The digital landscape has changed so drastically in the past ten years alone that it’s become virtually unrecognizable. Nowhere is this more evident than in the world of social media. Gone are the days when the likes of MySpace dominated the field. Today, social media platforms number in the hundreds, with an estimated 3.48 billion users worldwide, all of whom could be potential customers of your business.
It isn’t that businesses aren’t using social media. They just may not be using it effectively. Welcome to the rise of the social media expert.
But just what is a “social media expert”? And why does your business need one?
Lead Generation And Social Media
It’s been estimated that 71 percent of users rely on social media when making purchasing decisions. In order to wield any influence on consumer purchasing habits, a business will have to rely on creating an effective sales funnel. But just who is creating that funnel? More importantly, how can it be streamlined and clarified so that it’s no longer a potential sale, but working with a targeted demographic?
Most businesses don’t have the time to actively monitor just who is following their social media presence, and they usually don’t have the time to actively engage with their followers. A business might have a few internal resources, but for the most part they’ll wind up outsourcing the task to a dedicated agency which specializes in optimizing their social media presence. These social media experts are typically specialists who can recognize user trends. They can analyze the purchasing habits of users. They can identify key demographics. They can develop an effective buyer persona that will enable a healthy and robust sales funnel – one which can identify just how effective your marketing strategy can be.
How Engaged Are Your Customers?
It takes more than just regular Facebook updates and the occasional Instagram post for a business to make any lasting impression on its customer base. Each business has to figure out just how optimized its social media presence is. And no two platforms are going to be alike. Each will have its own demographic, its own niche and its own specialty.
Social media experts can help eliminate some of the legwork needed in finding out just how effective your campaign is. They can identify what’s working for you, and what isn’t. They can track, monitor and determine the best platforms for you to use, and more specifically, just how to use them.
A Short Term Strategy For Long Term Growth
It takes time to build an audience on social media. And it takes just as much time to build your brand. In order for your strategy to be effective, you’re going to need to grow an established audience. And that simply doesn’t happen overnight.
And what’s more, social media is constantly changing. Most businesses just don’t have the time to keep up with those changes because this is not their main focus. They’re trying to grow their customer base and they need to know the most effective way to do so. Social media experts have a special eye for recognizing those trends. Reaching your target audience is a learning process, and one that leads to long term growth in any business.
Reputation Maintenance
One negative post on social media can ruin the long term reputation of any business. In the digital landscape, virtually anything can go viral — even if it’s entirely untrue. Social media experts are trained to recognize just who is saying what about your brand. They can salvage your reputation and they can review posts. Most importantly, they can address any negative testimonials to avert crisis as it happens in real time.
No company is immune from negative feedback. But with the assistance of a social media expert, he or she can provide an immediate response to criticism and provide a solution that can go a long way in maintaining your reputation for customer service and care.
Increasing ROI
Social media experts brings value to an organization by providing clarity and focus to your marketing strategies. They can help define your social media goals and show you how to effectively reach them. It’s not just about building an audience of followers and reaching a desired number of likes. Ninety percent of businesses have indicated that they’ve seen an increase in their business exposure as a result of social media.
Are your conversion rates actually gaining traction? A social media expert can point out what you’re doing wrong. Is your audience growth rate increasing? A social media expert can indicate exactly what factors you need to consider in order to see growth. Are you seeing any increase in visitor traffic? A social media expert can help ensure you get the maximum return on your SEO investment.
Let Your Brand Tell Its Story
Anyone can create a narrative for their brand. Sometimes it can even be effective. But when it comes to creating a story in under 140 characters, even the most marketing savvy business will find it to be an uphill battle.
Social media experts have a distinct skill set. They know that it’s not simply about generating content. It’s about crafting content that speaks directly to the needs of your audience and content that can fulfill their hopes and dreams. They know how to tailor language that can best convey the message of your brand. They can strip it down to its bare essentials and how to convey as much information in as few words as possible.
Understanding Your Audience
You might know which demographics to target, but how well do you actually understand your audience? What sort of products are they purchasing? Which websites do they visit? What sort of posts do they like and share?
These are the insights that drive the marketing process. When you understand your audience and their needs, you understand what motivates them. Your content should be generated to speak specifically to your key audience. A social media expert is there to help you streamline that process. He or she is there to help you navigate what can often be a thorny and developing world with real-time insight and directly applicable skills that will enhance any marketing strategy.
Advertising Without Advertising
People have an almost instinctive aversion to much of traditional advertising. People reject most commercials and pitches because they’re blatantly obvious attempts to pander to their fears or desires. While some ads can be successful, more often than not they wind up being ignored entirely.
However, a sponsored post on social media has the advantage of resembling virtually any other organically generated post. It makes your audience feel more comfortable and at ease, which can in turn build trust and generate loyalty. A social media expert can help you create posts that express more than just selling points. They express your brand through carefully curated words and pictures that can reach even the most staunch rejector of conventional advertising.
Do You Need A Social Media Expert?
Brand perception demands instant exposure. Without optimizing your social media presence, the likelihood of your audience remembering your brand is going to be low.
This is the ultimate task of social media experts. They’re there to increase your profile, to build your image, and to help give your brand the exposure it deserves — an exposure that will ultimately lead to much greater sales than you ever imagined.
At No Joke Marketing, we’ve been social media experts for over a decade now. Come see what we can do for you. Visit us at No Joke Marketing today.
