We asked Slinky Digital and they said like most forms of digital marketing, social media marketing (SMM) is difficult. Although it might have been easy to get great returns on your Facebook ads in the past, SMM has become a lot more competitive, to the point where it’s very easy to lose a lot of money if you’re not careful.
Luckily, there are numerous different ways to leverage social media marketing for your business or website. I’ve outlined five of my favourite in this article, but remember, it’s always a good idea to do your own research and identify the most profitable techniques for your situation.
- Use Heavily Targeted Ads
It’s important to make sure that you don’t fall into the trap of thinking that you can create one advertising campaign and present it to all your potential customers. In fact, doing this will only lose you money.
Instead, you should be creating numerous small, highly targeted ad campaigns which appeal to specific groups of people. This will increase your chance of conversions, boosting your return on investment.
- Test, Test & Test Some More
In reality, there’s no such thing as testing your social media advertising campaigns too much. Although you might be a little impatient, and thus tempted to jump straight into a full-scale campaign, to do so would be suicide.
Instead, think about what sort of ads are going to appeal to your target audience and put together a number of possible campaigns. Test these out with a small percentage of your marketing budget, and then choose the ones which perform best.
- Pay Attention To What Your Competitors Are Doing
It’s always a good idea to do some competitor research so that you can understand exactly what your competitors are doing. If they are succeeding in the industry, then the chances are that they are creating high quality, converting ads. Pay attention to the things that they’re doing, and think about copying them or using similar techniques if possible.
- Retarget Interested Users
Facebook ads are extremely powerful. When used right, you will be able to retarget people who engaged with previous ad campaigns, which will dramatically increase the chances of them visiting your website and purchasing your products or services.
For example, if you have run a video ad campaign, you will be able to identify people who have watched your videos through to the end. Retarget them with a new ad that encourages them to perform some action, and you will find that you have a winning formula for success.
- Leverage Free Social Media Marketing
It’s important to make sure that you don’t forget about free social media marketing. Sure, paid ads are easy when you get them right, but building a strong community around your brand and profile will help drive natural visitors to your site without you having to spend a lot of time or money.
Final Word
Ultimately, using social media marketing can be extremely productive – when it’s done right. In this article I’ve outlined some of the best ways to leverage SMM to your benefit, but make sure that you do your own research and identify the best techniques for your situation.
