Your social media strategy

You’re probably not guilty of this, but many people hop on social media simply because they think they’re supposed to. But if you don’t have a social media strategy, you’ll be wasting time, money, and resources.

So how do you determine that strategy?

Define Target Market

The first thing you need to know is who your target market is. Not for your social media, but for your organization in general. That may include some or all of the following:

• Ideal client/customer
• Referral partners
• Local community

Your definition should be as specific as possible, and potentially even include things like geographic location, income range, gender, occupation, etc.

If your definition includes phrases like “everyone who” or “everybody that” or “anyone with” then it’s too broad. Get specific!

Set Goals

Now decide what you want to accomplish with your social media strategy. Don’t worry quite yet about setting up something that’s measurable.

Some possible goals include:

• Establish expertise
• Help customers try it themselves first
• Get people to sign up for your email newsletter
• Get online donations or purchases
• Increase registration for events

While you can have more than one goal, the more focus you can have on less goals, the more likely you’ll be to achieve them.

Pick Platforms

Now that you know what your target market is and what your goals are, which platform makes the most sense for you? Some to consider include:

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Google+
• LinkedIn
• YouTube
• Pinterest
• Instagram
• Flickr
• MySpace
• Meetup
• Instagram
• About.me

Remember to keep in mind Audience, Capabilities, Comfort Level, and Company Culture.

Set Milestones

Now that you know which social media platforms you’ll be utilizing, you need to set some milestones. Your milestones should be S.M.A.R.T. goals.

• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable
• Relevant
• Time-Bound

Because you’ve already picked your platform and know what your big picture goal is, you should be able to tie your milestones into things that are actually measurable on the platforms you’ll be on.

Create Schedule

Now that you know what you need to do, create your schedule. It needs to move you toward your milestones and goals, but be sustainable at the same time. You’ll also need to decide if you can do it on your own, or if you need to bring in a firm like T&S to help you.

Our clients have found a monthly cycle to be beneficial. In other words, the creation of your content should be a monthly rotations. So in one month, you would be creating all the proactive updates that would go out the following month.

Of course, you’ll also need to schedule time throughout the month to check in on your preferred social networks, to post more spontaneous updates, and to have actual conversations. All while concentrating on moving toward your goals and milestones.

Stick To It

Finally we come to what is potentially the most challenging aspect of any social media strategy: Sticking to it. Simply put, you have to keep doing what you’ve said you need to do if you actually want to achieve your goals!

Of course, it helps if you have some sort of accountability to someone else. Whether that’s regular meetings with a firm like T&S, or someone in another business who you partner with to make sure you’re doing the activities you need to do, it will increase the likelihood you’ll stick with it.

Need Help?

If you need help creating your strategy or want assistance setting up your platforms and publishing content on a regular basis, we may be able to help. Even though our social media management services are not a perfect fit for everyone, we’re happy to talk about your needs and see if they might work for you.

Contact us online or call us at 405-285-0348 if you’d like to have that conversation.