Increasing your brand exposure and awareness, building customer loyalty and boosting sales while reducing marketing costs. Sounds too good to be true? Social media is a known game-changer in the B2B (business to business) and B2C (business to consumer) customer journey and for your overall digital marketing strategy.
Acknowledged as the main source of traffic by most online businesses, you have your audience literally at your fingertips. With so many different online social networking websites, trends and practices, it’s also important that you’re not stretching yourself too thin.
First things first…
Utilising the right platforms for your business is the be all and end all for any organization; dependent on your marketing strategy, target audience and overall goals. Here are a few questions you might want to ask yourself…
Is your business B2B or B2C?
People on social media are at the top of the sales funnel, meaning they are not normally there looking to buy something. However, this is where your traffic may be coming from and your aim may be to gather leads from such platforms. With that being said, B2B and B2C companies need different marketing strategies.
Who are you aiming to target?
Some advertisements that come up on social media platforms seem uncanny, directed from search results or what some may describe as ‘your phone listening to you’. Other online broadcasts may seem the opposite to certain audience members, therefore it’s important to get it right. Get to know your target market and work on ‘Building Your Client Profile’ as best as you can; where they’re located, their age and gender, the industry they work in and most importantly where they get their information from.
What are your social media objectives?
Know your goals and set them in place, whether it’s brand awareness, engagement, lead generation, customer support or all of the above. Social media can be the best form of communication to assist in achieving these objectives.
The Top 5 Contenders For Your Digital Marketing Strategy
1. Facebook/Messenger
Recommendations –
Audience: Males & Females
Who: B2C & B2B (18-55+)
Industries: Retail and E-commerce, Gaming, Entertainment and Media, Automotive and Restaurants
As the most popular social network worldwide with 2.23 billion active Facebook accounts monthly, a presence on this platform is essential for almost every company.
With more people using the top four messaging apps (WhatsApp, Messenger, WeChat, and Viber) than the social apps (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn), chatbots and direct customer service through Facebook Messenger can offer great potential to be an effective social strategy in the appropriate scenario.
2. LinkedIn
Who: B2B & B2C employment
Audience: Male & Female (21-55+)
Industry: Employment, Finance, Legal, Education and Marketing
As the ideal platform for professional networking and marketing, LinkedIn is ruling the B2B space and driven by content.
50% of LinkedIn members report they are more likely to buy from a company they engage with on LinkedIn. Offering a full funnel approach, it can drive business results, raise brand awareness, promote career opportunities and educate leads on what your business can offer them.
3. Instagram
Who: B2C
Audience: Females & some Males (18-35)
Industry: Travel and Hospitality, Health and Wellness, Beauty, Retail and E-commerce and Cafes and Restaurants
Is this platform the best for your company? Does the product or service you offer allow you to create visual content and tell a story? If you answered yes, then Instagram is the right one!
Popular amongst millennials, companies can promote their product and service through their own account or even by hiring a social media influencer to promote your brand. And it’s effective, with 89% of people stating influencer marketing can positively impact how people feel about a brand.
4. Twitter
Recommendations –
Who: B2C & B2B
Audience: Males & Females (25-45)
Industry: News and Information, Finance, E-commerce, Telecom and Sports
Retweets, replies, likes, link clicks, profile clicks and more; Twitter is a platform that promotes active #engagement and #interaction.
With 40% of Twitter’s user base following brands they like and with each tweet limited to 280 characters, the key is to be precise and brief. This might be an effective strategy for your business, as simple marketing is relevant and relatable.
5. Google My Business
Who: B2C & some B2B
Audience: Male & Female (18-55+)
Industry: Travel and Hospitality, Retail, Beauty, Cafes and Restaurants
A prospect is likely to Google search businesses or the service/product they are looking for, therefore this platform makes it easy for prospects to find you and learn about your business, products and services.
Share, manage, connect and understand, Google My Business allows your customers to contact you directly and review your business. In fact, 50% of people who perform a local online search will visit the store the same day, so it is essential for any B2C company to have a presence on this platform.
Not every business needs to have an account on every platform, however, every company should have a goal or purpose towards their social accounts. What does your current social media strategy say about your business?
Greenfish Marketing can assist in finding the right platform and developing an effective social media strategy for your company.
Want to decrease your marketing cost while building customer loyalty, increasing brand exposure and awareness, as well as generating more sales?Contact us to find out how we can help.
