The Do’s And Don’ts Of Social Media Management via @sejournal, @ab80

Most businesses lack an effective strategy for social media management. Get the full potential of your digital efforts with these "Do's" and "Don'ts." The post The Do’s And Don’ts Of Social Media Management appeared first on Search Engine Journal.

Nov 8, 2022 - 21:03

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The Do’s And Don’ts Of Social Media Management via @sejournal, @ab80

Are you looking for better ways to manage social media accounts without missing out on anything important?

Social media platforms play a vital role in our lives today. From staying connected with friends to sharing personal updates, they provide countless opportunities to connect with others.

In addition to staying informed about current events, brands can also build relationships with potential customers and grow their audience.

Social media management tools allow you to post content from multiple sources at once and schedule posts in advance. They also give you access to analytics data, allowing you to track metrics such as likes, shares, comments, and even conversions – all of which can serve as helpful guides in determining the effectiveness of specific campaigns.

These tools can also work with various platforms (i.e., Twitter and Facebook), giving you complete control over your presence across multiple mediums.

So now, let’s get into the current social media management trends for B2B and B2C brands.

Social Media Management Strategy Trends

Social media is one of the most versatile and effective marketing tools today.

We use social media to drive our branding efforts, connect with customers, generate new leads, gain insights into buying habits, manage reputation, and bolster our digital footprint.

But, while social media is an essential part of modern business, many companies still aren’t getting the full potential from their digital efforts.

As Social Media Examiner’s 2022 Social Media Marketing Industry Report reveals:

Those new to social media marketing generally focus on Facebook (82%) and Instagram (67%). However, those who have been social media managers for more than five years have diversified across multiple platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitter, and TikTok. The top two platforms that B2C marketers use are Facebook (94%) and Instagram (85%). The top two platforms that B2B marketers use are Facebook (85%) and LinkedIn (81%). Regarding organic social plans, 61% of marketers will be increasing their Instagram activity. Most marketers agree that they want to increase their video marketing, with 68% of marketers planning to increase their video marketing for Instagram, 67% for YouTube, and 56% for Facebook.

If this surprises you, you might want to shift your marketing efforts. Because unfortunately, most B2B and B2C businesses lack an effective strategy for social media management. You’ll have to create a strategy that moves with social media trends and help companies to understand that shift.

Now, I’ll walk you through the most important social media “Do’s” and “Don’ts.”

And at the end of this article, I’ve also included a table that recaps my main points. Feel free to print it out and use it as a reminder whenever you need to get your social media strategy back on track.

Do

1. Have A Strategy

The most important part of social media management happens before you sign up for Facebook or publish your first Tweet.

Each social media marketing campaign should start with clearly outlined goals and a battle plan that will help you achieve those goals.

Here’s the secret of an effective strategy: For a plan to be successful, it must be as specific as possible.

For example, SEJ’s Social Media Strategy breaks down tactics for dealing with the different types of platforms (photo sharing, video sharing, bookmarking, and discussion forum), and each one is specific in its aims. They refine their strategies by listing tone guidelines, posting strategies, engagement strategies, and strategies to find new followers.

Typical start-up social media management strategies will look a little different. These strategies revolve around assessing your strengths and weaknesses as a company and finding opportunities to turn your early customers into brand loyalists.

Of course, your perfect strategy won’t be a carbon copy of some other brand’s goals. So, when building your social media management strategy, set realistic goals to impact your business.

Editor’s Note: To learn more about creating a social media strategy that also incorporates SEO efforts, check out this article.

2. Choose The Best Platforms

How’s your Facebook outreach going? What about Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+? Do you have a YouTube account? What about Pinterest, Instagram, and Tumblr? And lest we forget, TikTok.

With so many social media platforms to choose from, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed if you don’t stay organized. The worst part is that overlooking one platform might mean missing out on a massive potential market.

Check out Shelley Walsh’s research on social media usage, marketing, and strategy.

3. Use The Right Tools

Keeping up with social media is an impossible task for us mere mortals.

Fortunately, there are some handy software options to help you manage and monitor all of your social media accounts from one central hub. Here are some of the best options:

BuzzBundle: BuzzBundle was developed to be the ultimate social media management tool. Not only does it connect with all the biggest social media platforms, but it helps you monitor blogs, forums, and Q&A sites, too. BuzzBundle analytics gives you the insights you need to reach new customers, boost your SEO campaign, and find key influencers in your industry. Hootsuite: Hootsuite connects you to numerous social networks. Like BuzzBundle, Hootsuite lets you find out what your customers are saying about your brand and easily manage your outreach, thanks to a central hub for all of your social media management. Buffer: Social media is Buffer’s specialty. Buffer lets you post photos, videos, and posts to the most popular social media sites. It also enables you to craft posts in advance and publishes them later for maximum exposure. Sprout Social: Sprout Social’s platform lets you manage your social messages through a single-stream inbox. You can schedule, publish, and post content to your favorite social media sites and get valuable insights into how audiences engage with your content. Social Studio: Social Studio’s offering helps you engage with your customers by connecting you to different sources and can replace programs like Photoshop and Canva. With this software, you can use AI capabilities to create posts across platforms.

4. Track The Metrics That Matter

If you don’t know whether or not your social media outreach is impacting your business, then what’s the point? When you’ve defined a goal for your social media campaign, gathering corresponding metrics is the only way to tell if it succeeded.

Here are some metrics that might indicate success:

If your goal is to expand your reach, measure the engagement and new followers. If your goal is to grow brand awareness, measure shares and influencers mentioning your brand. If your goal is to get more sales, measure referrals, CTR, and conversions.

The tools listed above will give you a lot of insights into the metrics you need to measure the success of your campaign.

5. Engage And Post Regularly

Last but not least, the point of a social network is to socialize. So, share great content regularly to give your followers something to share and get excited about.

Don’t forget to engage with their content, too. Make sure to follow the industry leaders in your niche and try to give more than you receive.

To ensure you keep up with social media, consider setting a schedule for yourself. Even 10 minutes spent sharing and engaging daily goes a long way toward boosting your web presence.

Don’t

1. Try To Please Everyone

Understanding your audience is one of the most critical parts of your strategy. If you try to please everyone, you’ll offer nothing unique, and nobody will be satisfied.

On the other hand, if you know your audience and understand their pain points, you can tailor your services to solve their specific problems.

Do that better than any of your competitors, and you’ll have a loyal following in no time.

2. Delete Negative Reviews

When you see every mention of your brand, it can be tempting to purge negative experiences from the web. Resist that urge.

Instead, reach out to people who leave a negative review. Ask how you can improve their experience and work hard to regain their trust. Doing this may not only salvage a bad situation but also show other potential leads how far you’re willing to go for your customers.

Responding to both positive and negative reviews is a helpful way to gain insight into your business and target market.

3. Lose Your Personal Touch

Automation may be the only way to keep up with all the bustling social spheres, but that’s no excuse to lose the human element in your brand.

That means posting new content for every demographic, no matter where they fall in your sales funnel. Keep your messaging personal, targeted, and bursting with your brand’s unique personality.

On this note, make sure that your outreach always feels organic. Don’t make the mistake of befriending every follower and spamming inane posts.

On the flip side, don’t be a hermit who only posts and promotes their content. Instead, share content you truly love and connect with people whose insights you value.

4. Become Complacent

Finding your audience on all the bustling social media platforms and watching them respond enthusiastically whenever you post new content isn’t enough. So, the best social media strategists plan ahead – and they’re always experimenting.

The truth is that social media management is never done. There’s always a better way to reach your target audience, a new platform waiting to be discovered, and more avenues for you to engage with your customers.

Stay ahead of the curve and never let your current strategy be “good enough.”

5. Neglect Your Audience

Disengaging is one of the worst social media sins. Don’t neglect one network in favor of another or leave comments and questions from a genuinely engaged audience unanswered.

If you need to go on a hiatus, use social media to inform your followers – they’ll value the communication.

Final Takeaways

Social media management can be overwhelming if you aren’t careful. However, countless platforms, apps, and tools are available today to help you manage your accounts and eliminate some of the unnecessary stress.

If you focus on these simple “do’s” and “don’ts,” you’ll be able to create an effective and streamlined social media management strategy for any brand.

To recap, here are the top “dos” and “don’ts” when it comes to social media management:

table Image created by author, September 2022