By: Stephanie Aanstoos, Account Coordinator
When first initiating a social media campaign, reaching your target audience can be tricky. It is important to find the most influential people who can become advocates for your brand and bring more followers to you. The five tips below will help you to go about it the right way and get you on track for social media success.
1. Define.
Before you can reach your target audience through social media, you must know who they are. Remember, your target audience and target market are not one in the same. Target audiences in addition to the target market include other stakeholders such as employees, investors, distributors, the media and more. You narrow your list to the specific audience(s) you want to reach on social media and define who they are through segmentation.
2. Brainstorm.
The next step is to generate a list of keywords that represent who you are. Think of everything that could describe your business and its products/services. Think of keywords that your target audience might be talking about.
3. Research.
Now, put those keywords to use and begin searching the internet. Identify the vocal, opinion leaders in your target audience and determine which social media platforms your customers are spending the most time on. While Facebook remains in the top spot for total minutes of usage, other platforms should not be ignored. There are a few tools that can help you in the search process such as Sputtr and Social Mention. Both allow you to enter your keywords and will identify conversations across numerous platforms.
4. Connect and engage.
As you begin identifying the most vocal social media users in your target audience, follow and connect with them and start a conversation. By engaging the opinion leaders, the rest of your target audience will follow. Share meaningful content that is relevant and creates a dialogue. Encourage others to share content and generate interactions.
5. Be yourself.
Finally, remember to stay true to what your business is all about. You have already worked to create a brand image and social media is just another outlet of expression. Maintain your reputation, build trust and let your brand’s personality shine!
Starting your social media campaign is the hardest part. Once you have taken the first steps to finding your target audience and engaging in conversations, it will become much easier to grow your base of followers. Accept feedback from customers, learn as you go and make adjustments to your strategy when necessary. Now, get out there and start practicing!