How Important Is Social Media In Marketing?
Here at PixelPop Marketing, we always believe that quality content is better than a flood of bad content, and that holds up when marketing on social media platforms as much as in traditional digital marketing techniques.
Social media in particular is at an interesting point in its evolution as a marketing tool; it is both extremely crowded with content and creators, and also the best place to reach a specific consumer audience. Not only that, but it is also becoming the number one means by which people discover and purchase new products and services.
This has become even more prominent in a post-pandemic world. Just for example, in 2019 about 70% of consumers said they had found new products via social media. As of February 2022, 98% of consumers planned to make purchases through social media.
The potential for market growth and brand recognition means businesses can no longer ignore the impact of social media.
Social Media As A Marketing Tool
Digital marketing obviously includes websites and social media, as well as landing pages, digital advertising and so on. But the ultimate goal of digital marketing is to drive traffic and leads to your brand’s storefront, website, or both.
So how can social media help do that? Here are just a couple of ways:
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Social media posts are a great way to generate clickthrough with Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
Social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram are web-hosted services. This means that keywords for SEO that tie to your brand can generate as recent, relevant, and with links to your storefront or website.
Generating new content several times a week is a great way to reach out to your target audience that is already following you. But it also makes it easier for new potential customers to find your brand when they need it and are actively looking for it.
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Social media posts can be shared, saved, “liked,” and more, making them readily available on both mobile and desktop devices.
Hearing about a product from a friend is one of the most common ways brands grow in today’s connected world. Social media makes it easy not only for clients to share your brand with others, but also to get a deeper look into who you are and what you offer.
Most importantly, friends, even those on social media, are considered more trustworthy than any business front is. Those kinds of connections are only helpful if you have the social media presence in place to direct potential customers to a smooth experience with your brand.
Making Sure Your Social Media Presence Works For You
It’s not enough to simply have a Facebook group or an Instagram account to make social media really work for your brand. Digital marketing requires making sure that you have the right media for the audience that is going to spend money on your brand.
Having a marketing team to handle this for you will take a lot of the load off of your plate.
Your brand needs to post consistently, but it also needs to maintain quality content in its posts. If consumers think your posts are not relatable or engaging, they will start to ignore them. You also need to consider your target audience and how often they expect to be engaged with social media from businesses.
Younger consumers are often more comfortable with a lot of exposure if the ads are fun and engaging, while older consumers are more likely to want informational content that gives clear direction about what to do next, for example.
There are many platforms out there to help organize your social media, and it’s often best to find one that can handle all of your content at once. It’s also important to make sure you are able to align your social media content with your Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software. At the very least, it’s important to make sure there is consistency between your CRM, your website, and your social media presence.
Start Sooner Rather Than Later!
The world of social media marketing is expanding far faster than most businesses are adapting, so it’s important to at least make sure you have a social media presence in today’s world!
Think about your target audience, and make sure you cater to not only those audiences, but find which social media platform is going to best serve your demographic. If you’re aiming to reach business professionals at their place of work, LinkedIn might be a good place to start. If you’re targeting the younger generations, TikTok is likely where it is at.
Handling all of that can be a lot, so take a look around the Internet to find what works for you.
If you feel like you need a hand, there are digital marketing specialists out there who specialize in exactly this sort of brand management. If you want to read more about digital marketing and brand management, feel free to take a look at PixelPop Marketing. Or just schedule a free consultation and see what we can do for you!