TotalWeb Partners Blog

While social media continues to play a huge role in Americans’ lives in both a personal and professional sense, there’s also a growing wariness that marketers need to be aware of. For example, a 2018 Pew Research Center study found that social media overtook print newspapers as a more popular news source, yet a 2019 Pew study revealed that 62 percent of U.S. adults think social media companies have too much control over the news that users see.

Leading into 2020, social networks appear primed for both active engagement and active scrutiny, and social media companies may quickly change how they operate as a result. For example, Twitter recently announced they would stop allowing political advertising, and networks like Instagram are experimenting with hiding the number of likes on posts in an effort to reverse the negative mental health effects associated with social media comparisons, as CNET reports.

For marketers, even if these changes do not seem to apply directly to your brand, they underscore the point that social media marketers tend to operate on rented land. The major social media networks are publicly traded companies that exist to grow their own businesses, not yours. They are the ones in control of how their platforms work, and your efforts to be successful through their mediums, such as building up your followers to reach an organic audience, can essentially be made irrelevant overnight.

Read more: 5 Ways to Dominate Social Media Marketing in 2020

Social media marketing is a form of internet marketing that relies on the process of gaining traffic or attention through social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. By utilizing these platforms to connect with potential customers, you can build your brand and increase sales.

Each platform has different resources and goals that can benefit your business in different ways. According to Statista, 70 percent of the U.S. population has at least one social media profile. By 2021, the number of worldwide social media users is expected to be roughly 3.1 billion people. So many consumers using social media every day creates a valuable opportunity for businesses who want to reach their audience through platforms they’re already spending time on. Users are active on social media platforms because these channels offer a fun and easy way to network, keep in touch with friends and family and stay connected with what’s going on in the world.

I’m going to touch on the three major social media marketing platforms that can help your business truly take advantage of all that the online marketing world has to offer.

Social Media Marketing With Facebook

Facebook takes the lead as the most widely used social media marketing platform by adults, meaning there is a never ending opportunity to expand your audience and drive traffic to your website.

Getting started on Facebook can seem overwhelming; if you’re ready to begin, check out these tips and tricks from Sprout Social to get the most out of the ever-powerful social media platform.

Read more: How To Use Social Media Marketing For Your Business

It’s time to amp up and adjust our marketing strategies for the holidays – and if you want to get ahead of the marketing game and stand out from the crowd, check out these key tips and pointers from some of the top social media marketing experts.

Included here are insights from Mari Smith, Neil Patel, Virginia Nussey, Dennis Yu, Lilach Bullock, Lisa Dougherty, Marsha Collier, Sujan Patel and Kristel Cuenta-Cortez.

So let’s jump right in – and I’ll kick things off with my own number one holiday marketing tip.

1. 1. Run Facebook Messenger Ads | Larry Kim, CEO of MobileMonkey

Ad prices get crazy competitive around the holidays.

Since most of your sales are going to come from customers with pre-existing brand affinity, you should focus the majority of your social ads budget using remarketing as the targeting option, as opposed to trying out new, unproven audiences at this critical time.

People’s inboxes will be full of offers, so try reaching your audience using new higher-engagement marketing channels like Facebook Messenger ads in Facebook and Instagram to ensure that your audience actually sees your important marketing messages

2. Go Live on Facebook | Mari Smith, Facebook Marketing Expert

Use holiday-themed Facebook Live videos to really engage with your audience this holiday season.

Facebook continues to favor content that generates meaningful social interaction, specifically conversations between people within the comments on Page posts.

Live video typically leads to discussion among viewers on Facebook, which helps get the attention of its algorithm, meaning you should see even more reach on your posts.

In fact, Facebook states that live videos, on average, get six times as many interactions as regular videos.

Strive to stand out in the News Feed and create “thumb-stopping” live video content that draws your audience in.

Read more: 10 Experts Share Their Social Media Marketing Tips for the Holidays

Businesses and brands are constantly competing for attention on social media, and with all the noise and incessant messaging, how can you make your voice heard?

You have to find ways to cut through the noise and stand out like a unicorn in a sea of donkeys.

But how?

Here, I’m revealing a few of my favorite social media marketing tactics that have helped me grow my businesses and stand out on social.

1. Plan a content strategy and create an editorial calendar for your social channels.
Marketers are sometimes at a loss at what to post on social media.

Successful social media marketing doesn’t happen on accident — there’s a strategy in place, just as there is with a blog.

Look at the big picture and come up with social content that will resonate with your audience.

Map out seasonal content, as well as content related to events or launches your company is planning.

Work closely with your editorial and marketing teams to know what’s coming down the pipeline and strategize the best ways to promote it.

2. Invest in the right social channels.
It’s not just about what social content you share — it’s also about where you share it.

Not all social platforms are created equally, and where one business gets amazing engagement, another might fall flat.

B2Bs, for example, might do very well on LinkedIn, but not so hot on Instagram.

Meanwhile, B2Cs usually thrive on Instagram.

Find the platform that aligns with your audience.

3. Dive into new social platforms headfirst.
Another unicorn social tactic?

Find the latest and greatest platform, and dive in — before your competition.

One prime example?

Facebook Messenger.

The open rates on this thing are sky high (80% on average).

There are 300 million active monthly Messenger users, and you can communicate with them straight through Messenger in an engaging format that they prefer!

Whether you want to create customer service bots, bots that can schedule appointments, or bots to deliver key content, you can do it all on Facebook Messenger.

Read more: 8 Ways Your Business Can Stand Out on Social Media in 2019