8 Common Types of Social Media Marketing You Should Try Out Today
“Social Media puts the ‘public’ into PR and ‘market’ into marketing” – Chris Brown
Being on social media is a must for any business because you know what? Most of your target audience is using it. You need to be on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, and many others. However, as a newbie, you may find it overwhelming and a lot confusing. Worry not, all you need is a bit of guidance and a bit of research and you can leverage the power of social media for your growth.
You must be wondering what exactly is social media marketing. Right? Well, to put it simply, when you use social media platforms to promote your goods and services, you are doing marketing via social media. That’s the whole concept which goes according to the company culture, market requirement, choosing the right platform, and many other factors.
Now, understanding social media can be a broad concept. We have covered the basics of social media in our introductory guide (do give it a read!). Besides, it is a fail-proof marketing technique if you have the right knowledge of almost everything. What makes us say that? Read our piece on the introduction to social media, its benefits, and its pillars to find out.
Assuming that you are well-versed with the basics of social media and social media marketing, let’s look at the common types of social media marketing that you can leverage for your brand.
The Types of Social Media Marketing
When you think about using social media platforms for your business marketing, the idea of posting daily on social media is what strikes your mind. However, this is not what sets your social media marketing apart from your competitors. So, what is the solution?
The first one would be about understanding what all types of marketing are available in the boundless world of social media. Look no further, down there you will get everything you need.
1. Content marketing
Attracting customers on social media is where the first step begins and for that, you need to have something catchy. ‘Content is the king’ is definitely not a bad saying. Why not engage them by creating and sharing company-relevant content on your social media? That’s what content marketing is all about.
When you create images, videos, podcasts, blogs, and other types of content to share on social media platforms to retain an audience, you are being a part of social content marketing.
It doesn’t matter if you are an influencer, social media manager, copywriter, or whatnot, your business requires you to create content non-stop and share everything on social media.
It’s quite natural sometimes to run out of ideas. In that case, you need to have brainstorm sessions, ask your friends, share your experiences/stories, go with the trends, or even ask questions directly to your followers and post something personal to them.
2. Paid Social Ads
You might have come across several ad columns on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram feeds. What do you think those brands are doing? They are advertising their products, of course.
Social Media Advertisements or Social Ads are more of a versatile side of ad campaigns that you post on various social media platforms. Be it about raising brand awareness or boosting sales, paid socials are what you need along with cause-and-effect trials. Most marketers go for this option because:
- It is a low-cost campaign
- Helps you meet a variety of business goals.
83% of marketers use social media advertising for their B2B businesses. These marketers consider this option as one of the best because social media allows them to post highly personalized and relevant content that works as a lead magnet.
Not to mention, paid ads are much more disruptive and more engaging when it appears on a user’s social media wall. Besides, when you create an ad based on connections, user’s interests, and behavior, you are being more target-oriented.
Source:Venngage
3. Influencer Marketing
Has your friend ever told you about the level of comfort in those new pairs of shoes he/she recently bought? You may be a little influenced by their honest review of the product. This is what influencer marketing does because we, as humans, trust word of mouth. No wonder how almost 50% of consumers go with the influencer’s recommendation to buy a product.
Influencer marketing is a marketing type that uses endorsement for a product by influencers. Influencers can be anyone who is an expert in their niche and have people who trust them. Most of them are spread on 3 main platforms – Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat.
Influencer marketing is not as simple as it may sound. You have to keep in mind a lot of things and not just go with the number of followers your influencer has. There must be a connection between your influencer and the type of business you are promoting. Also, you may think of it as branding that takes time to see the actual result. For an idea, it takes about 6 months with consistent posting to see the results.
4. Community Building
Entering the world of social media is definitely not a one-time job. You have to stick with it to stay enclosed with your audience. Building your social community is one type that works wonders for any business as you elevate the brand to the next level.
Creating a community is not just about having a Facebook group of your brand. It is about constant efforts to stay in touch with your fans, customers, and audience as an expert on what you are doing and selling. It can be through constant replies, posting stories, answering queries, and much more. Also, don’t forget another big benefit – free learning about what your customers want. So, no need to go through big research reports because your target is right there in front of you.
Building a social media community for your brand is one amazing strategy for long-term revenue generation. Take it from a brand with continuous customer engagement. 91% of its followers visited the website/app, 89% actually bought from it and 85% recommended it to their peer groups.
Do you see how far it goes? The only thing you need here is patience and consistency.
Source: Smart Insights
5. Sponsorship Marketing
Big companies worldwide are popular mostly because of their sponsorships. We all remember Pepsi Super Bowl Halftime show performances. What is the name we remember apart from the game? Of course the soft drink brand Pepsi. This is exactly what companies do in the social media world.
Sponsorship is more like partnership on social media. In this, other brands or influencers are paid to collaborate and create a marketing campaign for a big success. You can work in sponsorship with anyone who helps you reach out to as many people as possible. However, just like influencer marketing, you would have to see which one is the right area for your brand culture and tone.
Again, the more active you are on social media, the more chances are there to discover those right people for your brand collaborations. This is how you can build a relationship with your audience on a large scale that is way beyond just your social media reachability.
6. Thought Leadership
Every company, nowadays, strives to become the best in the industry. Undoubtedly, social media is one remarkable way to prove that. In that sense, ‘Thought Leader’ is one big buzzword that has been around social media for so long. However, the meaning is still unclear to many.
Being a leader is not just about setting yourself and the company as ‘knowledgeable’ about a specific topic or market. A thought leader is more about becoming an expert in your particular niche.
In a way, thought leadership revolves around narrowing down your area of expertise for a better image to your target people. When you do that, people who are looking for that services or goods will come straight to you instead of wandering around scrolling through pages.
To stand tall as the thought leader, you need to know your audience really well. Once you have that idea of what they want, you can show yourself as their No. 1 go-to service center that shares the real insights and builds trust through diversity and engagement.
7. Forums and Groups Contribution
Social media marketing is entirely a game of action, reaction, and interaction with people whom you are targeting. Why not build your discussion forum or a community group? This is something very common on Facebook and LinkedIn where you bring together like-minded people and get them into a discussion on a common topic.
How is a social media group useful for your business? Having a cohesive community totally pays you off because that is how you can build the affinity for your brand with a constant interaction of members. If your group or forum has a common topic of discussion, a moderator to keep the discussion going, and uniform community rule, it is good to rock.
Again, when you are so close to your target customers, you can spread the message and in exchange receive not just conversions but also free-of-cost market customer research.
Source: Adweek
8. Review and Reputation Management
54% of social browsers use social media platforms for their product research. That shows how much it takes for your brand to stand apart from your competitors and look like the ideal product your customers are searching for. Moreover, there is one thing that influences their purchase decision the most and that is a review from the real users.
A study in 2018 represented how 71% of consumers recommended the brand to their known ones because of their positive experience with the brand. Therefore, when you receive positive feedback from your customer, irrespective of how many followers he/she has, it is your thing to post on your wall.
You can use platforms like Facebook and Instagram to showcase your customer’s reviews. However, it is recommended to go for platforms that are known for this purpose. For instance, there is Yelp, Zomato, and TripAdvisor where people can share their honest reviews and help you reach out to as many people as possible.
Conclusion
Any brand, no matter how big or small it is, can gain leads, conversions, and generate revenue on social media. All it takes is constant efforts and well-done research about the content, platform, and your audience’s requirement and you are good to go. So, before making a commitment and straightaway creating an account on social media, make sure you do your homework beforehand. Choose the right thing, pay attention, and experiment to find the types of social media marketing your target audience would appreciate.
