5 Ways to Approach & Manage Social Media Like a Pro

Social media is modern technology’s answer to meeting at the local coffee shop and discussing the current events taking place in town that day. You have the opportunity to engage in casual conversations with your customers. That allows you to gain valuable insight into why they decide to do business with your company and how the product or service you offer benefits their world. You can learn what prompts customers to make a purchase and work to build customer loyalty by always being there when they need a resolution to a problem they are facing.

Always being present on your social media channels is easier said than done. As a business owner there are a million and one things that require your attention each day. Adding social media management to the mix may have you choosing between that marketing practice and something more important, like sleep. Rest assured that you can rock your social media marketing practice without having to sacrifice things like sleep and eating chocolate!

Take a look at these 5 tips that can help you approach and manage social media like a rock star!

1. Identify Your Target Market Audience

The world of social media consists of approximately 2 billion users across the globe. While a significant portion of those users are likely to be a part of your target market audience, trying to market to such a wide audience is exhausting. For that reason, you need to focus on a smaller scale market segment that includes those customers and potential customers who are in your target demographic.

Think of individuals that meet the description of your ideal consumer, someone who has a need for your product or service. A great starting point is your current customer base as these individuals are familiar with your brand and find positive benefits from the products or services that you offer. Use this group as a baseline for identifying potential customers who are active in social media and work to expand your market segment reach to this group.

2. Pinpoint the Right Social Media Platforms

There are over two dozen different social media platforms available for your business. That does not mean that you need to have an active presence on each of them. Doing so would be counter productive as your target market audience may spend little to no time on the platforms that you are focusing on the most. Therefore, you want to select the platforms that your target audience actively uses on a regular basis.

As you are developing a target market audience profile, focus on where these individuals like to spend their social media time. Ask yourself if they are primarily on Facebook and Twitter or Instagram and Pinterest or another channel they prefer better. These are the channels you need to stay active on so that you have the opportunity to engage with your audience, which works to build brand loyalty.

3. Create Content That Adds Value

Now that you know who makes up your audience and where they are spending their social media time, you need to focus on the content that you will share with them. Make them feel as if they are a valuable part of your organization with the content that you share. Content is your chance to give them a reason to continue picking your business over the competition.

Post a video that shows your office staff pulling off the latest dance move or a behind-the-scenes image from the day. It adds a human touch to your business that customers can identify with and it makes them want to do business with you. Post a questionnaire asking your audience to help name the next product currently in development. They will learn to find value in what you are sharing, which allows them to start trusting you.

4. Follow the 80/20 Rule

The objective of social media is to be, well, social. You want to engage in conversations with your target market audience. Get to know who they are outside of being part of your sales funnel or profit margin number. For that reason, you want to avoid being promotional and marketing your products and services with every social media post that you make.

The rule of 80/20 states that 80% of the content you share needs to add values to the experience that your target market audience has with you and only 20% of the content should be promotional. Following this percentage mixture gives your audience an opportunity to learn more about your brand while also assigning you an authoritative role through the knowledgeable content that you share. As they begin to engage with the content you share, they will start to take action on the promotional pieces that you offer.

5. Concentrate on Engagement

For social media to be advantageous to your company, you need to focus on interacting with your followers at least once a day. It reinforces the presentation that there is an actual person behind your business and not just a vague computer screen. You can effectively manage your social media account engagement without having it consume a significant portion of your day.

Take an hour in the morning to make your content posts and respond to any follower engagement that needs your attention. With that complete, move on with your day and check in on social media once or twice throughout the day. Keeping a constant watch on your social media activity can become extremely time consuming and take your attention away from other important tasks. Making your follower audience feel as if they matter is more important than staying on social media 24 hours a day.

A Final Thought

Social media provides you with a viable pathway towards making a positive connection with your customer base. That connection deepens by taking the time to identify who belongs in your audience and pinpointing where those individuals are spending their social media time. With that information, you can match the tone of the select social media platforms that will allow you to create content that adds value to their experience with your company.

A great way to add value is to share content that resolves an issue they face or provides them with another way to use your product or service to their benefit. You want to avoid being overly promotional in your posts, saving that for a maximum of 20% of your overall social media posting activity. Following these tips for creating a social media marketing strategy will save you time and make you a rock star in no time!

About the Guest Author

Aprel Phelps Downey is the owner of Aprel Phelps Downey Business Marketing Services, a small business marketing company based in Tennessee. As a marketing strategist, she works to put small businesses on the map with the help of coffee and chocolate. Aprel loves mixing her creative passion with words to bring client ideas to life!

Connect with April: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram