In order to operate effectively on social media platforms, you should consider the space in which we build our messages. You have to remember about competition and the industry environment, and above all about clients, customers and partners. Sometimes connecting all recipients in one place can lead to information noise and inefficiency of conducted communication. It is worth knowing a few good rules of the brand’s operation in social media.
Facebook, Twitter, GoldenLine, LinkedIn and any new channels that appear on the web contain similarities in their functions, but also numerous differences.Therefore it is difficult to understand how to navigate through individual accounts. So we will present some simple tips – a short code that we can apply in a universal way so that our messages on social media present themselves consistently.
LinkedIn and GoldenLine, as two platforms with similar applications, are great places to learn about the competition and the characteristics of the entire industry. These are places where we can build the external image of our company, but also use employee communication. These sources are focused on building and maintaining relationships with customers, but not only. In the past, they were associated with a place where we could add a CV and we only used our account when we were looking for an employee or a job. The association has passed long time ago. LinkedIn and GoldenLine are our business cards. Every smallest activity that we do there builds our image and brand, regardless of whether we run a small business or work in a large company.
Twitter is a simple medium, but one that requires constant attention. It is a place where we communicate on a regular basis – here and now. We are looking for news and we provide them ourselves. It is also a place where at first we will feel and notice some chaos. It is only using hashtags that we find ourselves in the subject that interests us the most – among competitors and in the entire industry. Responding to current events on Twitter is the simplest thing and when our entries are interesting and unique – news of them will spread among our followers. We can easily use Twitter to place interesting links (to our other channels of communication) to interact with clients, and above all for real time marketing – where events from the world are the biggest inspiration for advertising.
Facebook remains a social channel with consistent strength (despite several recent falls). Our brand fan page is not a place of unilateral communication, but a dialogue with partners, internet users and clients. Facebook, as a tool that we use very often in private – also causes that our brand, company is perceived in a more accessible way, closer to people. We can also gather close contractors, suppliers, partners and make new business contacts around our profile. It is a place that requires a lot of interaction – you can’t just publish something and leave it without a comment or answer to a given question.
In some cases, it is also worth considering other, maybe slightly non-standard or smaller social platforms, which, however, quite strongly focus our target group. Many brands are very successful on Instagram and Pinterest. These are not only companies from the fashion or beauty industry, but also places that can draw attention to themselves by liking photos of objects nearby.
It is advisable to do research on how our potential clients communicate with each other – maybe there is a group, forum or platform on which they relatively willingly ask questions or give advice. In this case, it is worth being active on these platforms directly (company account) and indirectly (individual accounts of employees, influencers).
Code of Good Practice
Time for specific advice. So how do we run our social channels in a consistent and effective way? There are a few things to take care of when running social media activities.
1. Systematic profile control
Once in a while – e.g. once a quarter – perform a detailed review of each of your accounts. Fill in all missing data and remember to ensure that all information (from the basic, e.g. company address, to the more general – offer) is always up to date. We do not want our potential customer to find an outdated phone number or old office location.
2. Access and security
Security is always important. Employees leave and come. It is worth controlling who has access to company accounts on all platforms. You do not want someone who no longer works to publish something without our knowledge or to have access to post statistics.
3. Correct profile settings
Unfortunately, social media has quite large reach restrictions – but you can fight it – check if your accounts are set to “public”. Of course, if you have the right budget and you can afford – use the premium version or paid advertising options. Such treatments will increase the reach.
4. Get to know your audience
Don’t write to everyone. Everyone is not your target audience. Take some time to analyze your audience. Do you want to reach generation X, millennials or the youngest users? Do age and specific positions matter? Understand their challenges and what brands they have already liked. This type of benchmarking can help you understand how social media presence can stand out from the crowd. Understanding recipients and what messages they prefer to receive is critical to ensure that messages are read and shared.
5. Interest groups
Joining industry and hobby groups – possible especially on Facebook, GoldenLine and LinkedIn – will allow us to communicate with people interested in a similar topic in one place. Joining large and active groups will give us confidence that there are people interested and engaged involving professionals and experts, which will allow us to present ourselves in an effective way. Active participation, commenting and replying will make us more visible and recognizable.
6. Monitor competition
Check what competitive brand’s profiles look like, preview what they are currently publishing and what gains the most recipients – likes, reetsweets. Inspire yourself and draw the right conclusions from their successes and failures. Of course, never copy anyone, just look for ideas. After all, together with the competition you are fighting for the same customers. The best solution is to use media monitoring tools, e.g. Newspoint.
7. Respond to comments
Remember that it is important to react quickly to published materials. Reply to messages and be helpful. Over time, you will become an expert for your recipients. Adapt your content to the needs of your interlocutors. Try to solve their problems – and at the same time suggest how to use your products / services. Take part in discussions on other profiles.
8. Adding to friends
The Council is particularly important on LinkedIn and GoldenLine as well as Facebook – remember to actively invite people on social media – not only people who you directly know, but who have similar content published, share with you the opinions, with whom you would like to establish business contact , but you do not have direct telephone or email contact. Encourage new friends to discuss and talk on important industry topics.
9. Create your own unique content
At first it may seem difficult, but once we learn about the environment of our brand, it’s worth publishing your own original materials with useful content – in addition to text forms, video, photos, infographics and interesting reports are constantly gaining popularity. Our publications will be recommended over time – shared on various social channels and in closed groups. But remember – quality is what counts, not quantity. And what is important – stay up to date with what is currently top in the industry, media, politics, culture etc.
10. Be human
One of the worst mistakes made on social media is the approach as a faceless corporation with zero personality. Recipients want to get to know your business on a more personal level. The presence of people on social media is a must. Personal contact with observers can help you create much needed relationships with your audience. Upload photos from conferences, business meetings, team building or the chairman’s birthday party.
11. Be active and consistent
Your activity on social media must be systematic, consistent and coherent. Don’t let yourself disappear for some reason. Don’t let yourself to be silent. You are going to pay a big price for such a break. The algorithms of social platforms are ruthless. Even if you suddenly get a fewer likes under posts – keep posting. Create a consistent image on all channels you run and remember about your audience.
12. Link channels and link posts
Large infographics look best on Pinterest. Uploading long and narrow skyscrapers on Facebook or LinkedIn does not make sense. Therefore, prepare a special version of the infographic or place a fragment of it with a link to the original picture on Pinterest. Often link blog posts or entries on other platforms. The SEO specialist will thank you for a long time.
13. Experiment
Not always what has worked well for the competition or in previous posts will succeed again. Social media are evolving. Experiment. Upload posts in the morning or on weekends. Use custom forms of image, audio and video. Car interviews, comics, partnerships, drone recordings, collages …
14. Don’t post the same content everywhere
When we come up with an entry idea, we want its audience to be as large as possible. However, you can’t fall into the trap of sharing the same identical content on every possible social channel. Try to use the strengths of individual media and think about how to transform the message into various “creations”. In one place, it can be a display of a graphic attachment, and in another, an extended text description.
15. Analyze your activity
There are many analytical tools that help you identify the most effective content, performance trends and basic information about social media presence. Keep track of the statistics of the popularity of subsequent entries and draw conclusions in which forms of content to invest and which ones do not work for you.