How to create a social media strategy for ANY brand

Summary

In this episode of Freelance Friday, the speaker discusses how to create a social media strategy for any brand, offering insights on how to understand a client's business, set aligned goals, and identify the right target audience. The speaker emphasizes the importance of tailoring content and platform choices to suit the business's objectives, whether it's driving sales, increasing brand awareness, or engaging customers. The episode also covers how to effectively execute and systematize the strategy, manage resources, and measure results. It's a practical guide for social media managers working with diverse clients, whether large or small.

Takeaways

• 😀 Understand your client's business model and how they make money to align your social media strategy with their goals.
• 😀 Clarify your client's business goals before building social media objectives to ensure alignment with the company's vision.
• 😀 Recognize that not all businesses use social media for direct sales; sometimes it's for brand awareness or customer care.
• 😀 Determine your client's unique value proposition and target audience to tailor your messaging and social media content effectively.
• 😀 Set social media goals that directly connect to business goals, ensuring the content you create serves the company’s primary objectives.
• 😀 Know your target audience well, both existing followers and potential customers, to create content that resonates with the right people.
• 😀 Research platform demographics to choose the best channels for reaching your ideal or most likely customer.
• 😀 Focus your resources on platforms where your target audience is most active, ensuring the maximum impact with limited time and budget.
• 😀 Implement systems and tools to streamline your social media strategy, such as scheduling tools, content calendars, and approval workflows.
• 😀 Understand the time and resources required to execute your strategy, adjusting posting frequency and content types based on available capacity.
• 😀 Benchmark against competitors and industry standards to ensure your social media approach is competitive and efficient.

Q & A

What is the first thing you need to know when creating a social media strategy?

The first thing you need to know is what your client or company actually does and how they make money. Understanding the business's objectives and how they generate revenue is key to creating an effective strategy.

Why is it important to know how a business makes money?

It's important because it helps shape your social media strategy. Whether the business's goal is to make direct sales or generate leads, knowing their revenue model informs your content approach, platform choices, and the metrics you focus on.

How does understanding the business's goal impact social media tactics?

Understanding the business's goal helps determine the type of content you create and the platforms you focus on. For example, if the goal is to generate leads, you'll focus on driving traffic and capturing emails, while if it's about direct sales, you'd focus on website clicks and conversions.

What role does messaging play in a social media strategy?

Messaging is crucial because it helps convey the company's unique value proposition. Understanding what makes the business special and who they are targeting allows you to craft social media content that resonates with the audience and aligns with business goals.

Why is setting social media goals based on business goals important?

It ensures that your social media efforts are aligned with the company's overall objectives. For instance, if the business's goal is to increase sales through email subscriptions, your social media strategy should focus on driving email sign-ups, not just likes or engagement.

How do you determine who the target audience is for a brand?

You need to understand both the existing social media following and the ideal audience the brand wants to reach. Analyzing platform insights and conducting research on demographics, interests, and behaviors helps refine the target audience.

Why is knowing the target audience essential for social media content?

Knowing your target audience helps you create relevant content that speaks directly to their needs, preferences, and behaviors. Whether the content is meme-based for younger audiences or more academic for older demographics, tailoring your messaging increases engagement and effectiveness.

What should you do if the existing audience doesn't match the ideal customer?

If the existing audience doesn’t align with the ideal customer, you may need to adjust your platform strategy or content type. For example, shifting focus from Instagram to Facebook might help target a more mature demographic if that’s the desired audience.

What is the importance of choosing the right social media platforms?

Choosing the right platforms ensures you're investing time and resources where your target audience is most active. It’s essential to focus on the platforms that align with the behaviors and preferences of your most likely customers.

How do you make a social media strategy work in practice?

To make a strategy work, it's essential to create systems for planning, content creation, and execution. This includes setting up tools for scheduling posts, content approval processes, and tracking performance to ensure the strategy is consistently implemented.