Last weekend, I spoke at the New Orleans Fringe Festival Pack the House series about social media. Prior to the panel I was a part of, I wrote an article for them about how to use social media on a shoestring. For anyone else doing their own social media and for all of the Fringers that weren’t at the Pack the House series, I thought it was worth a share. WARNING: It’s a little lengthy but full of good stuff. Enjoy
So, you want to utilize social media for your business but you don’t have much of a budget? Not to worry – there are plenty of ways to make the most of your resources and still see a high return. You don’t have to pay an agency to handle your social media strategy, execution and analysis – you can do a lot of it on your own. But, as with anything you do yourself, it’s going to take planning, time and dedication. Here are 13 things to keep in mind while attacking your social media plan, regardless of your budget.
1. Goals. Why are you trying to use social media? Who are you trying to reach? What do you want them to do once you’ve reached them? These are all questions you need to ask yourself. Social media isn’t just photos and Facebook – it’s a marketing strategy and you need to treat it as such. Without goals, you’re just wasting time.
2. Audience. Who is your audience and how do they use social media? There are thousands, probably millions, of social networking sites and you do not need to be on all of them. Think about your audience and the people you are trying to reach – what platforms and channels are they using? Stick to those channels first, and then expand later if you want.
For Fringers: The top two platforms are without a doubt Facebook and Twitter. For those who work in a particularly visual field I also recommend Instagram and Pinterest. For those in the performing arts field or any field that produces video, I highly recommend YouTube.
3. Content is king. Content really is king – and always will be. If what you’re posting isn’t worth peanuts, no one is going to care. Don’t just post because you think you have to – post something compelling, exciting, cute, controversial – whatever it is you post make it interesting. Post something YOU would like reading. If you’re bored writing it, I’ll be bored reading it.
4. Consistency is key. This may be my best advice for people who are executing their own social media strategy. The absolute worst thing you can do in social media is start and stop. You will never grow a loyal community that way. If you’re going to engage in social media, you have to do it 100%. Dive in head first and make sure you’re posting daily.
5. Set yourself apart. Everyone has a Facebook page, everyone has a Twitter handle. You need to set yourself apart from the pack. Make sure your profile avatars are eye-catching and reflective of your business’ personality. If you can, customize backgrounds (Twitter and YouTube) and tabs (Facebook) to reflect your fun personality as well as your tech savvy.
For Fringers: I highly recommend using Shortstack (www.shortstackapps.com) for customized Facebook tabs. This allows you to create sign-up forms, contests, promotions, etc. It’s free to sign-up and incredibly easy to use. You will eventually have to pay once you reach a certain number of Facebook fans but the cost is minimal and well worth it for a customized, stand out tab.
6. No such thing as a free lunch. Yes, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and YouTube are all free in the financial sense but they will take up all of your time if you let them. Time and money, for some people, are equally important resources to spare; so, just like you would evaluate the cost vs. ROI be sure you are using your time wisely, effectively and efficiently.
For Fringers: Create a schedule that breaks out how much time you’re willing to spend daily on each channel. If you realize you are spending too much time or not enough time, reevaluate.
7. Know when to spend and when to save. Sometimes you’re going to need to spend money when it comes to social media and online marketing. If you’re not a web-designer, find someone to help build your site. If you want to increase awareness of an event, try Facebook ads (with a small budget to start). The times when you’ll need to spend are going to be situational, but if you can’t do it for free or you can’t do it well for free then find someone who can and pay a price you’re comfortable with.
8. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. If what you’re doing is working for you, then don’t try something new just for the sake of doing something new. Do what works for you and your business. But remember….
9. If it ain’t working, scrap it! Well, don’t completely dismiss it, but drop it from your priority list. If you are spending hours on Facebook and no one is responding, it’s not worth that time. Make sure you’re reviewing what is working and what isn’t so you know where and how to prioritize your time. Which leads me to…
10. Measure success. You do not need buckets of money to get a solid social media analysis. You can measure what you’re doing well and what’s working on various networks for very little, if any, cost. Here’s a list of the tools you should be using:
Website: Google Analytics
Facebook: Facebook Insights
Twitter: Tweetstats, Topsy, Twitalyzer (Not free but inexpensive and worth the money)
Pinterest: PinReach
Instagram: Statigram or Webstagram
YouTube: YouTube Analytics
11. Keywords, Keywords, KEYWORDS. You know your business better than anyone else, but that may mean you don’t know how the average Joe is searching for something you’re selling. Whenever you post a photo or a video or ANYTHING, make sure you’re using language that anyone in your audience or target audience would get and use. After all, the social content you’re posting is search-friendly.
12. It’s YOUR community. Of course, everyone wants a million fans and followers but the fact of the matter is: unless you’re a celebrity that is highly unlikely. But, the people who do fan your page and do follow you are actively taking part in your community and you should honor that. Engage with those people, respond to those people and be honest with those people. The more you engage with your community, the stronger the relationship between those people and your brand will be.
13. Beware of shiny objects. Tomorrow there will probably be some new shiny social network – stay away. Do not join a new network simply because it’s new. Go back to step 1 (GOALS) and evaluate why you want to join a new network and what you expect to get out of it.
There you have it, 13 things to help you use social media on a shoestring budget. The most important thing to keep in mind is that social media is a marketing tool and everything you do online should be done with a goal and a purpose behind it.