The 80/20 rule
Another integral part of social media is figuring out what content to post. Social media isn’t a place to constantly pitch your products and services. In fact, you’ll probably run into a bunch of friction from your fans if you even consider doing so.
The goal of social media is to provide useful, thoughtful content. You should always lead by giving, and never confuse your follower for a customer. This will inevitably instill trust in your audience, and entice them to take the next logical step in your marketing sequence.
When you take the time to listen to your audience, you can create content that is congruent with their goals and desires. As you continue to engage, the “marketing” aspect of your social media campaigns will become superfluous. This is the time to present your fans with an opportunity to subscribe to your email list.
In general, roughly 80 per cent of your content should offer value to your followers. But once again, the goal of social media is to convert your fans into prospects. At least 20 per cent of your posts should be focused on lead generation. The best part is, you don’t have to resort to “pushy” sales tactics that solicit your readers email address. Instead, you can create educational content that directs them to one of your own web properties, such as:
A compelling article that includes a banner with a direct call to action. Exit pop-ups are also another effective way to generate leads with blogging.
A high converting landing page that offers a guidebook or mini course that’s aligned with the goals of your reader.
The psychological aspect of social media can cause you to miss out on a ton of qualified leads for your business. Listen to your audience, and then craft your content to accommodate their goals. If you lead with value 80 per cent of the time, your followers will naturally want to learn more from you.
Repurpose your content
One of the biggest advantages of social media is the social dynamic of its users. If you were to email one of your prospects five times per day, it would be a virtual certainty that they would unsubscribe from your list. However, if you posted 5 times per day on Facebook, it would enhance the level of engagement with your fans.
The demographics of your audience will vary across each social media channel. Some of your fans will have different schedules, while others will live in different time zones. Regardless of what social media website you use, your content will never reach 100 per cent of your fan base.
So why not repurpose the same material over and over again?
The paradigm of social media encourages the sharing of content. In fact, the odds are that most of your audience will not see your content more than once. Sometimes, it takes several attempts for a post to garner enough likes and shares to go viral.
Repurposing content will amplify your results and save you a tremendous amount of time. If you have a particular article, video, or image that resonates with your audience, don’t hesitate to post it every 2-3 weeks. Obviously, you’ll want to make some small tweaks to ensure the content has a unique appeal. You can do this by simply modifying the headline and body copy of each post. This requires only a small amount of effort in comparison to the potential traffic it can generate.
Conclusion
The tactical aspects of social media can make it appear more overwhelming than it actually is. If you want social media to be an integral source of traffic to your business, then you can’t afford to do it wrong. Posting multiple times on a myriad of channels each day is simply not efficient.
Creating a social media regimen will force you to stay accountable over the long-term. Scheduling your posts will save time and increase the output of your content. Repurposing that content will enhance the level of engagement with your fans and reduce your marketing efforts.
Just like many other aspects of business, social media is all about “working smart.” Although these strategies may sound simple, they will have a profound impact on your results.
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