>Do you find yourself questioning what to do next after your company has a Linkedin, Facebook & Twitter page? What to write, what to say, ultimately…how to make $$ with all this? OR…are you wondering if the content you post will bring in business?
These are all important questions and the answer will be the key to your Social Media Marketing (SMM) success.
One of the most important SMM “rules” you will learn is:
Valuable Content = Money
So what exactly does this mean?
First, know your audience. Who do you target? Be specific and break down each target audience (TA) into segmented groups. Put yourself in their position…what do they need…what problems do they want solved. Building a profile for each is crucial in order to create valuable content. A great resource on developing “buyer personas” is the book “New Rules of Marketing & Public Relations” by David Meerman Scott.
Moving forward, when writing content, keep in mind that a constant sales pitch is not appealing and can be an immediate turn off. Your content should not be salesy. Instead, by providing your TA with valuable content, you will indirectly be pitching your service or product – aka “the undercover sales pitch.” Valuable content offers educational, interesting or just plain fun concepts. For example, would you rather read how ABC company can increase your revenue and generate leads…blah…blah…blah…OR read “Top Ten Tips to Increase Revenue & Generate Leads.” The latter is more valuable as it is educational and its FREE information that is helpful. I don’t have to pay ABC company to tell me…heck, I don’t even have to call ABC company to find out. I get instant gratification. Now of course at the end of the top ten tips you will have your call to action (CTA) – “Schedule 5 minutes with us!” – “Sign up for Free Webinar to learn more” – “Call for a free Consult.” It’s important to peak your prospect’s interest long enough to stay on your website, blog, or social media outlet, get them to read the article and then be intrigued enough to take the next step in the “buying” process. And…since the content is valuable, this person may just even bookmark you, subscribe to your newsletter and even refer people to your site/blog/etc.!
So how exactly should you be utilizing your social media outlets with respect to valuable content? Here are a few tips:
1. Update statuses frequently – every day at least – keep you/your company in the forefront of people’s minds. Law of 29 in the marketing world is an unofficial rule that states people will not make a “buying” decision until they have seen your message at least 29 times – commonly talked about with drip marketing campaigns. I have proven that you can drive a prospect into the buying process after just 1 powerful marketing message, but the idea behind this “rule” rings true. So, post often.
2. Give a taste by using an intriguing headline or title (a problem based question works best) and then provide a link to the content on your website, blog or wherever it may be - website is best in order to drive traffic to your site. If you are not being salesy, you will keep the prospect’s attention AND most importantly get them to click on your link.
3. Give away something of value for FREE. This is huge. I know you are saying, “Nothing is free in this world,” but offering a free Ebook, free webinar, free consult – something of value will get you a long way. Change the rule – yes! Some things are free in this world!
4. Always remember to provide links to your website, blog, etc. External links will help you with your SEO. Google now indexes tweets so use this to your advantage!
5. Make it interactive! Content becomes more valuable when it promotes interaction from your prospect. For example, post a quiz on your area of expertise, ask for a story or testimonial to feature in a section of your newsletter, ask a question via “Ask the Expert”, etc. If the prospect is involved they are intrigued enough to participate!
6. Keep it simple. When providing valuable content, keep it simple. Since social media requires daily posting, keeping each message simple and about one point is crucial.
7. It’s not all about “me, me, me” (recently reinforced in a Decker Communications course - Making the Message Stick). Your content should be about your TA. When its about them, they are more apt to keep reading. Always answer - “What’s in it for them (your TA)”
The list can go on and on…but this should give you a head start on how to use valuable content to create new business.
Overall, understand your target audience and segment each as they will have different messages. You are the expert in what you do and it’s beneficial to share that expertise through valuable, educational content. Another helpful blog is: “Creating Valuable Content: Three Keys to Success.”
Godspeed.
Very valid, pithy, succnict, and on point. WD.