Building an effective social media campaign
Building an effective social media campaign can be, well quite tricky to say the least.
“You can’t win anything with kids” – Alan Hansen
It’s a common perception that the younger generation are savvier when it comes to social media and how best to use it. Mr Hansen was notoriously proven wrong with the above statement but his perception, based on years of experience in the game, was not entirely unsound.
The same could be said of social media – to hire or expect the younger generation to handle your social media activity should be the winning solution, because they have been brought up liking, tweeting and sharing things digitally pretty much from the nappy stage! The logic is sound, but we’re forgetting one major factor and one which should have been Mr Hansen’s saving grace. Their business experience and the strategic nous that comes with understanding your industry will not be anywhere near as strong as your’s or the expertise you may employ to handle your PR and marketing.
An effective campaign will need a heavy dose of industry-specific forethought, making the right decisions on where, when, to whom and how to best to penetrate your market before considering the best way to design your promotion. To a certain extent, the advertisement or content dictates the when and where, so it’s vitally important to nail down the specifics, regardless of who implements it for you.
We suggest the following to make sure you’re on the right path. Outsourcing and getting in some young talent who know their way around the digital channels is no bad thing, it just needs solid direction and oversight.
Some important DO’s:
- It’s not all sell, sell, sell. People do not want to sold to all the time. Customers like to browse and have something pique their interest, usually on their own terms. Make your promotion interesting and ensure their attention has been grabbed, and then sell. People want to know the cost, yes, but they want to know lots of other things too, and intriguing content uncovers those things.
- Small is beautiful. It’s easy to think that with social media everyone is on the same level playing field but trying to be all things to all people is a fast way to nothing. Become a trusted expert in the fields you know well, however sparsely populated, and gradually the cream will rise and word of mouth will be your friend.
- Be patient. As with most things worth their salt, good things take time and strong social media presence is no different. Plan ahead (6-12 months), and take it month-by-month, tweaking as necessary. Have a flexible structure around your promotional activity keeps everyone and everything in line.
- Evaluate. Keep an eye on what is working and is popular with your audience and do more of this, do less of the not so popular stuff. Social media is a great way to get real-time feedback from your customers so listen to what they are saying and don’t be blinkered in your approach.
