How is it possible that Sony, a major corporation in the tech world, and Yolo’s, an up and coming restaurant in Nashville, can benefit from the same marketing tools? How is it that such drastically different companies utilize the same platforms and programs in very different ways? It’s simple – they are going after different things.

And here’s the magic – social media can do it all.

There are a lot of benefits social media marketing can deliver a company, but it’s up to the marketer of said brand to make it happen. If you are trying to promote your business through Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or even Instagram, you have to ask yourself an imperative question before you log in.

“What do I want out of social media marketing?”

Now, here’s the tricky part to this question. If your answer is simply “more sales,” and it very well might be, you need to be a little more specific.

How does your business get those sales? Here are a few common answers we hear when speaking with clients.

As you might imagine, all of these require a different type of marketing strategy. For example, Sony’s goal is for website sales, while the people at Yolo’s need patrons to actually come in to eat their tasty meals. This decision will affect their strategy on multiple levels from content creation to advertisement tools. You need to craft copy, images, and advertising strategies to accommodate your ultimate goal.

Other businesses will approach their marketing in hopes of raising brand awareness and online visibility. If these are goals of yours, you need to ensure you are very active and vocal online. Send out content on as many platforms as possible and make sure you incorporate more than just promotions – blogs, videos, contests, and much more will help people start to recognize your brand and a force to be reckoned with.

For smaller businesses, they may simply want to tap into a local market. This is where tools like Facebook advertising and retargeting come into play. You have the ability to choose exactly where your content hits. You can boost posts such as coupons and local events, so you attract the right crowd when the time is right.

Finally, you might be using social media as a tool to study customer’s insights. When you are present on social media, you give your audience the opportunity to share their experiences with your brand to the world, This is an excellent way to open the lines of communication and understand how your customer base receives you and your businesses.

Social media is the smart way to approach online marketing, and with the innumerable tools that come with it, you are able to take advantage of it for a very specific purpose.

Is it time you take social media seriously? Contact us today! We have experience helping a wide variety of brands both big and small gain online visibility, sales, and much more.