In our post-COVID world in which so much of business is now online, it’s never been more important to have an effective social media marketing strategy. According to recent research, approximately 3.6 billion people now use social media, and the number of users is only expected to grow.

The rise of social media use also means that it’s harder than ever for a business to break through all the noise and stand out – not only from your direct business competitors but from all the other posts clamoring for attention.

If you want to make the most of your social media marketing, it’s a good idea to step back and analyze your business’s current strategy. If you can avoid the following three common pitfalls, it can start you off on a solid foundation so that you can reach your target audience, encourage productive engagement, and reach your sales objectives.

Tip #1: Don’t Post Irrelevant (Boring!) Content

If someone from your ideal target audience is scrolling their feed, will your content speak to them and get them to pay attention and engage?

Is your content relevant and relatable? If not, it will just bore the people you’re trying to reach and they’ll just scroll by, or worse, stop following you. You have to post the kind of content your audience will want to see and ideally also share with friends.

Many marketers advocate the 80/20 rule for social media, in other words posting non-promotional content 80% of the time with only 20% focused directly on sales. This is the idea that most of your content should be about relationship building and offering value that establishes you as a trusted resource.

Some popular types of content that will help you do this include:

• How-to’s – can you help your audience solve a problem or achieve a deep desire? Let them know how. This could also include information about how to get the best use of products/services you offer.
• Answer questions – a related strategy is to help your audience with answers to common questions. You might draw inspiration from the FAQ’s your customers ask or from the most popular queries on Google.
• Share a customer story – not only can this help enhance your social proof, sharing stories from happy customers starts to create a sense of community around your brand. Your best customers can often become your best ambassadors

• Spotlight a team member or a behind-the-scenes moment – show the humanity behind your brand by letting your audience get to know about the personal dynamics going on in your company.
• Collaborate with respected influencers – you can start to reach more followers and boost your credibility by partnering with influencers, especially those known for their honesty in only promoting brands they personally use and find valuable.
• Support a charity or community initiative – let the world know you’re not just doing business; you’re also doing good.

Tip #2: Don’t Ignore What’s Happening Outside Your Company

When crafting your social media content, make sure your message is aligned not just with your sales objectives but with what’s happening in the world.

This has become especially important in the post-COVID era. For example, you don’t want to be like the travel business that was announcing special weekend getaways just as much of the world was going into lockdown.

Not only do you want to avoid seeming out of touch, the more you can connect with what your users may be concerned about on a given day, the more likely your message will resonate and spark engagement.

Tip #3: Don’t Worry Too Much About Your Number of Followers

When you’re trying to grow your brand presence online, it’s easy to get swept up in counting your number of followers.

However, especially in today’s online marketplace where niche businesses thrive, it’s often not the number of followers you have but the relationships you build with your audience that ultimately make the most difference in strengthening your brand and growing your bottom line.

Rather than focusing on getting followers, it’s a better strategy to focus on keeping them. Be proactive in responding positively when people engage so they will continue to support and buy from you.

BONUS Tip: Don’t Think You Have to Figure This Out All on Your Own

You’re an expert in your business – you don’t also have to be an expert in social media marketing.

Just as you would hire an accounting professional to help you manage your business finances and a lawyer to help you navigate the legal matters pertaining to your business, you can also hire a digital marketing expert to help you maximize the online reach of your business.

If you’d like some knowledgeable, strategic advice on social media marketing customized to your unique business, our team here at JXT Group will be happy to help. We’ve been a trusted partner to a variety of businesses, and we can bring our digital marketing expertise and insights as a Google Premier Partner to promote your online business growth too.

To find out more, give us a call at 718-690-7302 or submit our online contact form.