In this time and age where an industry's potential target audience is perpetually connected to the Internet, it would not only be wise but apt to take their advertising endeavors online.
However, it is not only enough for a business to take their marketing ventures to the web, but rather adapt in such a way that they would not only be able to reach their target audience, but engage and talk to them as well.
“As more people use social media to tell the story of the future, the wants and needs of more people will be reflected.” -Simon Mainwaring
An excellent avenue for this is through social media marketing where business owners are not only given a chance to showcase their products and services to millions of people and establish a relationship with them.
In this digital age, it would be crucial that industries take this necessary advertising route lest they want to be overrun by their competition who have already made their marketing efforts online. After all, according to Scott Cook, social media marketing is no longer about how a brand tells the customer what it is, but rather how the customers tell each other what it is.
Although leveraging the power of content and social media marketing can significantly elevate your customer base and audience, you cannot directly dive into the experience without any insight or experience as to how to go about it.
As a member of a digital marketing agency, it is essential that you know at least the fundamentals of social media marketing. An excellent way to start is to at least familiarize yourself with the five laws of Social Media Marketing that would at the very least, help you build a foundation that would be beneficial to your brand and your customers.
1.) The Law of Relationships
The first law should be obvious. After all, relationships and connections are two of the most crucial factors in the foundation and basis of social media. The very idea of creating social media platforms—at its very core—is for people to interact and form social relationships.
So, as someone who would be at the front and center of social media marketing, developing relationships with your potential customers and target audience should be at the forefront of your mind and integral to making your strategy.
Ask yourself how your marketing decisions would affect your relationships. Will it strengthen them? Build more of them? Prior to doing anything on social media, it would be wise to reflect on this first law.
2.) The Law of Listening
Your social media feeds may be filled with people having something to say, but if you want to be successful in your social media marketing efforts, you would need to listen more than you actually talk. Listening is a pivotal factor in social media marketing, so learn to listen to what your customers are saying about you. Instead of consistently writing monologs, conduct dialogues with them.
Get to know your customers, know what they love and what they hate. Try to find out what people are saying about your competitors and from there, create a strategy that would cater to these.
3.) The Law of Quality
Contrary to a popular misconception, the success of social media marketing is not determined by the quantity of your social media relationships, but rather the quality of these friends. When you are focused, you tend to meet your best customer's expectations and needs, but you should not stop there, invest in your relationships as well by creating compelling content. All these can be achieved if you listen and interact with your customers. Take note that quality will always matter more than quantity. You may have thousands of followers, but what use would these followers be if the majority of them have you on mute? A lesser number of followers may not be impressive in terms of the numbers, but if they share and engage with what you have to say, then they are worth their weight in gold.
4.) The Law of Focus
Rather than cover several things at once, it is better to specialize in one thing you are aware that you are rather good at. Spreading your focus might likely mean attracting a larger audience, but your social media marketing strategy would not be as effective. Focus on one area whether this may be a particular campaign, a single channel or a target audience. Remember you can build your brand better by utilizing a content marketing strategy that is focused. Additionally, you would have a better chance at success as well.
5.) The Law of Patience
Like many things in life, relationships take time. You cannot expect to have a fruitful social media marketing campaign overnight if you have just started. While you want to reach success of unparalleled heights, it is imperative to note that this cannot happen instantaneously. Be patient, build on your relationships and the rest will follow.
