What was a way for friends and family to connect is now one of the most powerful and influential ways of marketing your products or services.
Social media has a considerable amount of power when it is used correctly. Unlike traditional advertising which blankets the airways with your message, social media is subtler, more directed, and quite cost-effective when done correctly.
Considering that nearly 60% of the earth’s population is online with billions using social media, the power of this platform cannot be underestimated. And add to that people who will be interested in your products or services will come to you, then the power of social media can be fully appreciated.
What follows are a few reasons why social media is important to your digital marketing efforts. When you place the proper emphasis and shape the campaigns, you can reap considerable benefits by incorporating social media platforms.
Start Small, Grow Big
Perhaps the most obvious benefit from social media is the cost. Unlike traditional media, which is quite expensive, social media is the opposite. In fact, many successful digital marketing efforts on social media start with little to no money. Most social media forums are free in terms of being able to post content, interact with others, and tell your story without using ads.
Of course, you can use advertising in social media. And the cost of the ads are still just a fraction compared to traditional media sources. Even if you have a small budget, the ads you place in social media can be targeted to reach those who are interested in the products or services that you provide.
Stay Present with Potential Customers
When targeting an audience for your goods or services, it is important to create an image that springs to the front of the customer’s mind. Social media forums are an excellent way to both discover and test out potential images or ideas that resonate with the audience most likely to purchase from you. This is because social media is a two-way street.
You can interact with those on social media to find out what methods or approaches work best. Plus, you can gain feedback that provides valuable insight that lets you expand successful campaigns. Your goal is to become the first choice for those who want your products or services. Social media provides you with the means to stay present in the mind of potential customers.
Control the Narrative
Instead of having 30 seconds or a few lines to tell your story, you can control the narrative when using social media. You can make the story as long or short as you desire, within the confines of the platform. The result is that you can interact with your audience in a way that is not possible with traditional forms of advertising.
With newspapers, television, and radio, you have a short window to tell your story. With social media, you get to interact with your audience. That difference will not only help get your message across it will build your brand as well. Plus, the more you hone your content to the audience, the better results you will receive.
Find Out About Your Customers
The more you know about those who are buying from you, the better you can hone your marketing efforts towards them. This is not only being present with your customers, but also in discovering their buying patterns. The more you know about what, where, and when a customer of yours is likely to buy, the better you can market the appeal of your products or services.
This often starts with creating content that is of interest to your customers. It’s not a direct means of selling, but rather an indirect way of reading into their purchasing habits. You get to discover important aspects of your customer base, such as their average age, gender, location, and other important information that can be used when creating a new marketing campaign.
Find Out About the Competition
What your competition is doing is of great relevance to what you are doing. This not only means discovering what is working for them, but also in learning the lessons they have experienced before you make the same mistake. By analysing your competitors through their social media, you can see how they are engaging with their audiences.
Look at their posts, responses, and their engagement with those who provide comments or questions. By seeing what they are doing, you can look at your own methods to see if you would respond the same way. The more research you do, the better you will know your competition. This means that you can not only learn from their mistakes but provide something that they are overlooking.
Social media is quite powerful, but it is also quite different compared to traditional forms of advertising. Instead of being a bullhorn telling those who pass by about your products or services, you are instead engaging in a conversation. You are building trust that can pay off in ways that traditional media could never approach.