The craving for connection is a fundamental requirement for human beings. According to Maslow’s hierarchy, our psychological needs for belongingness and love hold significant importance, positioned at the center of the pyramid. Preventing individuals from fulfilling these needs hinders their personal growth and attainment of self-actualization.
Maybe this longing for connection is the reason why social media addiction is prevalent among contemporary humans. Around the globe, approximately 4.70 billion individuals engage in social media, devoting an average of 2.5 hours daily to their preferred platforms.
Social Media Marketing
Social media marketing involves utilizing social media platforms to identify and engage with your target audience, establish your brand, and generate income. In order to achieve success in social media marketing, companies need to produce genuine content specifically designed to cater to their audience’s requirements and preferences. It is vital to monitor the level of engagement with this content through analytics and consistently enhance it based on the gathered data.
In the early days, brands utilized social media marketing to direct users to their websites with the aim of selling their products or services. Nevertheless, today, social media profiles are considered as an expansion of a brand’s website, and content must be tailored for and posted directly on social media platforms to enhance the chances of user interaction and satisfy social media algorithms.
Benefits of Social Media Marketing
1. Increase trustworthiness and brand recognition
The internet, due to the expanding realm of ecommerce, has become a haven for hackers, scammers, and cyber-crime, making it a perilous environment.
In the last two years, data collected by the European Commission reveals that at least one of these types of fraud/scams was experienced by 56% of those surveyed. These types of crimes can be divided into three main categories: Buying Scams, Identity Theft, and Monetary Fraud.
As consumers gain more knowledge in handling online privacy and security threats, they seek indicators of reliability to ensure trust before engaging in transactions with a new or unfamiliar business.
Research indicates that during the consideration stage of the buyer’s journey, 54% of individuals who browse social media check the social media pages of companies. It has been observed that maintaining an active and organic social media presence that presents a consistent view of your branding can enhance levels of trust among customers.
You can enhance the credibility of your social media presence by:
- Ensuring all branding elements such as @ handles, logos, colors, branded hashtags, images, etc., are present and consistent with your main website.
- Ensure your profiles contain a secure link to your website and other relevant social media profiles.
- Always reply to customer comments and feedback – both when it is positive and negative.
- Share user-generated content (UGC), mentions, and customer reviews.
- Be consistent with graphic elements such as filters on images, fonts for text in video content and photographs, colors, etc.
- Have a clear and consistent brand voice across all social and owned media.
2. Enhance the levels of customer service and ensure greater customer satisfaction.
The presence of social media benefits brands as it allows direct communication with their audience, enabling customers to engage with brands promptly. This aspect has its pros and cons for brands.
Brands that utilize the real-time feedback offered by social media actively listen to their followers and respond accordingly.
It is important for consumers to express their opinions about your brand, whether positive or negative, as your brand reputation can be influenced by how promptly and effectively you respond. If brands fail to utilize this opportunity for communication, they may come across as indifferent, leading to consumer frustration and a decline in brand loyalty.
3. Foster online community and tell authentic stories
Social media’s dominance stems from its ability to provide representation, granting a platform to individuals who are seldom featured or acknowledged in traditional media. Moreover, it facilitates connections among diverse individuals, forming virtual communities where people can find solace and feel acknowledged, thereby alleviating the sense of loneliness often experienced in their daily lives.
To effectively connect with online communities and their members, brands aim to share genuine narratives that emphasize the significant matters and principles cherished by the brand and its customers. When communicating on social media, targeting the emotions and interests of your intended audience will result in increased interaction and devotion.
Google refers to this form of creating a community as “Identity loyalty.” It entails consumers who strongly relate to a brand’s compelling and genuine narratives, participating willingly in promotional endeavors like sharing with their loved ones.
4. Become part of the zeitgeist
As a marketer, it is crucial to stay updated on societal trends due to the significant impact they can have on consumer behavior. When there are significant changes in lifestyles, opinions, or habits, consumers tend to adapt accordingly. Failing to keep up with these changes can result in a loss of audience and decline in revenue.
Fortunately, social media provides a miniature representation of society. It encompasses a variety of popular subjects, trending fads, and significant concerns. By attentively monitoring the discussions of your audience on social media platforms, you can discern the type of content that resonates with them. Consequently, you can engage with them in innovative ways, entertaining your followers while actively participating in the ongoing conversation.
Brands paying attention to the current trends and using them to connect with their audience like a friend can be observed through social media “challenges”.
In 2020, the #DollyPartonChallenge was a prime illustration. The renowned country-western singer showcased her four different moods in a photo, representing her various appearances on distinct social media platforms. Observant brands quickly joined in and achieved remarkable outcomes.
5. Research new products
Keeping your eye on consumer conversations in your industry, you can reap further benefits.
One of the major advantages of social media marketing is the ability to generate discussions about product improvements through posts. Similar insights can also be gained from consumer trends on other pages. This benefit allows for direct transmission of information to the research and development department.
6. Educate customers
Consumer education is one of the significant advantages of social media marketing as it offers ample opportunity.
Advertising on social media allows you to offer assistance to people who may require or desire guidance on using a particular item, depending on your product range. Additionally, it enables you to aid individuals in deciding which product best suits their needs. Equally significant, social media advertising allows you to keep customers informed about company news and the introduction of new products.
7. Improved brand loyalty
Improving brand loyalty entails establishing a connection with your customers, a task made easier by the numerous benefits of social media marketing. Building these connections allows for a higher likelihood of regular product purchases, regardless of the purchasing platform, thereby resulting in financial gain.
The evidence supports this fact. INC reports that Millennials not only have the highest affinity for social media but also exhibit the greatest brand loyalty among all generations.
Further studies have proven that the likelihood of Millennials being loyal to brands increases by 62% when those brands directly engage with them through social media channels. Therefore, the connection between social media engagement and brand loyalty is undeniably evident.
8. Increased inbound web traffic
Brands can also experience an increase in their inbound Web traffic as another means of gaining social media marketing benefits.
On a basic level, many people will use Google to search for a brand they are curious about. However, the amount of traffic provided by different social media channels varies depending on their functions. Sometimes, due to a lack of direct linking, users may have to navigate directly to the website, and the inbound traffic may not necessarily be associated with that particular network.
9. Generate leads and increase sales
One of the advantages of social media marketing is the boost in leads and sales. This occurs when followers inquire or seek guidance, and by responding to their messages, it signifies your appreciation for their support. Moreover, it aids prospective customers in making informed decisions about purchasing your products, which is especially crucial for certain product categories.
Once again, empirical evidence has reaffirmed the validity of this principle. According to Social Media Examiner, a study revealed that 66% of marketers experienced an increase in leads by dedicating a minimum of six hours per week on social media networks.
Additionally, leads that are generated through social media marketing have twice the close rate compared to leads generated from outbound marketing. These statistics collectively indicate that leads attained from social media platforms are abundant and of superior quality. Moreover, the acquisition of these leads does not require a significant amount of staff time.
10. Unparalleled target advertising that you can’t do outside of social media
The ability to target certain consumer groups is one of the biggest benefits of social media marketing.
Traditional media provides the option to choose specific shows, magazines, or newspapers for advertising, while electronic media offers additional opportunities. For instance, ads can be tailored based on a consumer’s browsing history. Nevertheless, social media surpasses all in its ability to precisely target audiences.
11. Choosing a social network
Deciding on the most suitable social media network is not just a straightforward task of selecting one that matches your target audience. Rather, it involves considering the desired content format for your advertisement. Some networks perform better with video content, while others prioritize photos. Additionally, specific social networks strongly appeal to particular demographics.
Demographic targeting
Irrespective of the network you select, advertisers have the option to select the target audience for the ad.
By following a step-by-step approach, one can rephrase the given text while preserving its original meaning: In order to reduce costs associated with CPM fees, it is possible for a brand that sells specific hygiene products to target the ad only to individuals who are suitable for the product. Another option is to include individuals whose profiles indicate they take care of someone belonging in the target group. This strategy ensures that the money spent on advertising generates more valuable leads.
Interest targeting
The simplest way to target interest is by advertising craft or hobby supplies on publications or websites focused on that specific activity. Nevertheless, social media provides greater flexibility in this aspect. By utilizing cookies and the information in a person’s profile, suitable targets can be identified.
12. Strengthen performance marketing
Retargeting plays a significant role in online advertising.
Presenting an offer multiple times increases the chances of someone accepting it, which is a well-known strategy for successful salespeople. While impulse purchases do exist, they do not significantly contribute to overall sales across all types of products. This is particularly true in cases where buyers need to conduct research before making a purchase decision.
In addition, there is the opportunity to improve your marketing strategy. Advertisements do not elicit identical responses from all individuals. By monitoring the level of engagement with an ad, you can ascertain which ones are more effective.
The effectiveness of influencer ads is determined by follower numbers and engagements in the same way.
In recent times, an increasing number of businesses are allocating their marketing resources towards social media. However, not everyone comprehends the advantages of social marketing that they are receiving. Furthermore, some businesses are failing to take advantage of these benefits. By familiarizing yourself with the benefits of these investments, you might be able to maximize the value of your expenditure.
