Social media marketing has been building a head of steam for the past ten years. Today, social network platforms are an undeniable outlet for any company, organization or person that wishes to reach the masses, no matter how huge or small they are. The reality of the matter is, when you want to offer a concept, goods or service, you have to be where your audience is. Today, that simply implies you need to be on social networks. Period.

 

Why Does SMM Work?

If you don’t know what social media is by now, you’re pretty far behind the curve. Websites like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and so on, permit users to remain in contact with one another, sharing ideas, videos, updates, news, dishes, and so on. Social network is exactly what it means: a place to be social and share media (and more).

For brand names and individuals that are seeking to get in touch with their audience, being on social media sites offers them a special chance to engage their demographic. Social media sites such as Facebook or Twitter allow you to open a direct line of interaction with the masses, one that they can then react to, share or neglect as they choose.

With some social media site platforms (e.g. Facebook, Instagram, and so on), you need to get your audience to connect with you initially so they can routinely see the material you publish. With other platforms (e.g. Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.), your content heads out to the world, but individuals can still decide to connect with you to better follow.

 

Joining The Conversation

One popular technique of getting others into the discussion is called “hashtagging.” A hashtag (the pound sign followed by a keyword that represents the topic e.g. #SocialMedia) gets people to join the conversation, yourself included.

When you join the conversation about topics near and dear to your brand name, you set yourself as an authority in the market. This is how you get individuals thinking about you on social media sites. Once they are following you (or “liking” you or “friending” you or whatever), your content will certainly go straight into their newsfeeds.

When this happens, you have a direct line to your customer to tell them anything you desire. This suggests you can talk about your brand-new product line, offer them information they need and want, or any other variety of things. Obviously, you don’t wish to simply sell yourself– you want to keep them thinking about exactly what you need to say, so providing them with data, information, helpful tips, funny stories, and so on, will certainly keep them returning for more.

It will certainly also produce a viral element to your social media sites advertising given that your fans will want to share your intriguing, fresh and practical material with their friends. In turn, this brings more fans, viewers and ultimately, dollars to your brand.

 

Which are the Best Social Media Platforms for Marketing?

Generally speaking, the very best social media websites for marketing are going to be Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and any among the other few lots out there– as long as your audience exists. Each social media site has a fairly trustworthy user profile in regards to age group, interests and online habits.

– Facebook has the tendency to draw in a middle-aged to older crowd (think college graduates and up) while Twitter lends itself to the younger to teen crowd.

– LinkedIn is mostly used by company and market experts along with those searching for careers (not tasks).

– People who use Pinterest are more probable to be into crafts, the arts, food preparation and DIY home projects.

If you understand your audience, you can directly translate that into knowing where your audience is on social media. Then, it’s just a matter of existing and engaging– of course, that’s the part that takes a bit of knowledge.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Do I need to be on more than one social media platform?

A: The more the better, BUT ONLY if you are able to constantly keep them updated. If you can’t handle or have the time to be consistent on multiple platforms, then you are better off just using one. Just make sure that the platforms you decide to be on, actually have your target audience on them.

 

Q: Is Social Media Marketing Free?

A: The beauty of social media is that it is very viral and organic, therefore free. However, it is becoming more common for marketing budgets to include social media campaigns also. If done right, paid social media campaigns yield an awesome ROI.