for multiple purposes, and the reason you’re using it will influence the platform you choose and the type of content you produce.

Numbers wise, the goals you set must be realistic. Rather than aiming for a thousand likes because it sounds impressive, choose a percentage increase based on your current analytics and aim to build this up. 

By setting goals and metrics you can assess how successful you’ve been over a period of time, which means that you’ll also need to set a timeframe for the project. It’s key to consistently track the numbers, be it through the social media platform’s analytics tools, or on an external social media management app. 

2. Understand your target audience.

 

With a broad range of social media platforms at your fingertips, you need to be clear who you want to target. This will determine the platform that you choose, but also the way you communicate your message.

For example, those looking to connect with a younger audience need to think about producing short, snappy video content for TikTok or Snapchat. Whereas those aiming to build a professional network and establish an industry presence should invest their energies in LinkedIn. 

3. Consistent branding is key - both visually and tonally.

A good social media strategy will reinforce your brand as a whole. You must stick to the key messages, values and tone of voice that you use in all other communications on your social media posts. The stats back this up: according to Oberlo, the consistent presentation of a brand can lead to revenue growth of up to 33%.

Similarly, it is important to create a clear visual representation of your brand by using standard colours, fonts and logos in all assets created for social content. Not only will this appear visually pleasing, but it will create consistency and help develop trust in your brand. Oberlo also cites that using a signature colour can boost brand recognition by up to 80%.

 

4. Consider your content.

If you’re a business, the end goal of social media is usually to increase awareness and  sales. But this doesn’t mean that every post needs to be pushing your product or service onto your audience - quite the opposite. 

Think about the types of social media pages you follow and why you follow them. It’s usually because they produce content that resonates with you, offer advice or provide something of interest. 

Good social media content must be focused around your offering. It must be engaging, occasionally interspersed with sales-based posts.

5. Frequency is key.

Each platform has a different recommended posting frequency. Don’t just post every day for the sake of it - your content will suffer and so will your engagement. If you’re already active on the platform that you’re using for your social strategy, then use the analytics tools to find out when your followers are most active and post accordingly. 

5. Boosted posts vs organic content.

Paid social activity is an extremely useful way to advertise your product or service online, and a little money can go a long way.

Before boosting a post, make sure your page has a good amount of organic content, following the rules above, that will interest your followers. You need to make them want to stick around if they’re having a quick look at your page. You also need to make absolutely sure that you...

6. Include a call to action.

Your audience must be able to easily click through to your website, or any resources that claim to be ‘linked in bio’. Making the user’s journey as seamless as possible by removing those barriers will increase the likelihood that they will buy your product or service.

7. Think about your wider marketing plan.

Social media is just one tool available for spreading your company’s message!

Relying solely on social media isn’t advisable. Your social strategy must form part of a wider marketing plan to boost awareness of your brand. You also need to be thinking about SEO, events (hopefully one day soon?!), and here at FIAB we’re pretty big fans of PR too.