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07 March 2023

Social Media Marketing Trends and Best Practices.

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Unless you have been living under a rock for the past decade or so, you would be familiar with social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. The tremendous growth of these companies can be credited for kick-starting the trend of social media marketing, which has now become an integral part of digital marketing. Businesses have now access to millions of potential customers who can be targeted with the right strategy, keywords, content, and planning.

However, with the ever-changing landscape of social media, it is important to stay up-to-date with the latest developments. In this blog post, we will go over the latest social media marketing trends and practices which can be used to enhance your digital marketing strategy.

Video Content

If you log in to any social media platform these days, there is a high probability you will see a video pop-up immediately within the first few seconds. It’s now easier than ever to produce, edit and share video content on social media. As attention span has gotten shorter, video content has been performing better with most algorithms. It allows a brand to tell its story and build an emotional connection with the audience. Irrespective of whether it is a global brand, a small business, or an influencer, everyone is vying for the attention of their consumers through cutting-edge video content.

With the right script and imaginative ideas, you can use video marketing for increasing brand awareness, guide the consumer through the buying process, and drive conversions. Unlike written content like this blog, videos can be extremely easy for the average person to consume. You can fuse information with entertaining content, thus creating something likely to resonate with your target audience.

The most compelling brand videos communicate their mission in a short, concise way that captivates the viewer’s attention and doesn't let it go.

There is a huge chunk of social media users who are now using these platforms as search engines, thus, you need to focus on creating eye-catching headlines, engaging descriptions, and relevant hashtags. Video content also gives you the option of taking advantage of any news stories or memes that go viral and incorporate them into your videos to become part of the social conversation.

Leverage User-Generated Content

User-generated content (UGC) is content created by customers or followers of a specific brand and posted on social media or other channels. UGC can be in the form of an image, a video, reviews, or a podcast, and is an impactful way to build trust and credibility for your brand. It is one of the most productive forms of engagement as it helps the brand gets connected to loyal customers organically and in return, these customers can grow their following on social media.

While marketplaces do give you the option of keywords and content for your listings, however it is fairly limited. Also, these marketplaces may bring you in a lot of customers, but hardly any recurring ones. Even if they appreciated the quality of your products when they bought it, customers who frequent these websites would always hunt for the best offers or the heavily discounted products.

The biggest benefit of using UGC to promote your brand is the authenticity that comes with it. Consumers have now become smarter and do not trust a brand till they have a testimonial or review from someone who has used the brand's services or products. However, UGC doesn't need to be specific about your brand or service, it can also highlight lifestyle or ethics that coincide with your brand's philosophy and appeal to your intended audience.

One of the most famous examples of UGC is the Shot On iPhone challenge started by Apple. Everyday iPhone users were invited to share their best shots on Instagram or Twitter, and a selected few were featured across billboards all over the world. This campaign not only boosted the sale of the iPhone but also helped Apple create a more relatable and authentic connection with its audience.

Personalize Your Content

Customers expect brands to understand their needs and preferences as personalization becomes increasingly important in social media marketing. It can be as simple as mentioning the name of a customer in a social media post or as complex as creating customized content based on their interests and behavior. Personalized content allows a distinct, unique experience between an individual and your brand. By tailoring your content according to the needs of your consumer, you can create an engaging and memorable experience that will make your brand stand out among its competitors.

You can also personalize content by segmenting your target audience by demographics or interests. You can do this by looking at the available data about each visitor to your website or social media page. The most obvious advantage to this is that content that’s tailored to each person will have a much higher rate of success than generic content that’s aimed at everybody. You can also create quizzes that can grab the attention of your customers in a fun and engaging manner and also help you to gather pertinent information about them.

In summary, personalizing your social media content is a powerful way to connect with your audience and build stronger relationships with your customers. By using social listening tools, segmenting your audience, and creating custom content, you can create a more engaging and effective social media strategy that delivers real results for your brand.

Use Social Media for Customer Service

Social media has also become an increasingly important tool to address customer complaints and resolve their concerns. This method is highly effective as the customers already have a presence on these social media sites and it's convenient for them to raise their grievances on these platforms. Since social platforms have an extensive reach, how you respond to customers' queries can make a big impact on how your brand is perceived. Prompt, thoughtful responses can help you build trust and integrity among your present consumers and potential customers.

Another benefit of using social media as a customer service tool is that you get notified of engagement or activities related to your brand immediately. You can set-up chat boxes for rudimentary tasks and redirect complex cases to service agents for a faster resolution. If a customer has a positive experience with your brand on social media, they can influence more people to pivot towards your brand and possibly turn into new customers. When you are actively helping your customers on social media, it shows that you are dedicated towards providing stellar customer experience.

Invest in Influencer Marketing

Influencer marketing is gaining significant popularity among marketers as it proves to be an effective tool for promoting products. It involves utilizing the social media presence of content creators who are seen as authorities in their respective fields to endorse or mention products to their followers. Influencers have already established trust and credibility with their followers, and partnering with them can help you gain their trust and credibility as well.

It is also important for brands to realize that most influencers have a niche following, and their audience only cares about the opinion of the influencers. Hence, if you use an influencer to promote your brand, you should not impose rules and your business practices on them. Their following is theirs, and they can walk away at any time taking a big chunk of your potential customers along with them.

Brands can also use hashtags to identify the right influencer for their products and services. For example- a business selling fitness goods can find influencers suitable for their brand by searching for hashtags like gym or workout.

Conclusion

In conclusion, social media marketing has become an integral part of digital marketing, and businesses must stay up-to-date with the latest trends and practices to stay ahead of the competition. Video content, user-generated content, personalized content, social media customer service, and influencer marketing are all essential components of a successful social media marketing strategy. With the help of social media analytics, businesses can identify which strategies are working and which ones need to be tweaked.