5 essential steps to success in social media marketing are: 1) Start with a clear strategy and choose the right social networks for your target audience. 2) Create quality, shareable content like informative, actionable posts. 3) Think visually since images and videos perform well. 4) Be active and responsive by engaging with customers on social media. 5) Measure key metrics like reach, click-through rates, and conversions to track return on investment.

1. 5 Essential Steps to Success in
Social Media Marketing

2.  Social media accounts for 27 percent of all time spent online and has become a popular way for customers
to discover and research brands, and for marketers to reach out to potential customers.
 93 percent of marketers currently say they use social media for business, and in 2013 there was a surge in
popularity of new networks like Pinterest, Vine, Google Plus and Instagram.
 Before businesses jump into social media, here are the five essential steps to success in social media
marketing.

3. 1. Start with a plan

4.  1 in 4 small businesses have no strategy in place for social media marketing. If a business wants to be
successful in driving sales and leads from social, they need to have a clear digital strategy that incorporates
social media.
 Each social network has different audience demographics, so businesses should strategically choose which
outlets to utilize based on their target customers. Examples of demographic differences include :
 67 percent of people online use Facebook, making it the top social network
 Facebook users are 60 percent female
 The average Twitter user is a 28-year-old woman
 Instagram users are most likely to be between 18 to 29
 Pinterest skews heavily female, with 80 percent of users being women
 Pinterest attracts women with more education and higher income

5. 2. Create Quality Content

6. Quality content engages audiences. Such content gets easily shared across multiple platforms and thus garners
considerable reach and interest in a brand. Quality and Unique content is always appreciated in SEO practices
Quality Content refers to:
 Informative
 Sharable
 Actionable
 Relevant to the TG
Marketers should not be afraid to experiment to see what works best for them, whether they are successes or
failures.

7. 3. Think Visually

8. “A picture is worth a thousand words,” but in social media, it may be worth more.
 According to Harvard, about 70 percent of all Facebook activities revolve around images
 On Facebook, 44 percent of users are more likely to interact with brands if they post pictures
 Professional-quality photos garnered 121 percent more Facebook shares and an average of 90.64 shares per
post
 Vine, Pinterest, Tumblr and Instagram are more examples of how social media is trending toward images
and videos
 Marketers need to think ahead, with a creative strategy behind posts that incorporate the use of images.

9. 4. Be Active and Responsive

10.  Social Platforms are meant to be a two-way communication media
 As customers and fans flock to a business’ social sites and post comments, they are going to expect the
company to be social as well.
 Twitter users often choose to connect with brands either to appreciate or to criticize. Brands should be well
prepared to solve queries and grievances as soon as possible.

11. 5. Measure Metrics

12. There are hundreds of millions of interactions across social media sites every day.
Though many believe social media is important, 25 percent of business have no specific strategy for
measurement.
Measuring metrics is the best way to keep a track on the Return on Investment and to calculate its increase.
A few metrics that every business should keep track of are:
 Sharing/Reach
 Click-through-rates
 Conversion rates

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