Social Media Marketing

An introduction

Social Media Marketing

This is not social media marketing:

This is my cat:

I have just shown you a picture of my cat...

Does that mean that you now have an overwhelming desire to buy my companies services or product?

Social Media Marketing

So what is it?

Social Media MarketingWhat is it?

1. Marketing2. Media3. Social

1. Marketing

Marketing is communication.

A business communicates it's products, services and most importantly its expertise to the market.

1. Marketing

Marketing has changed.

Broadcasting, or shouting at clients no longer works.

Who likes unsolicited phone calls?

1. Marketing

Marketing has moved online in a big way.

A new type of marketing is emerging, it is called social media marketing or content marketing.

The single biggest difference with this type of marketing is that it is USEFUL to the potential client, it is educational.

1. Marketing

Marketing should always be launched and based from your own website. On the property you own.

Your website is the one place where you can track, measure and analyse the success of your marketing.

It is also the only place where you should “sell” your product.

2. Media

Media, which we will refer to as “CONTENT” from now on, is the foundation of successful online marketing.

There are many types of content, but the most powerful type is educational content, or USEFUL content.

2. Media

Educational content, does two things.

1. It educates your potential client.2. It reveals your expertise.

2. Media

Why would you want to educate your potential client?

By providing your client with useful information for free, your business becomes USEFUL.

When your business becomes USEFUL and continues to be useful, your potential client will start to connect with your business.

2. Media

Educating your potential client also shows them your expertise.

People do not buy from people, people buy from people with authority.

Authority is founded on expertise, communicating your expertise to a potential client is the key to generating trust.

2. Media

So if you can educate a potential client, you can show them your expertise and this is where media/content comes in.

If you make your content USEFUL to your potential client, they will want to come back and consume more of your content. Each time deepening the social link between your business and your potential client.

3. Social

What does it mean to be social?

Being social is about forming relationships.

3. Social

Relationships that result in transactions require, some say, 7 steps or 7 points of contact.

It is a bit like getting married...

3. Social – the marriage steps:

1. Notice someone2. Introduce yourself3. Have a conversation4. Go on a date5. Get to know each other6. Propose7. Get married

3. Social

How would you feel if someone you did not know walked up to you and asked you to get married?

Many businesses approach their client with a marriage proposal as the very first step.

3. Social

Starting a social conversation, is where a meaningful relationship starts. But what should you chat about?

You should be social around areas of common interest.

If your business deals with cars, talk about cars, if it deals with finance, talk about finance, if your business deals with cats, talk about cats...

3. Social – using social channels

You want to get people from social channels, to your own property. To your website with its USEFUL content, if you have nothing useful there, then you have nothing to draw clients back to.

Once they have agreed to date you, and visit you on a regular basis, they can then be exposed to your call to action, which should be on your website, your marriage proposal.

3. Social – which platforms?

Where are your potential clients hanging out?

Facebook?Twitter?LinkedIn?Google+?

Wherever they are, that is where you need to be social.

3. Social – which platforms?

The most powerful of all the platforms is?

3. Social – which platforms?

Google+

Everyone that uses Google search, is exposed to Google+ content on a regular basis.

Google+ sits over the top of YouTube, Gmail, Android, Business Apps etc, it is the most powerful of all the platforms because it is the only one that produces search return benefit.

Measuring success

With social media marketing it is difficult to measure causation, but you can measure correlation.

Causation is being able to say A caused B.

Correlation is being able to say increasing A has a matching increase with B.

Measuring success

So your social media marketing should cause other activities in the business to rise.

Simple things to measure are follower counts on platforms, levels of engagement, traffic hits on your website.

The important thing to look for is a correlation of activity.

Measuring success

The one platform that is different is Google+, this platform should show a search return benefit or improvement which is easy to measure.

Example:

Web presence marketing – 3 weeks to get on page 1 of Google incognito search.

Examples

Have a look at these companies to see social media marketing in action:

1. Coca Cola2. McDonalds Canada3. Redbull

Closing thoughts:

Creating good social media marketing is founded on having a good Web Presence that is useful to clients, it is like a field of flowers, that bees are attracted to.

You are only as good as your content is useful.

It takes time and commitment, but if done right is the most powerful type of marketing your business can engage in.