Many people think social media management is easy. Well, we can’t blame them: almost everyone is on social media 24/7, and if they (ordinary, non-marketing people) can get likes and engagements, anyone can. Well, here’s the thing: social media management for brands is entirely different from social media management of your personal profile.
Sure, maybe you’re getting people to like your personal posts. People keep reacting and tagging friends, and you see your post getting passed around on other people’s news feeds – next thing you know, you’re viral! A dream come true for any social media manager.
But, other than bragging rights, did you gain anything from getting lots of likes from your post? Did people “buy in” to your idea or product and services? Obviously no, because you weren’t selling anything in the first place.
Purpose of Social Media for Brand Management
When doing brand management for brands and companies, you’re not only looking for bragging rights or making your posts viral. You also need to make sure that you implant a sense of “brand recall” so that when people see a certain event or see a particular item, they’ll immediately remember your brand.
And creating that brand recall is what social media is best at.
When you craft a compelling, emotionally-driven post on social media that targets the sensibilities of your audiences, people are sure to share it with friends and family. And when you attach your brand to these kinds of posts, you’re creating a brand recall.
Emotion vs Selling
Many people think that when they make purchasing decisions, they rely on logic and reasoning. However, this isn’t the case according to a psychologist.
In an article in Psychology Today, Peter Noel Murray Ph.D writes that “most people believe that the choices they make result from a rational analysis of available alternatives. In reality, however, emotions greatly influence and, in many cases, even determine our decisions.”
Antonio Damasio, professor of neuroscience at the University of Southern California, also agrees with this idea and argues that emotion is a crucial factor in our decision-making.
Although recently, social media networks have become an avenue for marketing and selling products, users are primarily on social media to connect with family and people with the same interests as them. When dealing with social media, you can expect that going for a “hard sell” approach will not work well.
To get your audience’s attention, craft meaningful messages that show people that you are a brand that cares. When you show the “soft” and human side of your brand, you give audiences a reason to seek your brand. And if you play it just right, you can even grow a brand following.
Crafting The Right Content
Social Media management is a content-heavy job and crafting the right content that will get you that “viral” status is not an easy task.
There’s no clear-cut way to make a viral-worthy content. Going viral can come at any type of post and sometimes at the least expected time – luck plays a big part in going viral.
There are, however, “elements” that many viral posts have. And if you string these elements together, you can increase your chances of going viral. These elements include:
Relevant – Does your post connect to a current event or happening that can relate to your target market? If they see it, will they understand the references you make? Making your post relatable will increase the chances that you will catch your audiences’ attention. This means keeping up-to-date with the “buzz” of the market and what people are talking about on social media.
Emotional – Having emotion in your post is important if you want a good chance of gaining engagement and shares. Since people on social media are looking to “connect” with one another, evoking an emotion through your posts will help them open up their personal opinions on the topic and share it to their friend to get a reaction as well.
Shareable – Giving your audiences a reason to share your post is also a vital element in making the posts go viral. Does your company advocate for something? Use it as a topic for your content! Do you have an upcoming sale? Use sharing as an incentive! There are a lot of ways to make a post shareable, you just need to be creative.
Authentic – Thanks to the change in consumer behaviour, audiences can now easily spot fake marketing. If they spot that you are being a fake, you can expect anti-branding campaigns against your brand. To avoid this, make sure you remain authentic by upholding your company’s principles and vision. If you advocate for eco-friendliness, push for content that highlights your eco-friendly advocacy; if your brand promotes helping customers, make sure your content shows that you are focused on helping clients. In short, don’t send audiences mixed messages about your brand.
Get Your Marketing Game On
Doing social media management for brands and companies is no easy task, it takes a lot of creative input, branding, and brand recall initiatives, research of market behaviour, and finding ways to get engagements and going “viral”.
But if you do your social media marketing right, your hard work will pay off with a large brand following and a brand with a strong online presence that people will talk about. If you want to take advantage of social media for your marketing, but don’t know where to start, you could hire a team of SEO specialists to help you out.
