In the movie Field of Dreams, an Iowa corn farmer hears a voice in his head that says, “If you build it, they will come.” You may have the same voice in your head when thinking about utilizing social media for your company. However, with the ever-changing social media world its not as easy as just ‘build it’ anymore.
We are hired by local businesses to manage content posting on social sites (LinkedIn, Facebook, Google+, Twitter, etc.). One thing we have learned over the last year and half: There is a huge lack of understanding about the targeted marketing capabilities on social media. Writing content and creating posts on social media take time, effort, and thought…but, that’s only half the strategy.
When brands hire people to post content to their social pages often times after a few months this is the feeling they have: “I don’t know if Facebook is working for us? You’re posting to the same X amount of people”. You’re right…unless you use social media as a marketing and advertising tool. Now, don’t get me wrong. The people that have “liked” your page, or “follow” your page are the loyal of the loyal customers for your brand, and they should be nourished.
Have you read any articles about Facebook organic reach being dead? What does this mean for us?
Organic reach becomes a less effective engagement tool. (A post’s organic reach reflects how often it will be seen without any further help from either the Facebook algorithm or paid-for engagement). Facebook’s goal is to show each user the posts that are most relevant to them. That’s not always going to be the latest marketing message put out by a page.
Brands must now have Facebook down as a ‘paid channel’ on their marketing budget so they can work campaigns around this fact. The free ride and access to Facebook’s user base is coming to an end.
But the question is how? How do I use Facebook as a marketing tool?
The first step is to clearly define who your target audience is (geographically, demographically, behaviorally, who they are, etc). Get your marketing message to those that have the “best” potential to want our products and services. In the marketing world it’s like going after your target with a sniper rifle instead of a machine gun.
Have you ever seen “sponsored” posts in your news feed? Well, you’re being targeted by a brand because you have demonstrated a behavior (gone to a website, searched for a product, etc). Each place you visit online puts you in “buckets” or categories based on your preference. As brands, we can take advantage of this data to create the right message on the right device at the right time. And, all brands have different target audiences-demographics of that person they want to walk into their store or call them on the phone.
Something to think about: Just because you build “it” doesn’t mean they will come. Spend your marketing dollars wisely targeting to your core audience. People who want or like the products and services your business offers. A good mix of traditional, search, and social media is a strong multi-platform strategy that is proven to work.
Below is an example of a social campaign targeting the right audience with the right message:
I ran an ad advertising campaign for a local physician and we minimally spend $150 dollars. Below is the targeting ad performance reporting for the campaign.
Bottom line, the practice picked up 22 new patients as a direct result from the facebook campaign during the 3 week time period. 1 of those patients alone covered the cost of the advertising and the residuals for the 22 new patients will be beneficial to this physicians bottom line for years to come.
Are you utilizing social media? More importantly, are you utilizing it effectively? Do you have a success story yet?
One thing is for sure, you can’t just “build it” any more …you have to build it effectively and promote it.
Need help? It’s what we do. Give us a shout HERE.
