Social Engagement Strategies to Reach Consumers Today

Social engagement should be the heart of social marketing strategy.  Marketers planning digital strategies are finding the social media user evolves in social interests of platforms and communities. This new target is not only using social media, they are contributing to news online.  They are collaborating and expect you to become part of that collaboration.  The days of one way communication have come and gone.  Consumers expect to be entertained.  CMOs and top markers today are building strategies which not only entertain the audience, but engage the new target market to assist in marketing efforts as they leverage the social network of each engaged consumer.

Your brand's reputation will be affected by social strategy, to include brand image seen within social communities, in comments of users, posts to blogs.  These strategies to reach social media users will include images, video, and social aggregation of content.  Engagement of consumers in social media begins with images, video and animated gifs. in posts.

Provide content which the target market can identify with and serve the content, in a new and interesting way, to enable social user engagement, shares, and likes.  For example, if you are targeting women, of a certain demographic, consider general interests.  Consider needs of the market, where they collaborate within social media and listen to what they are saying.

Presenting fashion trends of 2015, served to Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter users, with images and animated files found online would engage social female users.  It would provide teens and college students with prom dress ideas, Gen Y with fashionable work attire and women of all ages with the latest trends on fashion.  In order to serve this content, we do not have to necessarily be selling fashion.  We could be marketing services and realize consumers who are engaged in material we provide them will appreciate the content, have a desire to like, share and contribute to it.


Follow NY Fashion Week on Pinterest.


Stay up with current events and review trends of your target market.
Social media planning should include review of current trending topics, as consumers are responding to current trends and collaborating on the topic.  Fashion, Food, Movies and Art have a big impact on social culture.  Use images with animated gifs to add interest and entice engagement.

Twitter and Dove released information on recent social media use, associated with comments tweeted by women.  Dove launched a campaign, to contribute to the social good through #SpeakBeautiful which gained respect of consumers, media and marketing peers alike.  Look up #socialmarketingcircle on Twitter or Google+ to see more on Social Media Outreach .  We embedded a tweet of Arianna Huffington on the subject, in social conversation held last night on Twitter.

One tweet can start a trend. Let's #SpeakBeautiful. http://t.co/SLpBop9DAN
— Arianna Huffington (@ariannahuff) February 23, 2015

Include social media outreach to give back.
Position your brand to contribute to the social good.  This generation of mobile users is interested in sharing content and affiliations to brands which they are proud to associate with.

Consider customer loyalty programs.
Earn loyal customers through transparent customer loyalty programs. Tell them what they will be getting for brand shares and interaction up front.  Build relationships with social consumers.  Include Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Google+ and Tumblr in your plan.

Advertise in the social media.
Many social media users are rarely disconnected.  Advertising in social media, with use of images and video, is converting to visitors and online sales.  Advertise to reach the consumer and drive traffic back to the page they will convert on.  Use Facebook display ads to link directly to your site or targeted landing page.  Use retargeting display advertising to bring consumers back to your website. Make sure your brand stays in front of the target market, with a message they are responding to.  Post buy analysis of social marketing strategies should take place frequently.  Don't wait 90 days to change a negative trend or optimize a positive campaign.

Trending campaign analysis can be found via social network engagement of advertising on Facebook and Twitter, for example, in metrics found in Ad management dashboards.  Watch views and engagement  of certain elements, to refine strategy.

Watch what your audience is responding to and move swiftly.  Although social media campaigns involve planning, the frequently optimized campaign could realize higher returns. See an example in our engagement of the bridal runway gif advertisement trending on Google @rostinventures


Social media customers are producing a measurable economic impact in 2015.

Contribute to brand acceptance of this market through a clear vision and understanding of the future.   Creative thinking is required when structuring a social marketing plan. Reach social users with these strategies, and they will reward your brand with increased acceptance, brand loyalty, and valuable online reputation.

Use social aggregation and content curation platforms like Storify.com to reach, quote, and contribute to social media strategy for 2015.  Join The Social Marketing Circle to learn from experts in social media marketing as we review examples of brand strategies of the SMB to the Enterprise. Engage through High PR Valued Sites on a paid ranking strategy. Get #1 on Google with PR4-PR8 Contextual Links - GUARANTEED rankings & PageRank increase on Google. Check out the details.

7 Content Marketing Strategies to Share

Is content marketing part of your brand marketing plan?  Use these proven strategies to build brand awareness, social media engagement, customer loyalty, website traffic, leads and sales. 

Content marketers use their writing and advertising skills to create high-quality blog posts and articles that will increase traffic to websites of the small business to the enterprise.  Creating content that is intriguing, eye-catching, and presented in a shareable way is essential in promoting your brand, and there are a variety of ways to improve upon your content marketing strategy for the coming year.

State Interesting Facts.

Quotes and fun facts are a great way to keep readers interested in your content.   Facts add value to your content and build credibility.  This information is the easiest for others to share, and it may keep readers intrigued enough to check out other things that you have to offer. Data-driven articles are also highly successful for SEO purposes. 

The fact is – people search for information and everyone enjoys being able to provide answers.  Give them the answers and they will share your content with their friends.  The more people you have reading and sharing your content, the higher your content will rank in search results.

Build in Visuals.

Content that is visually stimulating builds audiences. Today’s reader begins with visual ques.  Video, photos, and infographics are key components to include to increase engagement.

A post that is well formatted and includes an image is more likely to be shared, read, and liked than posts that do not feature an image. Incorporating multiple visuals throughout a post increases the readers’ time on page, engagement, and brand recall.

Video Engagement – Example

Go to your YouTube Channel.  Click on Analytics below your video.  Look at your audience retention – relative retention engagement stats on your videos.   

What images are your viewers responding to?  Where does your viewership move beyond the average, into engaged? 

Use those images to add to other online and mobile content

Photography Engagement

It was easier to understand the video engagement example through use of photography.  The depth of photography allows the consumer to identify with content.  Test image responses in social media to repeat use within article content.

We discovered one of these images was more likely to be shared within social media.   Guess which one it is.  Comment on this article with your response.  We’ll show you where you can find the answers to this question as well as which images you can use to engage your audiences.

  

Infographic – Example

Infographics have become a staple in content development.  Illustrations of a process can be defined through infographics.  Consumers are responding and sharing these files with their friends and contacts in social media.

The result of the most popular photos listed in tweets is shown on Twitter.com.  A graphic image was listed as the “Top Tweet, including a Photo,” which illustrates the value of infographics.  Notice how the image illustrates increased activity of brands engaging social audiences.

 

Format List Articles.

The title of this article included 7 content marketing strategies.  You are still reading.

List articles are one of the most popular types of content available, as they feed the human desire for organization and education.  Make sure you fulfill your promise to the reader.  A structure should be followed, when writing a list article in order to fulfill your readers’ expectations and achieve your desired result.

Large headlines, an introduction, and a conclusion are essential.  Some readers may just scan your article and move on.  Others will read every word.  Lists feed both readers with the information they are looking for. 

Lists are also easily shared, so make sure that you are adding social plug-ins to your page to enable your readers to share articles within social media, tweet and retweet article content, share images and video content.

Post Long Articles.

Some companies tend to stick to short posts when creating online content, believing that no one will be reading their articles anyway.   Believe that, and it will be true! 

The right people will read your articles, even lengthy posts. In fact, research from SerpIQ 2014 found that the average word length from the top 10 results on a Google search exceeded 2,000 words. A similar research initiative by Moz found that their posts with the most words were also the most frequently shared.

The short of it:  Give your readers information and keep them interested.

Write for Readability.

Although we tend to tend to use industry related words in conversation, we need to remember how to write for the market we are trying to reach.  While it’s important to write posts that convey your knowledge about a particular subject matter, being overly wordy or too technical in your descriptions can be problematic. Many social media professionals recommend writing at a middle school reading level, but most importantly, you should always write for your audience.

In summary: Produce content that your readers can understand and enjoy.

Construct Good Arguments.

Engage in debate.  A good argument can create a great piece of content.   While an angry rant isn’t likely to get your business or brand any positive attention, a blog post with intent, structure, and a clear point of view can be a powerful piece of content.

Bottom line: Get to the point.  

Choose a position, stick to it, & use the article to prove your point.  Engage in Debate.  Remember that there are two sides to every story, so be sure that you not only are accurately representing the position that you are arguing for, but also the opposite position.

Engage in Conversations.

If your business operates in a well-defined niche, it is highly likely that you’ll know the names of your biggest competitors and fellow bloggers. You may get their emails, read their articles, and interact with them regularly. One of the benefits of content marketing is that you’ll be able to respond to their content, allowing you to provide a structured assertion of your viewpoint in the event that a competitor writes an article that you feel compelled to respond to. Be careful to be courteous, and you can create an arena of interaction with your intelligent readers.

If you want to attract smart readers that will be willing to share your pieces with others, you’ll need to create smart content.  Follow up your content with the action you want your readers to take.  You will enjoy greater shareability and increased website traffic.

We look forward to engaging in social conversation with you.  SearchAMP Marketing reviews social media marketing campaigns of the small business to the enterprise company at SearchAMPSocial.Blogspot.com.  Please contact us to review and promote your strategy to our network in social media.  We look forward to showcasing campaigns which meet the noted principles in this article:  State facts, build visuals within content that are engaging enough to share in social media.  Send us examples! 

  

In the nature of social engagement – please share your comments!  We welcome promotional comments as long as they bring value to the discussion.  Please – comment and share in social media. Share this idea. P.S. Get #1 on Google with PR4-PR8 Contextual Links - GUARANTEED rankings & PageRank increase on Google. Check out the details.