There’s no question that social media remains an integral part of day-to-day life, and a powerful channel through which your brand can communicate with customers and leads.
To take full advantage of this channel, it’s crucial to adopt the best social media content strategies. Doing so can help you convey the values of your brand in a way that’s authentic and engaging. Additionally, it establishes your subject matter expertise and industry thought leadership.
The question is, where to start crafting a social media content strategy for your brand? Here are just a few guidelines to keep in mind as you seek to develop your brand via social platforms.
Social Media Content Strategies: Where to Start Building Your Brand
1) Choose the right platforms.
There are countless social platforms to choose from. And there’s simply no way for small or even medium-sized businesses to maintain a consistent presence across all of them. To try to do so is a rookie mistake and will leave you spread way too thin.
Instead, spend time reviewing your buyer personas, checking up on your competitors, and determining which platforms are most relevant to your industry or niche. Invest in the places where you think you’ll meet your customers, and don’t sweat the platforms that aren’t germane.
2) Emphasize consistency.
Assuming you create a social media presence across multiple platforms, it’s imperative to ensure they all look crisp and professional. It’s especially crucial to be consistent in how you present your brand. The last thing you want is to give the impression that your Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn accounts are managed by three different employees who never actually talk to each other.
Make sure you have a clear set of internal guidelines about your logo, colors, and even your brand voice. Ensure these guidelines are followed across each platform.
3) Focus on engaging content.
This may seem like a no-brainer, but it’s worth articulating the central role that valuable, shareable content plays in effective branding efforts. Simply put, your social media content strategies won’t work if you’re not producing something that people will want to absorb and then pass along to their own networks.
It may take some trial and error to find the right types of content for your brand, but you generally can’t go wrong with short-form video (think Reels), informative blog posts, infographics, and original memes. Remember, the goal is to convey something of value and/or elicit a desire to share. You won’t achieve either goal if you’re too focused on “salesy” content and constant self-promotion.
4) Facilitate interactions.
Branding isn’t just about telling people who you are. It’s also about facilitating relationships, leaving the lines open for two-way communication.
Make sure your content is presented as a dialogue, not a monologue. Ask questions and solicit feedback. And when you actually get that feedback, take the time to respond. Monitor your social media feeds regularly, and when you do generate some conversation, take the time to flex your customer service skills.
5) Use hashtags effectively.
We can’t talk about social media content strategies without mentioning hashtags. Simply put, hashtags are an essential way to form a consistent brand identity while also ensuring your posts can be discovered in social media searches.
We typically recommend a combination of branded and general-interest hashtags. At Grammar Chic, we usually tag our posts with #chicmarketing, #chicresumes, or something similar… a way to furthering our online branding with each and every post, sort of like a “signature” for each piece of content. But we also use hashtags like #contentmarketing, #resumewriting, or #socialmediamarketing, ensuring we can be found by folks who may never have heard of us before, but nevertheless have an interest in the types of services we offer.
6) Keep tabs on your performance.
Finally, keep in mind that branding isn’t a set-it-and-forget-it kind of thing. You’ll want to monitor your social media analytics, to take stock of what works and what doesn’t, and to revise your social media content strategies over time.
As you review your analytics, keep your big-picture social media goals in mind. Are you aiming to extend your brand reach? To boost website rankings? Or simply to foster ongoing engagement with existing clients? No matter what you’re trying to accomplish, you can always look to social media stats to determine whether you’re on the right course.
Fine-Tune Your Social Media Branding
Whether you’re looking to develop a robust plan for social media branding, or simply to execute your existing plan more effectively, our team is here to help. Grammar Chic, Inc. has more than a decade and a half of experience formulating social media content strategies on behalf of a global client base. To schedule a consultation with our experts, contact us at www.grammarchic.net, or 803-831-7444.
A freelance writer and journalist since 2000, Josh Hurst became a member of the Grammar Chic team in 2011. Initially serving as Associate Writer and Editor, Josh became the company’s Content Marketing Strategist in 2013. Additionally, he regularly writes about music, film, television, and literature for FLOOD Magazine and Slant Magazine.