Successful social media marketing is like everything else that’s successful – you build it on the foundation of personal commitment and right habits. Daily habits. There’s no magic bullet that will bring you from zero to hero (or from zero to thousands of followers) overnight. You have short- and long-term strategies, and you must do things that bring you closer to your goals every day.
Climbing a tall mountain
When you look at your daily agenda, do you ever feel overwhelmed? There are so many marketing best practices you need to follow you run the risk of over-prioritizing some and under-estimating others. If the walls are closing in on you, stop, breathe and start by singling out five daily habits that are best aligned with your brand and your goals. Now commit to engaging in these habits every day.
Start small
Why five habits? Because five isn’t overwhelming. It’s doable. Instead of cramming all the marketing must-do’s into your schedule, break them down into bite-sized pieces. Once you are comfortable with engaging in five daily activities that contribute to your social media marketing success, you will be able to extend that list.
- If the initial commitment is small, it’s almost impossible to blow. Start small and increase your load bit by bit.
- You can’t skip on something you’re developing into a daily habit. Skip once and it’s incredibly hard to go back. If you’ve ever been on a diet or fought procrastination, you know what I mean. Your goal is not to skip but increase the input. So stick to it.
Without further ado, here are the five social media marketing things I suggest that you turn into your daily habits.
1. Don’t rest on laurels – log in daily
Social media marketing requires that you show your face at every social media “party” where you want to engage with your audience. Although it might seem like a worn-out cliché, it’s too tempting to rely on scheduled posts and skip checking your social profiles once you reach a certain milestone.
Get in touch with your followers, especially when your followers initiate a conversation. Check your direct messages and mentions on Facebook and Twitter, as well as picture and status tags. If someone mentions you in a conversation or addresses you directly, take a moment to respond, be it with a “Thank you!”, a clarification, or a call to action.
Don’t ignore negative feedback. Instead, chime in and use the opportunity to show your professionalism and convert a displeased user – or a silent observer – into your avid fan.
Also, research trending topics and harness them into your social media marketing strategy, be it a holiday, a movement, or an event.
2. Search for mentions of your brand
Have a list of misspelled or abbreviated iterations of your brand or name and keep an eye on those mentions that come without a hashtag or direct mention. You might discover a treasure trove of opportunities to engage with an audience you aren’t connected with, yet. People might be asking for recommendations, or seeking clarification – don’t pass by on a chance to leave a good impression.
3. Keep learning
Make it a habit to read something that’s industry-specific and something that’s marketing-specific. Reading what other people are saying about your industry helps you brainstorm and churn out new ideas, but also keep tabs open on current trends, and even see a shape of things to come before your competitors do. Likewise, marketing-specific reading helps you learn new ways of funneling your content ideas into successful social media marketing strategies.
4. Sharing is caring
It costs you nothing to share a follower’s post, photo, video or other content or comment on it. Interact with your audience on their pages, but don’t be self-promotional or “generic” about it. Express genuine interest in what they do or say. That way, they will be more likely to tune in to your content, and you will get a better insight into what messages best resonate with them. Make three or four comments or shared posts/tweets per day – you might be amazed at the outcome.
5. Keep an eye on your competition
See what they’re doing right that you could do better, but most importantly, learn from their mistakes. By studying your competitors’ campaigns you might discover your social media marketing blind spots you didn’t know you had, and improve your strategy or fine-tune your customer experience.
See what keywords they are using. Can you tap into that stream, or maybe tweak the phrases even better to align with your brand? Analyzing competitors’ keywords may also help you discover a previously untapped target audience and a new marketing opportunity.
Take a peek at their content, and see what resonates with their audience best. For example, do they use videos, if any, and what kind? Maybe they run a podcast, or publish tutorials? Don’t just copy their content strategy, but cherry-pick the best ideas and align them with your brand.
Also, check what people are saying about your competitors on social media. You might find an opportunity to engage with a broader audience or come up with a new social media marketing tactic.
Make these small habits a part of your work routine and see how they help you grow.
