The Social Media Tune-Up: Process for Effective Social Media

When I first started training on Social Media, I used to dedicate considerable time to showing the business value of a social media.  Today most business owners get that social media is (or should be) an integral part of any marketing mix.  With current training sessions on social media, the stumbling blocks are often more about how to be effective on social media. Participants are unsure of:

• The best social media tools for their business
• How often to post
• What to post
• Reasonable expectations from social media
• Tips to really rock in social media
• How to conduct a social media tune up

A successful social media strategy will look different for different businesses.  While the top social media tools may be the same, a strategy for a business to business company will be quite different to a consumer marketing company. 

Some tips to realize social media success are broad reaching and apply to most businesses.  There are several social media tools worth considering including the obvious 5: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and Pinterest, but be cautious on how much you take on.  You are better off to have a strong and effective presence in a few social media platforms than to be spread too thin in many social platforms.  Perhaps, the only thing worse than not having a social media presence, is to have a dated profile that no one is monitoring and customer comments are left unattended.  Start with the basics and add other tools only once you are comfortable with your existing profiles.

Are the social media platforms that you are using the right ones for your target audience?  Ask customers what tools they use and what they look for from business on the various social media platforms.  Use your web analytics (Google Analytics or other tools) to determine which social platforms drive the most traffic to your site.  I worked with a client who was about to abort his Facebook Strategy—but Google Analytics revealed that Facebook was the second biggest driver of traffic to the company site.  Chances are you have concrete information on whether Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn is sending you any valuable web traffic. 

Once you’ve selected the social media platforms that are a right fit for your audience, dig deep into that tool.  If Facebook is on your list, use Facebook Insights to get a better understanding of how your fans use your facebook page.  Facebook Insights provides demographic information, click through information and much more.  You’ll be able to see which posts had the most impact on your audience.  Have you tried different types of posts – questions, images, videos, promotional information, and educational information?  Use Facebook Insights to see which post type (and time) generates the most click throughs. 

What about Twitter?  Whether you’ve been there for a while or just jumping in, chances are you could use a tune up.  Do you promote events on Twitter, how many times a day is best for your audience?

Before your next post, perhaps it’s time to take a step back and review your social media strategy and tactics.  Perhaps it’s time for a tune up.  Download this free guide to The Social Media Tune-Up:  3 Steps Process to Effective Social Media Accounts.