5 Secrets To Writing Engaging Social Media Posts

21Nov

Content Creation, Copywriting, Social Media

Ever since the early days of the newspaper, people have studied the power of the headline. Writers carefully selected each word so their paper would pull in readers. Social media marketing has evolved this concept. Thankfully, we don’t need people shouting “Extra!” on street corners. Instead, we have to make sure our updates are noticeable on the web.

Internet communications changed the way we write and promote our brands. What strategies work the best for social media users? The following five types of updates are sure to pull in readers!

1. Lists. Whether your post is “Top 10 Restaurants in Nashville” or “The 5 Most Important Documents For Estate Planning”, people love lists. They are easy to read and get right to the point.

2. Definitions and industry terms. Does your industry have specific terminology? Teach them to the audience! For example, “The Legal Terms You Need To Know!” is an excellent way to spread a wealth of knowledge.

3. Casual tone. Today’s consumer likes a casual and conversational tone for marketing. “Check out these…”, “Come see our…” further strengthen your brand’s approachable feel.

4. Questions. “Could These Foods Help With Alzheimer’s?” Crafting a social media post in the form of a question is always a good way for readers to click and search for the answer.

5. Powerful vocabulary. Finally, no matter what way you craft your message, your words need to pack a punch. Don’t waste room on weak words. Instill a sense of urgency and importance.

Does your marketing team have writer’s block? Contact us! Our copywriting department will be able to craft your brand’s message into a professional and effective piece of marketing.

The Best Brands Use This Content. Does Yours?

By Christopher Tompkins

11Oct

Advertising, Email Marketing, Facebook, Google+, Instagram, LinkedIn, Live Video, Local Marketing, Marketing, Snapchat, Social Media, Social networking, Tailwind, Twitter, Uncategorized, YouTube

Think of the various categories of your social media content as gadgets in your “social media utility belt”. Each one is unique but serves the ultimate purpose – brand engagement and increased brand awareness. But to get to those goals, you need to learn which tools work and which don’t.

Diversity is absolutely essential for a successful social media marketing campaign. To achieve the right mix, try the following types of updates:

– Interviews. Whether The New Yorker just interviewed the owner of your company or you want to spotlight a new employee, interviews will bring a face to your brand. This humanizes your business and strengthens your approachability.

– Professional Material. Has your company created ebooks, blogs, online courses, etc.? Promote it! Sharing your material through your Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn or Twitter is a surefire way to put your brand in a professional light. Are you looking to make some professional material? The Go! Agency has your back!

– FAQ samples. Do you notice some questions many customers ask quite often? Address the issue in the form of a social media post.

– Q&As- Hosting an open question and answer session can open the floodgates of questions to your brand. Get your answers ready and be quick about it! Despite them being fast paced, Q&A sessions are marketing gold.

– Preparation Steps – Helping your customers prepare for an important process can be very helpful and will show the caring side of your brand. Senior living facilities can post about moving in processes or Medicare applications. Mechanics can give tips on how to winterize your vehicle. You get the picture. It’s free advice that shows you want your customers to succeed, be safe, and stay informed.

Get ready! These five types of content will bring humanity and better communication to your brand. Consider adding these ideas to your strategy!

Contact The Go! Agency to learn how we can take advantage of social media marketing together!

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The Single Most Heinous Crime Of Social Media Marketers

By Christopher Tompkins

12Sep

Social Media

As much information there is about how to use social media out there, there’s just as much about what not to do. It seems like everyone has an opinion about how to handle this social media marketing thing. Some ideas are great while others could sabotage the reader. Regardless, most professionals agree there’s one thing that no marketer should ever do…
Trying to market on social media without a strategy.

The heart and soul of your campaign should be a thought-out plan. Without a plan, your content will be aimless, and your followers will notice. However, a good strategy can usually rectify any problems marketers may come across.

As your team plans, ask the following questions:

– What results do we want from social media marketing? From an archaic viewpoint, marketing = sales, right? Seems like a simple strategy. Well, social media adds the human aspect of communication, which means that it’s all going to be a bit subjective. Engagement and brand awareness should be the biggest goals, rather than straight sales. It’s just not how the game is played anymore.

– What tone are we trying to strike? This also depends on your audience. What language, keywords / phrases, and imagery pulls in your desired customers? Figure that out and stick to it!

– Which platforms are best? Not every brand can be on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, and Google+. Marketers need to figure out what sites are right for them. The answer may lie in the target demographics, industry, and resources available.

– How often should we post? When you decide on your platforms, your need to figure out how often you’re publishing content. Usually, social media is best with two posts a day, but you may wish to do more or less as well as sharing others’ content. Just remember, there is such a thing as too much and inconsistent sharing.

– What tools are at our disposal? Does your marketing department have access to mobile devices such as a tablet or smartphone? If so, you can access Snapchat and various third-party apps that help create engaging content. Do you have original photos or a copywriter? There are many aspects of social media marketing that could use a professional touch. You should also realize that advertising is your friend. It will help place your updates in the spotlight.

– What content is best for you? Which updates does your audience respond to the most? Interesting news articles, quotes, coupons, funny pictures? How about all of the above? This step is one of the most important when creating a strategy. Check out our blog post about the five types of social media posts here!

Making a social media marketing strategy requires some serious brain power. Your team has some thinking to do. Once you devise the best possible plan, your journey into online marketing will be much easier and more effective.

How do yo make a social media strategy? Comment below!

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Planning Your 2017 Budget? Don’t Forget Social Media Advertising!

By Christopher Tompkins

13Aug

Business, Email Marketing, Facebook, Google+, Instagram, LinkedIn, Marketing, Periscope, Pinterest, Reddit, Snapchat, Social Media, Social networking, Uncategorized

2017. It seems so far away, doesn’t it? By the time the new year comes, the election will be behind us, the holidays will be over, and we’ll even have a new Star Wars film! It seems like a distant future. Yet in truth, it’s only a few short months away and businesses need to be ready. This is the time to prepare your marketing budgets for next year. Is social media incorporated into your plans?

You may be wondering what you have to pay for when it comes to social media. It’s free to sign up, right? While this is true, those in charge of these platforms will only let a company’s reach go so far until they get a cut of the action. This is where social media advertising comes into play. A post’s organic growth is limited thanks to algorithms that are aimed to deliver specific content to users. Advertising has become an essential element of any social media marketing campaign’s success.

Each platform has created advertising opportunities that delivers advantages to your business’s profile. While these tools come with a price tag, they have the potential to deliver serious results. Here are the best ways to harness the advertising of social media, categorized by your platform of choice:

Facebook- Undoubtedly the most popular social media platform in the US, Facebook has a wide variety of advertising options. One of the most popular methods is Boosted Posts. If you notice a post is gaining some popularity on its own, you can boost it so your engaging content will really take off. When setting up online ads through Facebook, they provide you with many demographic-based options so your brand is being noticed by exactly who would buy your product, or invest in your service.

Twitter- If you spend any time on Twitter, you have seen their effective advertising efforts in action. Promoted Tweets are prominently placed inside news feeds in prime spots. If your company signs up to be a Promoted Account, your profile will show up in non-followers’ “Who To Follow” lists.

LinkedIn- The social media platform that is meant for professional networking also offers great advertising options. This is very helpful, especially for B2B companies. Sponsored Content will be visibly seen on all devices, but only to whom you want to see your content. You can also create a Text Ad which will be visible in a user’s sidebar, right near their most explored links.

Instagram- Facebook’s sister site, Instagram, is beginning to take itself seriously as an avenue for marketing. You can create your own special advertisement with their Power Editor so it’s eye-catching to everyone browsing the image and video focused site. You will need to connect your Facebook page in order to get the job done, but it’s well worth it. Instagram has recently tweaked its algorithm in marketers’ favor, so your content will be displayed alongside Instagramers’ favorite pics and videos.

Social media advertising is an important issue since online marketing is becoming increasingly popular on all fronts, especially through the avenues of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. This is the beginning of a series about why you need to incorporate social media into your 2017 marketing budget, so be sure to look out for the next installment!

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Slow Summer? Speed It Up With Social Media Marketing

By Christopher Tompkins

10Aug

Social Media

The scorching days of summer aren’t typically days in which summer is sizzling for most businesses. While everyone is either away on vacation or too hot to do any business, the dog days of summer are always difficult for businesses to thrive. Yet there is still plenty to do! Just because business may be slow doesn’t mean the internet is. The world of social media marketing doesn’t sleep, let alone take a break. You can use these days to really ramp up your social media strategy. Here are the top ways to set social media on fire:

Summer Sales- Perhaps the more traditional way to drum up business, a sale is always an eye-catch on social media. While you don’t want to be overly promotional on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, every now and again a sale will cause a rise in engagement.

Email marketing- Does your business have an email marketing campaign? If not, now would be a good time to start. As you create your eblasts, be sure to incorporate your social media accounts and your website.

Blogging- Perhaps your customer is in the mood for some light summer reading? Your blog will establish you as a professional in your industry. It can also offer your customer base a new level of information. You can use social media to promote these new pieces of writing, and vice versa.

Experiment- This is the time to get your social media strategy down pat. You may have wanted to try different tactics such as incorporating video, contests, long forms, or creating a whole new account for a new platform. Now is the time to do it.

Prepare for the rush- Whether it’s a good thing for a bad thing, summer does end at some point. With the autumn and winter comes a whole new wave of business. From Back to School to the big Holiday rushes, it will be time to rock. If you find yourself with some extra time on your hands now, use it to plan ahead.

Summer is great for kids and theme park employees, but for the rest of us, it can be a rough patch.You don’t need to fret, though. This time can be used to your advantage, and you can still find a way to shine.

How do you use summer’s business season? Comment below!

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What The Presidential Election Can Teach Us About Social Media

By Christopher Tompkins

8Aug

Advertising, Email Marketing, Facebook, Google+, Instagram, LinkedIn, Local Marketing, Marketing, Periscope, Pinterest, Snapchat, Social Media, Twitter, Uncategorized

You may not have noticed if you’ve been in outer space for the past two years, but it’s time for the Presidential Election again. Everyone knows who the two major candidates are and what they stand for. By the time November hits, most of us will be able to recite the many commercials by heart.

Social media has had a substantial role in spreading Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump’s thoughts and opinions. It also allows everyone else to state their own thoughts about issues and who they want to vote for. Where does this put a business amongst all the debates and promotions? For one thing, this whole thing can be used as a learning experience. Here are the top lessons to take away from the Presidential Election that you can use for your own social media marketing:

Negativity spreads. Unfortunately, we have seen controversial tweets, posts, and other forms of marketing and due to the reachability social media grants us, it’s not easily forgotten. That being said, if something negative is said about your business online, social media becomes a tool for you to be able to contain the situation and address the problem in a professional manner.

Positivity spreads. Yes, even if though negative messages can spread quickly, so can well-crafted, beneficial content. Your followers are both your audience and siphon, they have the ability to amplify your reach by sharing, retweeting, and commenting.

Advertising works. What would an election be without ads? What would a business be? Facebook, Twitter, even Pinterest offers advertising opportunities for your brand’s message to spread all over the world, or just around the block.

News and social media are symbiotic. Current events and social media seem to be in a give-take relationship. While social media is supposed to reflect the real world, the opposite can happen and a good or bad Tweet could raise headlines. Be sure to be knowledgeable of trends on social media and how you can use them.

The most important thing to take out of this is that everyone is watching. Be sure to choose your words carefully, but you do need to speak, or your lack of internet presence will make you look obsolete.

What marketing tactics have you learned from this election? Share with us below!

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Learn Snapchat In A Snap!

By Christopher Tompkins

11Jul

Advertising, Instagram, Marketing, Periscope, Snapchat, Social Media, Social networking, Uncategorized, Video

Okay, Snapchat, you have our attention. The app-exclusive social media platform is beginning to hold its own amongst the social media giants, especially for Millennials and younger users. With video’s rise in popularity, it was to be expected. Its interface isn’t exactly where it should be, but with each new update we are seeing improvements.

Snapchat began with an original concept. Users could send each other pictures or videos with an expiration date. Don’t blink, because once you click on a picture, it will be gone and never able to return. Not even the creator could see it (hence, the ghost mascot). You can probably see how young people would find this entertaining, but businesses wouldn’t really find a use for it.

One of the more significant updates in Snapchat’s history is Stories. There, viewers can see pictures and videos of the creator’s choosing for up to 24 hours. It was just enough for businesses to begin to flock to the mobile app.

Yet the biggest issues marketers face is Snapchat’s lack of reachability. We’re not talking about numbers, there’s already 100 million snapchatters out there and that number is sure to grow as younger internet surfers flock to the eccentric software. We’re instead talking about Snapchat’s lack of searching power. If you know a user’s exact username or their Ghost-styled QR code, you won’t have a problem. But what if a user just wants to search your name? They may have difficulty finding you.

There is a helpful third-party app called GhostCodes, in which you can search their database of Snapchat accounts. You can find them based on industry, name, or subject matter. It is a helpful app that Snapchat itself could learn from.

Social media video rules apply with Snapchat. They are short and able to have a filter. Just very recently, Snapchat added their Memories feature. This allows users to upload pictures and videos from their device’s camera roll. They are slowly shifting away from “once and done” style they used to have and grew popularity through, but in the same token they are gaining the attention of serious social media users.

The most unique and fun features Snapchat offers is Geofilters. They utilize a smartphone’s location services and present overlay graphics that are exclusive to the area. You will find a special Tampa filter in Tampa, Denver filters in Denver, you get the idea. Businesses can also make their own, but that is a bit of a process.

It’s time to start thinking about Snapchat but most importantly, it is time to see how video can help your online marketing.

What do you think about Snapchat? Comment below!

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