Your social media marketing doesn’t have to suck. Prove yourself that you were wrong. It can drive traffic, boost sales, and build engaging interactions. Don’t forget about that.
Social media marketing community is still young and growing. It seems to be a dream job – spending time on Facebook, Instagram etc., posting something, watching some videos. This meme below describes differences between expectations, image, and reality.
Source: WeKnowMemes
Despite being a fresh business channel – social media marketing has evolved in many ways. From beginners enthusiasm, through the methodology creation, to everyday routine. For many creative people, it has become a nightmare – measurement over creation, SMART strategies over on-spot interactions, and business effectiveness first.
In addition – Facebook organic reach slump, sales teams expectations (leads, shoppable content, extra traffic), lack of engagement, 8-seconds attention span, and Instant Articles. It all has changed the fun of doing social media by teenagers into a serious job with real troubles. As the first generation of social media experts has grown, new problems have appeared – job burnout, the necessity of keeping the budget in mind, increasing expectations, and declining possibilities of innovations.
It’s time to accept that, as others jobs, social media marketing requires less interesting tasks also. No matter how great could be that job without them and how epic was the beginnings. As others marketing channels – social media becomes more professional. Let’s try to overcome business challenges with less or more known resources first. Then you will have to accept that your job is no longer that funny adventure. It’s important and valuable business. Treat these problems with reach and low engagement as a chance to find creative solutions.
#Challenge Low Attention Span
8-seconds attention span (lower than goldfish by the way) means that you have to be a great content craft. Quality is essential and never getting older. But as well in our social life – before we have a chance to get to know how great someone is, we have to find something interesting in her/his appearance/way of being.
In social media, you need some attractive features/tricks to make people say: Hi, how are you doing? You seems interesting and it would be great to get to know you. Or just respond to your chatting up: Fine, show me what you got! On Facebook and Twitter, you can start this kind of interaction with interactive content. Quizzes, surveys, and polls are made to grab and sustain engagement. Well-build engagement can be turned into more lasting relationships. Check out this quiz below:
Here is an invitation to discuss fashion style (you style) – let’s focus on the Welcome page. What’s the attention grabber here? The gif with the nice-looking, smiling man? Interesting topic? Challenge? The direct and nice phrase – Hey there, handsome! Or the promise to give you the answer to the eternal question – What is my style? Every one of theses factors may be the key here, but the combination is very suggestive.
You are able to adjust your interactive content to your industry, audience, and the suite of products/services. When choosing your quiz maker, check its features: design and sharing options, if different questions (open forms, picture choice, ratings, multiple choice) and content types (gifs, video, audio) are available, what you can get from its analytics panel.
#Make Your Social Media Shoppable
Thanks to many extra features, social media are ready to drive sales. Depends on different channels, here are the most efficient solutions.
Drive Sales Through Instagram Widget
Instagram, with all that filters, design options, and hashtags is a perfect sales channel. Despite limitation with adding links in posts (links on Instagram can be added only in account bio) smart solutions allow easily turn follower interest into buying decision. In the example below you will see a fashion eCommerce, It doesn’t mean that only lifestyle companies or even only eStores can use it. Social hubs allow linking posts with product pages and chosen places on the website as well.
Missisboss case study is precisely described in this post. These shots above illustrate the buyer’s journey. First, followers see the item – they feel that they want to buy it. In the next step, they go to an account bio. Through the link, they are redirected to social media widget on Missisboss website. To buy preferred stuff they have to click on the chosen post. On the product site, they can select details and pay through the trolley button.
3-4 clicks process instead of double searching is a strong asset. If you are interested in creating your Instagram widget, follow the guideline. Learn how to link Instagram with eCommerce, make a use of commerce URL and give your sales team customers to record, not just a lead for nurturing.
Use Interactive Content to Boost Sales
Quizzes, polls, surveys, and assessments can be used not only as lead generators. Interactive content creators take advantage of their forms to increase sales results. See the example of CoffeeDesk – polish eStore. Their quiz is made in polish so it may be difficult to follow-up but let’s try.
It’s outcome page of this quiz. They encourage me to visit they blog and check answers which is a smart solution to generate extra traffic. But let’s focus on sales – discount code in exchange for taking part is a strong factor in shopping decision making. Below you will get an outcome from Avon quiz. Exit links drive you directly to the online store.
These quizzes are made for Facebook. Try out to boost your revenue by creating a few with Engageform.
#Befriend Facebook Instant Articles
FIAs were one of that upcoming changes that everyone is afraid of. Wasn’t that bad for content publishers as they thought. Actually, this way of content delivering has gained many enthusiasts. Instant Articles look interesting, are more comfortable to consume, and allow readers save their time thanks to the lack of redirections. What’s important to content publishers – there is an available feature to reward traffic decline.
Instead of generating website traffic from posts, you can get leads from Instant Articles. All you need is adding interactive content (quizzes, polls, or surveys) to FIA. Then, make sure that chosen form contain email/phone leaving box. Follow this guide to learn how to do that.
What’s even more interesting – Engageform allows adding gifs, videos and audio content in questions (find out more). That build a new kind of readers experience. Catching audience attention requires out of the ordinary solutions. This example shows the best, that needs to overcome some challenges make people be more creative than they used to be.
#Deal With Paying On Facebook Or Make Unusual Content
Facebook organic reach slump is a serious inconvenience. For many business owners is a big treat. You may try to overcome it in two ways.
First one – creating engaging and sharable content that make people feel involved on a totally new level. Facebook prioritize users voice, mutual interactions and wants people to take action. Your job is to make entertaining and highly addictive content. And more – it should contain features that encourage viewers to pull the trigger and promote it.
Here is a place for a combination of tricks and gamification factors. When it comes to making shareable content, Adweek suggests using interactive forms (quizzes, polls, surveys, assessments).
Users love taking and sharing quizzes across social media sites and the web, and marketers are using them as a way to engage with audiences. Leverage this trend in 2016 by integrating quizzes and polls in your content marketing strategy.
As an owner of the business Facebook page, you need promoters and advocates. They are able to boost your reach. Also, you can support distribution with paying promotion. And that’s the second way.
Choose Boost post button, select preferred audience (powerful feature – demographic and interests filters) and your budget. It’s an inexpensive solution for everyone (you need 50 likes for your Page). A useful asset mainly thanks to targeting possibilities.
Social media marketing brings new quality to business relationships. Some trends may seem difficult to overcome but they force us to develop our toolkit. Working in this business space is special. Even if sometimes you are tired and new changes messing up your ideal strategy. And the best part is – we can keep looking forward – social media are on the rise and will surprise us many times.
#content marketing #Facebook #instagram #Instant Articles #interactive content #Social Hub #Social Media #twitt #Widget