5 Tips For An Effective Social Media Marketing Campaign
Posted by Jody Raines
It's difficult, when you think of how large the world of social media 
has become, to determine an effective social media strategy. There are so many social media platforms and options, that it's easy to get frustrated, or lost, and after opening an account, simply give up.
Yet social media marketing is a large component of an Internet marketing strategy. As a web marketing consultant, I find the biggest drawback to social media programs is the amount of time it takes.
Social media does take a lot of time. On the positive side, when done effectively, social media marketing can be incredibly rewarding. The biggest advantage of social media is the power that it lends to the message. Unlike advertising, which is sent out to the masses and which has marginal credibility, social media takes our words and positions them from friends. We trust the recommendations of our friends, and therefore, the power of a simple social media message can have great impact on the bottom line.
I love the fact that a great tweet can be retweeted so many times, adding to your "influence".
Here are 5 tips to get started on an effective social media campaign. I welcome your input and thoughts and hope to add to this list over time.
1. Decide who you want to talk to
Just like any other kind of marketing effort, it's important to decide who your audience is. Then you can determine where the best place is to find them, as well as the best way to talk with them. I'm a proponent of developing a 'persona'... that's a profile of a person that describes your audience. By understanding "who", we can then figure out "what" and "where".
"What" is the message and "where" describes the places that your persona is likely to be conversing or posting.
2. Learn the correct protocol
Each social media platform has it's own jargon and protocol. For example, in Twitter, it's the RT. However, using RT in Facebook is not appropriate. Posting personal info is not appropriate in Linkedin, yet it's part of the appeal of Facebook.
It's important to understand what the expectation is for each of the platforms. Again, posting "tweets" on Linkedin is the fastest way to turn off your connections.
3. Be social, not salesy
The worst thing you can do is to use any of the Social Media platforms for bleating your sales message. It's not appropriate on any of the social media platforms to constantly push your product. For the most part, no one wants to communicate with someone who is selling them.
Make friends, learn how to help others. By helping others, you earn respect and others will want to help you.
My grandmother used to say you get more flies with sugar than with vinegar - share the love, help others and it will come back to you.
4. Use consistently
Plan some time each day to devote to the message. Not everyone can be in front of their computer or texting on their phone 24/7. It's part of the beauty of social media that your audience will check in at different times. If you are not consistent with your presence, your top-of-mind awareness will eventually fade.
5. Add value
Your audience is interested in something - what expertise can you share? What can you offer that is appealing or interesting? Make your content compelling - guides, how-to's, lists, insights. It can also be helpful content that was posted by others that you find notable.
My next post will share some time saving tips on how to handle your Social Media Marketing program.
WebMarCom is an Internet strategy and Web Marketing Communications Agency based in South Jersey and Philadelphia.