Success means different things to different people. And it’s quantifiable in different ways.
Determining what success means to you and your social media strategy can be tough. Even today when social media is an expected component of your marketing efforts, it can be hard to gauge.
8 Steps To Achieve Social Media Marketing Success
If you are still struggling to figure out what makes your social media “successful”, we are here to help with 8 simples steps.
We say simple but we really mean the kind of simple best summed up by Jeff Bullas –
“Less is more. Keeping it simple takes time and effort.”
Did you get that? Simple still takes effort. That’s the secret to success, isn’t it? Time and effort that pays off.
1. Know Where You’re Starting From
Establish a starting point for determining your social media success. You won’t know if you are improving unless you know where the starting line is. Figure out a good baseline. When in doubt, look at your social media strategy.
(Don’t have one? We can help! Start here.)
Another good place to begin is with a social media audit. We have a free template to make it easy.
2. Know What You Want
Have goals. Or at least have a goal.
And when setting those goals –
- Be realistic!
- Make your goals measurable.
- Think short-term goals
- Think long-term goals.
An example of a bad social media goal: going viral. It’s nice to go viral, but it’s very hard if not impossible to orchestrate it (in a good way). That goal would be extremely unrealistic.
An example of a good social media goal: getting 1,000 video views per month. That’s quantifiable. And it fits both as a short-term goal (one month) and a long-term goal (views Year-To-Date).
3. Know What You (Personally) Can and Can’t Do
Are you an amazing writer or blogger? Do you always get compliments on your photography? Are you secretly really good at creating graphics?
Commit to doing more of those things. You know, the things you are good at! Go on, shine a little.
The things you are not-so-good at, those could be outsourced. Because you have to…
4. Know Your Resources
Do you feel like you really need video for social media? Hey, that’s too bad because you don’t have a videographer. So you probably don’t want to create and focus your efforts on a social media campaign that relies solely on video. Or if you do, remember #3 and outsource it.
Which leads directly to #5…
5. Plan Ahead
It’s nice to work toward success, but what are you doing about it?
Having a social media strategy in place, working towards a goal, having a firm grasp of your skills and resources is only half the battle. Make plans. Planning how to implement your strategy and allocate your resources… that’s working smart!
One great way to plan ahead, and that fits nicely with all of the above? Having a social media content calendar, just like this one (that’s free).
6. Set Up Checkpoints for Larger Projects
A big marketing project (like a rolling out a new product, or planning a large fundraiser) might need its own set of social media strategies and goals. If big projects are looming on the horizon, work ahead (see #5) to set up small checkpoints along the way so nothing gets dropped or lost in the shuffle.
7. Be Organized
Have systems in place to keep track of things like press releases, photos, social media campaign graphics, and everything else that you need easy access to. It may take a bit longer to get everything organized in the beginning but you will save time in the long run.
And like we always say around the Move Digital Group office, if you ever get hit by a bus your co-workers will be thankful for how organized your files are! AND how much you planned ahead.
8. Never Stop Learning
The fundamentals of marketing may not change but social media and digital marketing are constantly changing. Never stop reading, finding inspiration, and learning what’s new.
May you have a successful 2019.