January 5, 2016
And now to hammer home the message (see what I did there?!).
Many businesses are still figuring out how to go about exploiting the many benefits of social. The start of a calendar year is usually the time companies discuss needing a social strategy, but are unsure how to go about getting one. Gone are the days when social was just a fun way of entertaining people.
Today, whether you’re B2B or a B2C, social is a potent lead generation/sales driver mechanic. If you’re one of those businesses who think otherwise, read on to see how we help our B2B clients generate multimillion pound sales funnels, and how our consumer brands have generated as much as 50% of sales from social.
Social should be an integral part of your marketing plan. Here are seven elements that evidence why having the right social partner to create and execute the right social strategy is critically important:
1. Make sure your social community is relevant
Too many businesses use competitions to grow audience numbers. But ‘Compers’ (as we call them) aren’t always your core audience. There is a large proportion of people who like getting or winning free stuff without having emotional or long-term connection with the brand.
2. Understand the core themes and topics within your sector and lead the narrative
Having smart people who know how to extract data from third-generation listening tools, alongside the knowledge and experience to form tangible insights, means you can make sound business decisions.
3. Produce engaging and relevant content that capitalises on these opportunities
And no, this isn’t just creating a fun image with a simple message and posting organically (just to your Facebook and Twitter).
4. Recognise that organic posting is barely reaching anyone!
Why is this? Algorithms and how data is used by the leading social platforms has changed. On Facebook for example, you will ONLY reach circa 1% of your audience. To reach the masses you need to PAY TO PLAY – deploying sponsored content with the right targeting.
5. The best ‘targeting results’ are achieved when you create relevance with your customers at scale – and that doesn’t mean one piece of content for the masses
‘Relevancy at Scale’ is about reaching as many groups as possible with the most engaging and relevant content. Engagements, click-through and sales conversion results are significantly improved. In 2015 we won ‘Best Use of Social Media Advertising’ at The Drum Social Buzz Awards. By utilising all of our know-how and expertise we’ve delivered some truly stellar results:
- 11p CPC on Twitter (for a leading multi-site retailer)
- 16p CPC on Facebook (for a leading multi-site retailer)
- Up to 20% engagement (for a multi-site retailer)
- 50% of sales sourced from social (for a leading entertainment brand)
- Generated multi-million pound sales funnel (for global B2B brand)
6. Track and retarget with the right data
Evidencing everything mentioned above is key. That starts and ends with data. At IF we build custom links that track right through to conversion, evidencing tangible results at all stages. We can then retarget the right people, for the right reason, with the right content.
7. Having proved this rationale works with a small team, scale social across your business
That’s digital transformation. Taking companies and stakeholders on a journey to tangible social excellence that delivers true commercial results is our forte.
It all starts with the right strategy. 2016 is the year you nail your social strategy!