7 Great Social Media Accounts for Marketing

Social Media Tips

One of the main stays of good marketing is the ability to evolve with the times. Recognizing trends early and capitalizing on them can be crucial to success. The best place to keep track of new and upcoming trends is through social media.

There are tons of social media platforms available for use, with more being created every year. Whether or not the new ones have the stamina and charisma to last remains to be seen, but social media isn’t going away any time soon. According to the Pew Research Center 74% of adults on the internet use social media and that number continues to grow.

Some Better than Others

Every marketing campaign shares certain similarities in their use of social media – content sharing, customer interaction, uniform brand image and tone across all accounts – but some social media platforms can be better than others when it comes to building brand awareness.

Google+

It took a while for people to warm up to Google+ but it is quickly becoming a powerhouse among social media. Content you share on Google+ will rank higher in search engine results due to its Google ownership. The success of your content can be amplified even more by using related keywords and hashtags. Also, Google loves unique content so try and make your postings as original as possible.
You can usually google a related term five minutes after posting and see your post ranking in the top search results. Jay Baer does an amazing job with his Google+ account.

Twitter

Twitter is the best place to broadcast on the internet. It doesn’t seem to matter what the subject matter is, Twitter users are usually the first to know. There are four things you should be doing with your Twitter marketing: (1) sharing great content with a personalized voice, (2) sharing visual content that is relevant to your audience and your brand message, (3) networking by interacting with other Twitter users, especially influencers and users that make an effort to interact with you and (4) personalize your account with a bio, links to your website and a custom header.

It’s important to be consistent with your tweets so you can establish your brand voice. Visual content gets 200% more engagement than text so capitalize on sharing your content as an image, graphic or video. Always thank followers for their support and reply to direct messages and mentions. Influencers are a huge opportunity to network on Twitter so share relevant comments or mention a post they wrote that you enjoyed.

Pinterest

At its heart Pinterest is a content marketer’s dream. Pinterest is all about sharing visual content. The best Pinterest accounts all have four things in common: (1) boards with clever or unique names, all filled with great content, (2) a profile picture of an actual person, not a logo, (3) helpful board/pin descriptions with relevant keywords included and (4) consistent activity on a daily basis, including sharing, re-sharing, following and liking other boards with similar content to your own. One more thing; always include links to the original source of your content. It’s a great way to grow your following on multiple platforms by sending visitors back to your site.

Instagram

Instagram is awesome and its 9% growth rate in 2014 was enough to make it the fastest growing social media site. There are five things you need to know when marketing with Instagram: (1) Hashtags are your best friend and should not be used sparingly as they are on Twitter and other sites. (2) Only share images that are relevant to your brand or personality, the last thing you want to do is confuse or alienate your audience. (3) Use Instagram across all social media accounts for multiple purposes, such as announcements, contests, product reveals and promotions. (4) Interact with followers and other users that share similarities with your brand to grow your following. (5) Again…use hashtags generously and make them relate to your brand messages. You absolutely cannot underuse hashtags and shouldn’t, unless you want to be ignored.

Facebook

There’s probably not a whole lot you don’t already know about Facebook, but it would be a cardinal “Social Media Marketing” sin not to discuss it. Facebook is probably the easiest social media platform to use in marketing, mainly thanks to the massive audience available and the high level of engagement among its user base. There are three main aspects of marketing with Facebook that you should know and practice: (1) One of the keys to successful Facebook marketing is posting at the correct time. Know who your audience is and then find out when they are on Facebook…that’s when you should share your content. (2) Facebook is the only real threat to YouTube at this point when it comes to video, so if you have a way to share your content in video format, do it. (3) With all the brands and content shared on Facebook everyday it’s sometimes hard to standout. Find ways to engage your audience by asking questions, using interesting images, posting less often throughout the day and posting after/before peak hours. This will help ensure your content doesn’t get lost in madness.

YouTube

YouTube is a powerhouse among social media and has had more than 1 billion users since 2013. According to their own stats page, 300 hours of videos are uploaded to the site every minute. Harnessing the power of YouTube requires four distinctive qualities: (1) Telling a story that appeals to your audience without making it feel like you’re shoving advertisements down their throat. (2) Optimizing your video through great content creation and also smart use of keywords, linking, video descriptions and easy-to-understand titles. (3) Teaming up with YouTube celebrities to enhance the visibility, familiarity and popularity of your brand. (4) Including brand fans and customers in your videos in a way that will promote trust between your brand and the audience.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is all about networking and is focused on professional interests more than any other social media platform. Marketing strategies on LinkedIn should differ depending on whether it’s a brand or a person being marketed. Brand: (1) Create content that demonstrates the brand culture, values and successes and find ways to share tips related to your brand’s industry. (2) Create a community by generating discussions, mentioning users and cultivating relationships rather than just adding followers. (3) Use sponsored updates to broadcast your brand messages to the audience you personally select. This will help you reach users that aren’t followers and increase your brand awareness. Person: (1) Join in community discussions with interesting, valuable information that can help you stand out from the crowd. Take it one step farther by connecting with people who engage in conversation and then endorse them for skills you find relevant. (2) Take advantage of creating a portfolio where you can show off your best work including photos, infographics, writing samples, videos and much more. (3) Optimize your personal profile to include links to your blog, website and social media accounts and make your summary sound less like an automated introduction and more like your energetic, skillful self.

It’s All about Connecting

Social media marketing should combine the best personal traits of the brand with the best optimization methods available to create an engaging, original and exceptional audience experience. People love social media, there’s no problem there. The hard part is getting them to interact with your account.