So, you have a solid social media strategy but it’s not bringing in the results you want because of constant algorithm changes. Or maybe you’ve got loads of great content ideas, but no budget to execute it. You see big brands crushing it with content just like yours, but you don’t see the same happening for you.
And to top it all off, those pesky social media platforms just aren’t giving you the solutions you want (still patiently waiting for business accounts to get access to commercial music).
Yep, we’ve all been there.
The world of social media marketing will always be full of things you can’t control, but that doesn’t mean marketing teams and social media managers should just leave it all to chance and hope for the best. There are some easy and cost-effective — but often overlooked — things you can do that could seriously elevate your brand’s social media presence.
1. Make community management a priority
Community management is the bread and butter of any good social media strategy.
It helps build relationships with your audience, other brands, and influential content creators you might want to collaborate with. Replying to comments also boosts your engagement as it keeps people coming back to your content (ahem, more watch time) and signals to the platforms to keep showing more of your content. Communities are a big part of social media for most users, and 66% of branded communities say that the community has had an impact on customer retention.
When you’re posting comments and replies, remember to keep your tone aligned to your brand voice. If you’re a bold and playful brand, don’t suddenly get all uptight and formal in the comments. Likewise if you’re a serious brand, don’t start adding the kiss face emojis at the end of every interaction. Try to also avoid using overly templated responses all the time — your community will catch on pretty quick.
Finally, treat your comments and DMs as your content brief. If you keep receiving the same questions and queries, think about building content (like how-to reels and carousels) around answering these questions. After all, you want to create content that provides real value to your audience and sets you apart as an expert in your field.
2. Update and optimise your social media profile
If your social media profile has the wrong contact details, broken or missing links, or inconsistent profiles and logos, you aren’t exactly setting yourself up for success. You’d be surprised at how many brands make these easy mistakes.
Make sure your profile is regularly updated, and keep important details, content, and FAQs in story highlights where they’re easy to find. Make sure you’ve set up accurate (and voice-aligned!) auto replies for the general questions you get in your DMs, and have a plan on how to keep audience queries organised and promptly answered. Keep your social media accounts consistent by having the most up-to-date version of your branding and tagline displayed across your profiles.
Search engine optimisation (SEO) matters on socials too. You should include any brand-relevant keywords in your Instagram name and username to help you appear on search results.
Finally, make sure your bio conveys your offering and services to help the right people find you.
3. Stop relying on inspiration from your competitors
Any good social media manager knows looking for a point of difference in a crowded social space is a tough task. And when you look for inspiration for new content, it’s easy to turn to your competitors for ideas.
But a good social media strategy isn’t always tied into best practice or industry-specific trends. People gravitate towards content that’s relatable, entertaining, educational, and timely.
Start by looking at brands that are completely outside of your industry and product type. Save inspiring and popular accounts with good social strategies, and see what you can learn and implement from them.
Take the Australian Bureau of Statistics as an example. It’s a brand that could be considered quite serious (read: boring) to most people, but instead creates brand-aligned content that’s interesting, timely, and original.
4. Quality over quantity
There’s a common misconception that churning out as much content as possible is the key to staying relevant on social media. While regular posting undoubtedly helps boost your impressions and engagement, the backbone of your social media strategy shouldn’t be the volume of the content you create.
Posting lots of poor quality content that doesn’t align with your brand is only going to clutter your feed and take away from the valuable content you’ve spent time on, not to mention annoy your followers. The truth is, nobody’s sitting on their phone wondering why you haven’t posted for three days. Instead, focus on creating valuable content that might take a little longer to create, but resonates often a lot better with your audience.
5. Mix reactive and planned content
We’re big fans of mapping out content in advance to help stay organised. But instead of following a strict monthly or fortnightly calendar, try adopting a mix of reactive and planned content instead. Jumping on relevant trends, cultural moments, and events that align with your brand strategy will help keep your content fresh.
Getting a good return on investment from organic social media is a long game, and often a process of test and learn. And deciding what content to create, especially when trends come and go so quickly, can feel like a whirlwind.
The good thing is, there are some easy-to-implement things you can do that don’t involve you pleading your case to get more budget, hiring more team members, or completely reinventing your social media strategy — and that are sure to make your brand stand out.
If you’re looking for help on making content that gets noticed, give us a shout.
