“From Warren Buffett joining Twitter to Jamie Dimon joining the LinkedIn Influencer program, 2013 showed us that global leaders are embracing social media. Sometimes, the business impact can be unpredictable, as Rupert Murdoch's tweets have shown.” - Meshable
WHAT
According to Reuters, social media has become the #1 activity on the Web since 2008.
Some of the key words that define social media include network, conversation, relationships, information, community, empowering, real-time, content distribution, self-expression, dynamic, discovery, and power of the crowd.
Some of the most popular social media tools used in businesses are Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, blogs, Google+, YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram.
WHY
According to Forbes, “Social Media can be your best opportunity for enhancing relationships and expanding your brand. It can also help you do your job better. The web has become one of the most fertile sources for finding solutions to vexing problems, connecting with resources, building and maintaining relationships, sourcing talent and researching clients, employees and prospects.”
Social media has been expanding into people’s everyday life globally. It enables the interaction between and among people in ways that were not possible before. Its popularity across ages and professions created a very valuable and effective way for businesses to engage with their target audience.
Many business leaders have established sustainable and successful social media strategies that are integrated into their general marketing strategy and their core business values. According to a 2011 study by BtoB Magazine, 93% of marketers use social media for business purposes. It is time to pay attention to and manage your brand’s “word of mouth” in this “world of mouth” if you have not been.
Check out this classic video about social media:
WHAT
According to Reuters, social media has become the #1 activity on the Web since 2008.
Some of the key words that define social media include network, conversation, relationships, information, community, empowering, real-time, content distribution, self-expression, dynamic, discovery, and power of the crowd.
Some of the most popular social media tools used in businesses are Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, blogs, Google+, YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram.
WHY
According to Forbes, “Social Media can be your best opportunity for enhancing relationships and expanding your brand. It can also help you do your job better. The web has become one of the most fertile sources for finding solutions to vexing problems, connecting with resources, building and maintaining relationships, sourcing talent and researching clients, employees and prospects.”
Social media has been expanding into people’s everyday life globally. It enables the interaction between and among people in ways that were not possible before. Its popularity across ages and professions created a very valuable and effective way for businesses to engage with their target audience.
Many business leaders have established sustainable and successful social media strategies that are integrated into their general marketing strategy and their core business values. According to a 2011 study by BtoB Magazine, 93% of marketers use social media for business purposes. It is time to pay attention to and manage your brand’s “word of mouth” in this “world of mouth” if you have not been.
Check out this classic video about social media:
HOW
Since the necessity for a social media strategy is undeniable, the question would be how to develop a social media strategy that best fit your business? A successful social media strategy must be tailored to integrates with a business’ entire branding and marketing strategy. Generally speaking, there are a few steps that could be followed.
First, consider the type of your business to know your target audience - is it a B2B, B2C, or non-profit? It often determines the budget, communication style, and all the next steps.
Then, identify the expected goals of your social media strategy - are you aiming at increasing awareness, engagement, sales, customer service, information dissemination, recruiting, or all/non of them? How much presence does your business desire on each platform? The more the better, or within a niche market?
Third, choose your social media tools wisely. Often times, each social media tool has its unique demographic and credibility in certain groups, and the tactics needed for each one can be different from others. Usually, a combination of a few social media tools are utilized for better results, but what are the ideal combo for your business and goals? Is it Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or Instagram or maybe all/non of them?
Last but not least, after the foundational work is carefully done, there comes the most painstaking and concrete part of the work to implement and adjust your social media strategy on a regular basis. It takes commitment and understanding to make a strategy work, and of course, it takes time. Just like the accumulation of clients, the accumulation of subscribers, “like”s, and followers is a process. But, in all cases, valuable content is the foundation of your credibility online. You should be wise in deciding what you are going to post, when to post, how frequent your postings should be, and how to integrate your different platforms to work for the same constant strategy, etc. The world and the market are ever changing, so should the content and strategy of a business in order to keep up with or even lead the trend.
Photo credit: fotolia
Since the necessity for a social media strategy is undeniable, the question would be how to develop a social media strategy that best fit your business? A successful social media strategy must be tailored to integrates with a business’ entire branding and marketing strategy. Generally speaking, there are a few steps that could be followed.
First, consider the type of your business to know your target audience - is it a B2B, B2C, or non-profit? It often determines the budget, communication style, and all the next steps.
Then, identify the expected goals of your social media strategy - are you aiming at increasing awareness, engagement, sales, customer service, information dissemination, recruiting, or all/non of them? How much presence does your business desire on each platform? The more the better, or within a niche market?
Third, choose your social media tools wisely. Often times, each social media tool has its unique demographic and credibility in certain groups, and the tactics needed for each one can be different from others. Usually, a combination of a few social media tools are utilized for better results, but what are the ideal combo for your business and goals? Is it Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or Instagram or maybe all/non of them?
Last but not least, after the foundational work is carefully done, there comes the most painstaking and concrete part of the work to implement and adjust your social media strategy on a regular basis. It takes commitment and understanding to make a strategy work, and of course, it takes time. Just like the accumulation of clients, the accumulation of subscribers, “like”s, and followers is a process. But, in all cases, valuable content is the foundation of your credibility online. You should be wise in deciding what you are going to post, when to post, how frequent your postings should be, and how to integrate your different platforms to work for the same constant strategy, etc. The world and the market are ever changing, so should the content and strategy of a business in order to keep up with or even lead the trend.
Photo credit: fotolia