So, you want to be a social media marketer? It’s obvious to see why the job has so much appeal: social media is fun and addictive, and the idea of effectively being able to work across your favourite social platforms all day is certainly enticing.
However, there’s more to social media marketing than simply liking the odd post and maybe posting to your own account every now and then. To make it as a social media marketer, you have to really have your head screwed on – and that means not only being an expert in the workings of the likes of Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, but also having the knowledge and creativity to implement effective strategies for a brand or business.
If you’re considering a role in social media marketing, or you’ve already got the job, but want to know how to up your game, take a look at the 5 following tips and tricks for long-term success:
Read Up To Expert Level
Simply spending a lot of time on a social media app is not necessarily enough to make you an expert in the field. There is much more to social media than you might even be aware of, and it’s important that you have a clear understanding of algorithms, trends, updates and engagement on each different platform.
Different social apps have different benefits, and there are always new apps making their way into the limelight that should be considered as fresh avenues to venture down for your business. Platforms increase and decrease in popularity all the time, and can differ in the audiences they appeal to; for example, Facebook was once the number one social app for a younger audience, whereas Instagram has now taken over.
There are a number of websites you can access that focus specifically on digital and social media news for industry professionals, such as Social Media Today and Digital Trends. A lot of these sites also offer tips and advice, analysis and updates on all things social media, and are invaluable resources for social media marketers who are new to the business.
Switch To Business Accounts
If you want to do yourself a favour as well as gain access to a number of valuable features, switch your social media accounts to business. Instagram, Twitter and Facebook all have business account options that allow you to view a range of useful insights related to following growth, engagement levels, profile visits, click-throughs to external links, and even audience age and location. This can help you to see what you’re doing right and wrong on each platform; what your potential customers engage with the most and what doesn’t work so well, enabling you to tailor your posts to some extent based on the likes and dislikes of your followers.
It’s fairly simple to switch to a business account, and for each app, you should find an option to do so in the settings. You will usually have to verify your account via a phone number or email address, so make sure that all your business’ personal details are up to date. A business account is free of charge, so it’s definitely worth making the most of if you’re serious about making it as a social media marketer.
Keep An Eye On Your Competitors
No-one likes an all-out copycat, but there’s nothing wrong with keeping an eye on what your competitors are up to across their social platforms. In the same way that you can look back at your own previous posts to see what worked well and where there’s room for improvement, you can do the same with your competitors’ current posts. Look at how they’re doing things, their advertising techniques, and how they’re drawing their audience in. It may be that you can use your understanding of their actions to tailor your own posts to appeal to your followers.
Understand The Basics Of Photography and Graphic Design
You don’t have to be an expert in photography or graphic design to make it as a social media marketer, but it helps to have a basic knowledge on the two if you want to really excel in what you do. Being able to take professional photographs and edit them on software such as Adobe Lightroom will help your business to stand out from its competitors and create a strong online branding across all social platforms.
Getting to grips with graphic design apps like Canva will also help you to more effectively carry out your job. Graphics allow you to communicate with your audience directly, and deliver important brand messages and statements in a fun, appealing manner. Social media is the place to show off your brand’s standout factors, the things that make it unique from its rivals in the industry. It’s certainly worth investing time into learning to create basic graphics that can help distinguish your business from the rest.
Set Yourself Realistic Goals
To be a successful social media marketer, you have to be able to produce a proven change from A to B over a given period of time. It’s all very well implementing a posting schedule and working on engagement, but without goals, you have no incentive to push your brand’s social media platforms to the next level. At the beginning of each month, it’s worth taking some time to work out a plan of action for the four weeks, as well as any targets you’re hoping to achieve by the end of that timespan.
What’s important, though, is that you only set goals that are realistic to complete. If you make a note that you need to gain 100,000 followers in a year, unless you’re hit by a stroke of luck, you may find yourself very disappointed with the outcome. Organic social growth, whether it be in follower or engagement levels, doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time to make your mark on the internet, and effort to maintain it. Don’t allow yourself to be disappointed if you fail to achieve over-ambitious goals – or simply don’t set them in the first place.
