Whilst the world of digital marketing is constantly evolving, forcing industries into playing catch up and keeping an ear to the ground, the need for a comprehensive social media presence is something that has remained consistent for a few years now. That’s not to say that social media isn’t a stranger to change – quite the opposite actually. The optics are forever changing and one slip up or a miscalculation can wreak havoc on your brands PR and its digital presence. If that sounds stressful or scary, it’s mostly because it is… But don’t worry, as always Minto are here to help. Sometimes it’s best to leave it to the experts.
If you’re asking why the stakes can feel so high within social media marketing, that’s because social media welcomes emotion. It’s part of the setup. The name of the game is connection - it’s all about connecting people from all across the world concerning their interests, affiliations, likes, hobbies, dislikes, the whole lot. The vault of emotions on offer within social media aren’t just there to scare you or trip you up, with emotion comes the potential for connection that hasn’t always been available to businesses in years gone by. Certainly not on the scale that social media offers. Social media channels know this themselves – Facebook, for instance, will boost posts that feature emotive language like “congratulations” to give users a more engaging feed by definition of being more emotion-driven. If you’re thinking that this isn’t relevant to your brand, then you haven’t been paying attention. If users are all connected wouldn’t it be a great opportunity for your business to reach into that extensive network to promote products and services? This is where the benefits of social media marketing come in to play – digital marketers use various social media marketing campaigns and their analytics to customise campaigns, all with the aim of generating leads for your business. But how can businesses use these connections?
Not every business has a product that will bring out extreme emotions in their customers, but every business has the potential to create a space for themselves within these special moments shared online by consumers. If you can attach your brand to these special and emotional milestones, then you have the potential to catapult your social media presence into a wider marketplace and therefore boosting brand recognition. And the audience is there – 79% of online consumers will share milestones on their social media profiles. With a potential audience of that size, it just highlights how important social media could be within your marketing strategy. We don’t know about you, but from a marketing perspective that is something to be thankful for. Integrating social media into your marketing strategy allows you to connect to consumers. If your business can assess, tap into, and take advantage of your customer's online behaviour and the emotions that inspire those behaviours, then you can give yourself a good chance of connecting to the audience and turning them into a customer. Not only does this give you a potential new customer, but it also offers you a marketing advantage going forward and something to build off of for future campaigns. Whilst that may sound easy, let’s not forget that emotions online can be difficult to navigate. Especially in the consumer environment where you’re not just upsetting anyone -you’re upsetting a customer. Just something to keep in mind…
As you’d expect with emotionally driven marketing, the tone you take online is vital. It may be a digital environment, but that doesn’t mean you should be acting like a computer or a robot. Use the emotion to your advantage in the content you publish - this allows it to be more engaging and personal for the audience and content that resonates is often content that succeeds. According to IMB, up to 55% of buyers will do their research via social media before they make their purchase. With a figure as high as that, your social media presence must make a good first impression to get them hooked and ready to make a purchase. Ultimately, content is the backbone of your digital marketing strategy and your social media presence. It’s what draws the audience in and keeps them engaged, and social media is the perfect channel to showcase that content. Blog posts, opinion pieces, longer-form content like this can be teased on social media before pulling the audience through to your website for the full article. Animation; video and photography; snappy &well-written content. All of these are great examples of short-form content that’s perfectly suited to posting on social media to flesh out your profile and keep the audience engaged at first sight.
Whilst it may seem like a lot to adapt to – for many businesses it will be completely new to them and we appreciate that – the value for money is certainly there, so to speak. Whilst there is an assumption that social media is used just by younger generations, that’s not entirely true. 2 in 3 adults use social media, that’s 2 in 3 adults with the potential to market yourself to for future leads and customers. As far as competition goes, according to the Data & Marketing agency, 55% of marketers expect to increase brand awareness with the help of social media. Wouldn’t it better to be part of that 55% rather than the 45% playing catch up? We think so.
If you’re ready to boost your social media presence, get in touch today -
