No Strategy, No Success–Know Strategy, Know Success
Since everybody is doing it you may feel compelled to jump on the social media bandwagon. The compulsion can be a good thing but only if you know why you want to use social media for your business and what your expectations are for its use.
I began using social media, more specifically Facebook in the summer of 2008. I started with ideas of grandeur, excitement of the newness of it but honestly, I did not have a plan. In fact, a plan never entered my mind much less a strategy for using social media for small business. Realizing quickly I was not getting results that changed my business I knew I had to do something different. I then made intentional efforts to find out how to use social media for small business. I now make it my business to help others in small business develop a social media strategy that works for them and builds strong online relationships.
Experience has proven the following for small businesses using social media:
- The two best social media platforms for businesses are Facebook and Twitter.
- Only a small fraction of your fan and followers will actually see what you post.
- Make your posts count; they must bring value to the table for your fans and followers.
Knowing these three things I encourage you to begin building your social media strategy. In order to do so, you must have a clear understanding of who your ideal client is. This is not the time to be vague. Get laser focused and know who you are targeting your content to, otherwise, it falls on deaf ears.
[tweetthis]As part of your strategy you need to know what your idea of success is.[/tweetthis] How will you know you have arrived if you do not know where you are going? If success in social media is a certain number of followers, then work toward that number. If success in social media is lead generation, work out a strategy that leads your fans and followers to a point where you can capture the lead. If social media success is strictly sales, you need to reorganize! No one logs on to a social media platform with visions of buying dancing in their head.
PLAN. With a clear idea of success in your head, sit down and write out a plan. Break the plan down into small actionable steps. Be as detailed as you can without overthinking it.
ACT. Make a point to act on your plan each day. Don’t go for giant steps. Break it down into baby steps. You are working strategy and the results will come in due time.
COMMIT. Be firmly committed to your plan and act accordingly. If you are the type who needs others to hold you accountable to your plan, find a group where you can get the support you need.
TRACK. Take time to track your progress along the way. Forging ahead without getting a clear vision of where your efforts are taking you may miss some of the joy of seeing your strategy falling into place. Tracking your progress give you a clear view of what’s working, what’s not working and what needs improvement.
Build your social media strategy with a plan; act on it; commit to it; and track your progress. Choose one thing you can implement today; what will it be?
