As social media establishes its influence in the world of Internet marketing, the need to harness this channel is reinforced, compelling marketers to find ways to optimize it to their best advantage. The experts have weighed in on what businesses should expect and what actions they should take in the coming year in order to effectively and successfully play the social media marketing game.
Produce targeted and personalized content. If you want to do well marketing in social sites, you need to ensure that your material is targeted to a specific audience and bears personalized content that addresses both the general customer experience and the different points along the process of shopping and purchase. You need to go above and beyond in making a personal connection with your audience in order to achieve lifetime customer value. As companies become increasingly active in social media, tools like Talkwalker provide immense value in streamlining processes so that the way they engage with other users always comes off human, sincere, and transparent.
Use social networks as paid media. The organic reach of social sites like Facebook and Instagram has been falling, so it’s essential these days to buy. The experts see a significant increase in social selling, as networks further enable and promote the activity, starting with the addition of a “buy” button.
Post long form content. This was discouraged in the past, since it kept them on the network when you wanted them to move on to your site. However, long form content gives you a stronger presence in social media where your readers prefer to be anyway. Sending them away to another location generally just results in the new tab or window being closed. With long form content, you are able to more quickly furnish your readers with solutions to their struggles.
Keep the impact of wearables in mind. More and more people will be investing in gadgets like the Apple Watch and Google Glasses, which are expected to play an increasingly bigger role and figure more prominently in social media marketing strategies.
Look into hyperlocal social networks. Include sites like NextDoor, Townsquared, and Alignable in your strategy. You may also look forward to using Google Maps as a more social app where you can post photos and reviews as well as add new business listings.