How to Use Social Media More Effectively

Let’s make a resolution right now that 2021 is the year you start using social media more effectively. Sound like a good plan? If you sometimes feel as if you’re always trailing a little bit behind the crowd when it comes to using social media, don’t worry—everyone feels that way a little bit.

The thing is, social media is a tough nut to crack. Sure, you can look at your analytics to see what does well, but for the most part, nobody really understands 100% what works and what doesn’t when they’re sharing content on social media.

This doesn’t necessarily mean, of course, that you can’t use social media more effectively. There are some tried-and-true ways that are guaranteed to improve your digital presence and help you connect with more customers. Many of these concepts come down to having a strong grasp of marketing, not necessarily how to manipulate Facebook.

So if you’re ready to start using social media more effectively, here are three down-and-dirty basics that you should always keep in mind. We’ve talked about some of these points before — but hey, at the start of a new year, it never hurts to revisit them!

Always remember what sets you apart from the rest. 

Every company has competition. Maybe it’s not steep competition because there’s enough interest from your shared customer base to keep you both successfully in business. But still, there’s always somebody else out there who does something similar to what you do.

Notice that I said similar, not exactly. Because one of the important truths of good marketing is that nobody does exactly what you do. You need to recognize that there’s something that sets you apart from the competition and gives you a leg up.

Let’s say you’re a retail shop, for example. Think about the products you carry. Are they homemade by local artisans? Think about your customer service. Do you train your sales staff to have a thorough understanding of every item on your shelves?

Or maybe you’re a restaurant. There might be three or four family-friendly all-American dining establishments around town, but yours is the one that makes everything from scratch every single day. You also have extensive options for people who are avoiding gluten, people who are vegetarian, or people who eat kosher or halal.

It doesn’t even have to be about products or services. Maybe you make an effort to hire local teenagers and give them their first job opportunity. Maybe you’ve made considerable efforts to minimize your carbon footprint and support local charities.

Whatever it is, have a firm understanding of what makes your business special. Now start emphasizing that in your online presence. This doesn’t mean that every single post should be about that one aspect of your business — you definitely shouldn’t do that!

But every time you create a post, start asking yourself, “Could this same post be applied to my competition if we just switched out the business name?” If the answer is yes, then it’s time to do a little more tweaking to up-play what you offer your customers.

Know your customer base. 

You can’t effectively communicate with your following of loyal customers and potential customers if you don’t know who they are. Write up a description of who your ideal customer is: what they want, what problems they have, how your business can solve that problem for them, and what reservations they might have about patronizing your company.

It’s also important to know not only your ideal customer but also your actual customer. In some cases, they might be the same. In other cases, they might be totally different. Look at the demographics given by your social media analytics — the gender, age, and location of your customers. Do these match up with your ideal customer? If not, why do you think this group is gravitating toward what you have to offer.

By understanding your customer base and what they want, you can better tailor your message to address their concerns and show them how your business is a great fit for solving their problems.

Create original content that people want to see. 

If this seems obvious — congratulations, you’re one step ahead! Some people get so bogged down with all the other aspects of business that they forget about or underestimate the importance of great content for social media. But if you’re not consistently putting out interesting content, then you’re not giving people much incentive to follow you.

Remember that visual content is always good: photos, videos, infographics, and GIFs are much more effective than simple text. These should not require a tremendous amount of extra effort for you to acquire—simple photos with your smartphone around the workplace will do just fine.

However, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take a little bit of care—make sure your pics aren’t blurry or washed out, the audio is clear on your videos, and the infographics look at least semi-professional in their design. Being consistent in the quality of your content is just as important as being consistent in quantity.

While you should consistently strive to find new and fresh content, there’s nothing wrong with recycling something you’ve already posted as long as you’re creative in the way you’re re-sharing it. Maybe you have a feel-good motivational post you put out there ever

y Monday morning—find different ways of asking people what their goals are for the week as a way of keeping it interesting. For one week, you could say, “We’ve got five days until it’s the weekend again, so tell us what you want to accomplish by the time Friday gets here.” The next week, you might simply say, “Happy Monday—let’s go crush some goals!”

If you’re ready to up-level your social media presence but you’re feeling overwhelmed by everything involved—that’s okay! The team at Ann’s Social Media & Marketing can help you determine your message, figure out your customer base, create amazing content, and execute your strategy for you. Reach out today by calling 443-679-4916 or emailing ann@asmmdigital.com.