Some of the best social media plans involve the implementation of both organic and paid social growth. Depending on your budget and time, you may focus on organic growth and engagement more than paid. Or you can choose to put your effort and resources behind paid social growth and engagement.
Social media is one of the best ways to build brand awareness and increase sales.
Regardless of what your actual game plan is, here are tips for both paid and organic growth:
Organic Growth—The bad news is platforms like Facebook are declining in organic reach. The good news is that there’s something you can do about it.
Post consistently and stick to a schedule. Consumers are highly likely to visit the social accounts of businesses they’re interested in. They want to see active accounts. Do you have to be posting 24/7? No. If you only have time to post twice a week or three times a week then do it.
Run giveaways. Giveaways and contests are one of the best ways to drive organic engagement and generate conversations around your brand. Don’t hesitate to run a giveaway once a month or every other week. You’ll be sure to see your reach increase.
Repurpose and reuse content you’ve already created. Take your blog posts and turn the key points into infographics. You can even take the key points from blog posts and convert them into short, concise videos.
People love giveaways and contests on social media!
Reply to the comments you receive. If someone took a moment to comment on a video you shared, take a moment to acknowledge them. Engaging with comments is a simple way to increase conversion rates and brand loyalty.
Are customers posting pictures and videos of their experiences with your brand? Ask them if you can re-share their content. Customer content is an effective way to showcase what you have to offer whether it’s a product or a service.
Use Facebook Live to your advantage. Facebook ranks live video higher in the News Feed compared to other types of content.
Paid Growth—Depending on your goals and your budget, paid social media growth can be a great way to increase purchases and foot traffic. With practice and research, paid social media growth doesn’t have to be scary or feel risky.
Always identify your objectives. Don’t throw money at a social platform when you don’t have a clear goal in mind. Your goal can be different with each ad whether it’s simply getting more likes or driving more people to your website.
Put ad spend behind well-performing content. If you have a blog post or video that’s getting more likes and shares than other content you’ve recently shared, put some dollars behind it. You’ll easily multiply your reach and increase brand exposure.
Know which platform is the best for your ideal customer and the type of content you are sharing before committing ad spend. Depending on your ideal customer, Twitter may be a better choice for your ad campaign. Or it could be Pinterest or Instagram. Do your research and know your customer.
Sponsor posts that share informative content. When you have content that answers the questions of clients, you’re more likely to get a return on your investment.
Drive sales with targeted social media ads.
Be patient with your social ads. This is key especially if you’re new to paid social growth. You may not get the results you’re expecting with the first ad campaign you run or the first video you boost on Facebook. Keep experimenting and keep tweaking your ads until they give you a positive ROI.
Remember to optimize your ads for mobile. More and more people are engaging with brands on their smartphones. It’s in your best interest to design copy, images, and videos to look good on mobile.
Stick to your brand. Your paid posts should blend seamlessly with your organic posts. Ads should be consistent with your brand as a whole and give your followers the best experience possible.
Social media marketing doesn’t need to be stressful or scary. If you have any questions about organic and paid social growth, email Josh at josh@jamiascreative.com!