How Effective Is Your Social Media Strategy? Part 1

This article is the first part of a three part series. Check back the next few days for the next two additions!

Gone are the days of relying solely on television advertisements or billboards to attract and retain consumers.  The emergence of social media has changed the way the world communicates with one another, and consequently the way businesses sell to consumers.

Businesses should not be asking themselves IF they should be using social media, but HOW. The time is now to take capitalize on the new opportunities these channels can deliver. “Social media has made the world a smaller place, created a global workforce and shattered the sense of distance—giving every business on this planet the opportunity to flourish beyond control,” says Tomer Garzberg, Director of Strongman Digital Media.

DEVELOPING YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY

An organization’s social media strategy should be driven by its overall marketing and business strategy, taking direction from its vision, core values and business objectives. However, the strategy must be fluid and dynamic, to fit in with social media’s inherently adaptable nature.

“The key pieces to have in place are clear, measureable objectives, a strong value proposition for the audience, an engagement plan and a crisis management plan,” says James Duthie of Next Digital Media Sydney.

Garzberg explains that a social media strategy should detail not WHAT tools to use, but WHO to target and HOW to target them. “The most important thing to remember when strategizing a social media campaign is to start with the basics, get a feel for where your customers are, how they behave, what are their trigger points, and then modify the strategy,” he explains.

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