The Beginner's Checklist to Planning Your Social and Digital Media Strategy The Internet and social media doesn’t sleep. It’s alive, and active, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and 365 days per year. But, how is it that marketers and social media managers are near the top of the list of professionals with the greatest work-life balance? If you are new to digital marketing and social media as a career, or just want to have more time for doing the things you love outside of work, here’s a checklist to get you started as a newcomer to social media marketing. 1. Understand your brand’s current social media presence: the number of platforms you’re on, which ones are active, the audience on each platform, the tone and voice across platforms, and as many questions as you can think of before “just starting” on a blank sheet. After an audit, you can decide if you want to keep all platforms active, or if it’s better to only focus on a few most important to business objectives, products, services, and other relevant factors unique to your organization. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
Social Media Marketing - 5 Steps That Will Give You a Winning Strategy If I could teach companies one thing about social media and know that they'd "get it" before I walked out of the room it would be that social media is not a quick-fix. Like most strategies in internet marketing it takes time, commitment, consistency and effort. If you are not willing to invest in social media it will never bring you the results that you desire. Social media isn't just about signing onto Facebook, Tweeting, creating a LinkedIn profile or signing up for Google Plus. I like to think of social media like a ladder, you climb up one-step at a time until you reach the top. Are you ready to get started? Social media is about learning, listening and creating relationships. Listen to your potential customers and clients and gain intelligence. We are enabled through social media to build authentic and personal connections and in return those connections will help us in growing our businesses. The social media strategy ladder looks like this: Step 1- Content Don't you dare moan!
10 Social Media Plan Templates & Free Resources for Beginners • The Viral Marketing Expert When I first started my consultancy business as a Social Media Marketer, I spent tons of time drafting, formulating and perfecting my proposals and presentations. In the process, I read and referred to many a posts and articles on various sites. A few of them really did help and add value to my learning. Many social media plans lack that punch to convince your prospective customers. A plan should be such that streamlines your efforts while reaching for your goals. Research has shown that more than half of the small to medium sized businesses need help creating their social media plan. 1. This is a great eBook that covers the plan for blogs, social networks, online video, photo sharing sites and presentation sharing. 2. This eBook explains what the purpose of various social networking platforms is and how they should be used. 3. This is a comprehensive social media communication plan by Iowa State University can be used as an example or a template. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
Crafting a Winning Social Media Strategy Today’s guest post is written by Carolyn Maul. She is the Web & E-communications Manager, Social Media Club of Columbus (@SMCCoLUmBus). Let me kick off this guest post with a brief disclaimer. You’ve hired a social media expert or guru. That said, read on at your own discretion A solid strategy needs to address a variety of related tenets: business model, competition, industry landscape, consumer power (all illustrated in Porter’s Five Forces). First and foremost, you must remember that social media is just one part of an overall, integrated digital marketing strategy (which should, of course, integrate with offline marketing initiatives). In a perfect world, social media as an organizational function is tied inextricably to other digital initiatives. But alas, we aren’t living in a perfect world. #1 Your Overarching Social Media Strategy At a bare minimum, you need the trifecta of social strategy: Social Media Policy. #2 Social Component of an Integrated Marketing Strategy
Social Benchmarking for the Rest of Us In my work with large companies one question arises consistently: Who should we be watching? Who are the companies to watch and benchmark our social media metrics against? A common mistake brands have with their social media strategy and competitive analysis, is keeping an eye on the wrong companies--because your greatest insight does not always come from your direct competitors. Sometimes you’ve identified and evaluated some of the most obvious competitors in your space, and even s reduced this sample down to regional players. I’ve found that many brands don’t have any idea where to start when it comes to social media profiles to monitor using various analytics platforms. Social media in fashion Let’s take for example a fashion brand. In addition, fashion brands are not always hustling for the same space as other fashion, shoe or denim companies in the newsfeed. Take inspiration from those blazing the trail. Identifying the metrics that matter to you most, is a good first step.
4 Winning Strategies for Social Media Optimization Jim Tobin is president of Ignite Social Media, a leading social media agency, where he works with clients including Microsoft, Intel, Nike, Nature Made, The Body Shop, Disney and more implementing social media marketing strategies. He is also author of the book Social Media is a Cocktail Party. Follow him on Twitter @jtobin. Social media optimization (SMO) is the process by which you make your content easily shareable across the social web. You'll still want most people to see your content on your site — and if you're doing it right they will — but helping people view content through widgets, apps and other social media entry points will accrue positive benefits for your brand. If you're ready to get started with a social media optimization plan for your organization, read on for an overview. Why Social Media Optimization Matters Before we get to the practical, let's start with the "Why," as in "Why you should care about SMO?" 1. Image credit: Gigya 1. 2. First, offer options. 3. 4.
Digital Strategy As we enter 2015, the latest stats on use of digital media and technology all point to the growing importance of creating a digital strategy. Did you know that During 2015 the number of global Internet users will pass 3 billion (Source: ITU)80% of Internet users now own a smartphone (Source: Global Web Index survey of 32 major markets)Search remains the main traffic driver for websites (Source: Global Web Index) The need for businesses to compete to reach and engage their audiences as they use digital devices is clear and well-established. Yet we know from our Managing Digital Marketing research for 2014 and 2015 that many businesses don't have a digital strategy - only around half of all businesses are using digital media and technology strategically. Using the RACE system for Digital Strategy development To help businesses create or refine their digital strategy, Dan Bosomworth and I created the RACE planning framework to summarise key activities that need to be measured.
Boulder County Business Report | The Edge | 10 tips to a winning social-media strategy Why is this? The answer is simple: The Three "C's." Most businesses take an approach to social media that is often too narrow. They are far too worried about content and not focused enough on context and conditions. They view social media solely based on Facebook or Twitter content, which they believe is just a marketing, public relations and website function. But to be truly successful, social media needs to be implemented at the senior level and trickle down into the DNA of the entire organization as a core competence. Senior leaders must understand the context of the environment in which social media operates. Of course, Facebook and Twitter will be an integral part of any good strategy, but in today's business community there must be a more holistic approach to answer the tough questions executives are faced with, such as: How does this help achieve my business goals? Here are 10 tips to help business leaders understand the three C's and succeed in social media: