Point #18 – What Do You Want to Happen?

You must define your goals for social media or you will waste a lot of time and effort. If you have already ventured into the world of social media and have tried more than one, you know that they are all different – each with its own set of rules. If you are new at this game, be prepared.

• Twitter limits messages to 140 characters.
• Facebook allows much longer “shares” and uses profiles, pages, groups and events to organize their communities.

Both of the above can leverage many communication styles including images, videos, graphics, messages, interactive applications, polls and games.

• Pinterest is best for compiling collections of photos and graphics – although it is expanding its capabilities.
• Tumblr formats and presents content according to type, for example: quotes, messages, links, videos and so on.

Choose Wisely

It is not a good idea to jump into multiple platforms at once.  Before you begin, clarify the type of audience you want to attract and your goals for interacting with them.

In other words – What is your reason for using social media? Who do you want to reach? What do you want to happen?

In most cases, marketing goals are categorized into one of three purposes:

1. To build visibility
2. To drive traffic
3. To generate sales/income

Yes, your purposes may overlap; but, clearly identifying your goals will help build the right blend of audience that will fulfill your ultimate objective. If you are new to the market or just testing the waters for a new product, then you should start with a campaign to build visibility.  Once people recognize your brand, it will be time to fire up a campaign designed to drive traffic to an event, a squeeze page or perhaps even a sales page.  All of these build up momentum for a media campaign designed to generate sales.

Action Steps:

1. Define goals for a campaign using social media.
2. Clarify the type of audience you want to attract – AND – the social media platforms they frequent.
3. Select one or two social media platforms you plan to use for your campaign.
4. Develop content and material to support that campaign.
5. Set up profiles the social media sites.
6. Get started!
7. Be consistent with your posts.

Related posts:

How to Build a List of Prospects Paid Traffic Strategies #8 – Mobile Advertising How to Do Good with Your List Make Money with Your List