It seems that more and more of my clients are just jumping into the deep end of social media marketing without having a plan.  What this does is makes the wrong first impression, then sits idle and produces low traffic results.  The plan should be the first activity at hand and not which services or tools you should use. The social media tools and social media services will change. They always do. It was not that long ago that Netscape, Yahoo and Myspace seemed invincible. If you fall in love with tools, you’ll constantly be changing directions, with no real plan to guide you to traffic building success.
1. What’s the Point?
What type of program is this? Awareness, Sales, or Loyalty? Pick one.
2. What’s Your Company Pitch?
There is no more elevator pitch, it is dead. Now it is important to describe your business or what your company does in 120 characters or less.
3. Are You Connecting Already?
What does your audience know about you today?
- Not aware
- Aware of you, but never acted
- One time customer/fan
- Repeat customers/fans
- Advocates or fans
Pick up to two of these segments to focus upon, but make sure they are adjacent on this scale. It’s too confusing to have a strategy that targets advocates AND people that have never heard of you. That would be two strategies, not one.
4. How Does Your Audience Use Social Media?
By looking at the Forrester Social Technographics Ladder, you can better understand how your target audience (as defined by gender, age, and geography) uses social media. An example of this would be If your audience tends to be an older demographic, you may not want to spend your energy creating a lot of videos on YouTube.
5. Define Your Company
Defining your company can be a very difficult thing to do. Â It also might not be what you originally thought it was. Â Find that one or two words that define your business. Â (ie: safety, quality, innovation, customer service, etc.)
The important thing to think about when you finally find that definition is owning it. Â You need to really own it!
6. How Will You Be Human?
Social media is about being social.  For some this is very difficult. How will you take the mask off and treat these followers and potential customers like ol’ time customers and friends.  Engage them without broadcasting your brand message.  Take the billboard down and ask them questions, comment on their life and what they are sharing.
7. How Will You Measure Success?
Determine what you will call success through your social media marketing. Â Is it just an increase in brand awareness? Â Is it more sales?
Tracking the success of your social media marketing strategy will also help you determine how to move forward. Â Where are your visitors coming from, which social media site? Â Are they qualified customers or just people there to learn what you are all about. Â By setting up Google Analytics and monitoring progress you will be able to determine if your social media marketing has been a success or not.
Now, you can worry about tools, and outposts, and social media tactics.
To help you figure all this out, you might want to download my free social media strategy worksheet.
We here at Redpoint Logic offer social media marketing consulting to help you identify what these key elements for your website might be. Drop us a line to get started today.