Social media marketing 101: A beginner’s guide
On social media, these words will evoke different feelings in everyone. However, it cannot be denied that it is an excellent marketing tool for companies. With the advent of Instagram influencers, TikTok influencers and Twitter users, social media has become one of the biggest forms of expression and self-promotion of the modern era.
Most social media is interactive, which means that your audience is able to like, follow, subscribe, and comment on your posts to show their appreciation, interest, and engagement with your work.
But we know coming up with social media marketing ideas can seem daunting when you’re new to the idea. To make sense of it all, we’ve put together our very own social media marketing guide.
This is a beginner’s marketing guide that will help you get started on your journey to promoting yourself online with an understanding of how to use different platforms to grow and expand your business.
So, without further ado, get ready for My Learning Online Social Media Marketing Guide for 2022!
First, let's get to know social media and the available platforms:
Social media is an online platform through which a person or business can create posts, videos, and other content about their services or products.
These profiles are often linked to an online store or booking page, and this makes it easier for customers and potential customers to access the services offered by the business.
There are many social media platforms that have been created over the past few years, each with a different style, vibe, and level of popularity. Some companies choose to create accounts on multiple platforms in order to gain traction for their business from a variety of sources, while others choose to focus their efforts and investments on one or two.
So, if you want to present your business online, here are some of the best known platforms to do so on:
Instagram :
Perhaps the most popular and used platform on social media, Instagram boasts a wide range of content options, from main feed posts and daily stories to keep people up to date with news and business happenings, in addition to all this it offers the last and favorite feature of the user which is reels These are videos with a similar feel to TikTok and can be a fun way to show off different elements of your work.
TikTok :
This app has emerged as a hugely popular app during the 2020 coronavirus lockdown, with dance trends and baking videos helping to keep us all sane during isolation. Since then, the short video platform has gone from strength to strength and has become a fun and innovative way to market products and services.
Twitter:
This platform is the best for those who like to transfer news and follow it quickly. Twitter has short but sweet tweets. Quick sentences, interesting hashtags, links, funny gifs, and videos come down on this platform and it’s easy to trade.
Facebook :
Some would say it is “the original social media platform, but although Facebook is less popular than it used to be, it is still widely used and an excellent platform for creating easy-to-locate business pages and publishing more extensive posts and written content.” . Since most customers expect businesses to have a Facebook page in this day and age, Facebook may be the ideal choice for the novice social media user.
LinkedIn :
Aimed at every professional and worker, this platform allows you to follow and connect with other professionals in the industry. It helps you build your network and get followers with unique and rich content in which you present your work professionally and exemplary
YouTube :
Similar to Facebook, YouTube has been around as one of the most important social media platforms and it is still popular today
. YouTube is a video-focused platform and one of the best for posting clear, content, and well-researched videos that audiences are more likely to watch. People can like and comment on your videos and subscribe to your channel to receive updates when you post new content.
Introduction to social media marketing:
When you start promoting yourself and your business online, there are a few important things to consider before you dive straight into content creation:
Your identity :
Having a clear vision of who you are as a company, what your values are and what services or products you offer is the first step to effective internet marketing. Consider what sets you apart from other companies in your field, what is your ethos and mission, as well as how you want clients and clients to receive your content.
Branding and aesthetic:
Social media is big on aesthetics, with colorful feeds, branding, and housing styles drawing a lot of attention. In other words, what do you want your online business to look like?
Content:
With so many different types of content to choose from it can be really hard to know where to start – posts, stories, reels…the list goes on!
We can tell you that the first thing to do is decide and plan the type of content you want to publish online. Do you like your sleek and aesthetically pleasing Instagram feed? Are you comfortable in front of the camera and want to try your hand at making some reels and videos? Or are you a wordsmith and prefer writing longer posts or articles about your business and what you have to offer? The world is your oyster, and it’s entirely up to personal preference on how you promote your business online – don’t be afraid to get creative!
Know your audience, and get them involved!
Knowing your audience is one of the most important things when it comes to creating social media content. What customer group is your content targeting? Who else do you want to reach with your content? Engaging your audience with interactive posts like polls and questions and answers can help gain some interest from a broader customer base.
THE 7 P’S OF SOCIAL MARKETING:
1.PREPARE :
Prepare your content: What do you want to make? How do you want it to be perceived? What ideas do you have for fun and engaging posts?
2.PROMOTE :
What types of posts will best promote your business? What message do you want to get out there for the world to see? What do you have that other businesses in your industry don’t? Think about this when creating your online content.
3.PLAN :
Work your preparation into a solid content plan, utilising templates, colour schemes and organising weekly or monthly post idea schedules.
4.PLAY :
Get creative! Just because you are professional doesn’t mean that you can’t have fun! If your business seems friendly and approachable, people are more likely to engage.
5.POST :
Get your content online! Don’t worry about getting every single post “perfect” either, as it’s better to have something on your profile than nothing at all.
6.PLUG :
Promoting your content across other platforms or sharing to your social stories can be a great way to reach more people. It’s a great way to increase the visibility of the content that you worked so hard to create.
7.PROVIDE:
Now you’ve promoted your business, you’ve got to provide the goods. Maintaining excellent products and services, as well as an efficient and open communication between yourself and your customers, will help you to build a solid client base. Word-of-mouth recommendations and online reviews will help your business soar to new heights!
