Have you ever imagined that one day these social media applications will evolve to be the most efficient platform for spreading information, raising brand awareness and promoting products? Establishing presence and identity has become the main target of business entities worldwide.

Statistically speaking, over 90% of the US companies are depending more on the social media marketing (i.e. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc.…) than any other marketing methods. Social media marketing was originally used by companies to lead viewers and audience to their website.

For instance, when you search for any product similar to a product that another company produces, an ad will automatically appear on your timeline for that other product. So, if you are starting a new business, the best way to reach your target audience is to use social media.

So, for you to understand the main powers of social media marketing, it is initially required to define what a customer-driven strategy is. It is simply when organizations rely on customer feedback and insights to tweak or even develop their products and services.

For example, Local Motors, a startup that claims to be a ground mobility company focused on shaping the future for better, has used social media platforms to gather customer feedback on multiple vehicle designs, something that you and anyone else could participate in and vote for the best design. The design with the highest number of votes is given to the manufacturer in order to start the production process. So, the company has seen strong engagement from customers on social media and the chosen design was implemented by Local Motors. This shows how Local Motors used social media effectively to implement a customer-driven strategy.

Benefits of Social Media Marketing

As already mentioned, digital marketing now is the best and the most effective marketing way in this era. So, here is a few benefits of the social media marketing.

The marketing cost of course is a major factor in deciding which marketing campaign you should follow. As when you calculate the cost of a marketing campaign, social media is usually one of the most cost-effective approaches available. That’s why startups mainly depend on it to reach their target customers attracting a wide segment of advertisers across startups, corporates and individuals. So, if you have a startup, you would want to pay the least amount of money and get the best way of promotion, that almost everyone in your target audience can see your ad.

Another thing is that you can choose how you prefer to be charged for the marketing campaign; as there are some campaigns that may be charged on a cost-per-click basis where you are charged for how many times the ad was clicked. Another charging method is cost-per-view; where you are charged on how many times the ad was viewed.

The second-best thing to use Social media as your way of marketing is Targeting and it refers to filtering the segments that are to be presented with your advertisement campaign. And for your information, this filtration process is so much easier on social media as compared to other marketing platforms such as street billboards or TV commercials because on social media, you can choose what age range, geographic location and gender of the audience that can see your ad campaign

Last but not least, the reach and engagement where these 2 words define the real power of social media marketing. Social media is used by billions of people and an advertisement campaign can be designed to reach from few hundreds to hundreds of millions of individuals. Engagement is also a strong key factor in social media where the audience not only see an ad but can also give their feedback or interact in any other way the advertiser designs. This has played a key role in viral trends and products that we see on a daily basis.

Tips on how to Use Social Media Marketing Effectively

So, if you want to use social media as your way to reach your target audience, here is a few tips on how to do your own ad campaign:

You should start first by defining your Strategy. First, define your goals. either Brand awareness or the engagement of your target audience. Next, choose the appropriate social media platform (i.e Facebook, Instagram, twitter, etc,.) then decide on the type of content that would engage the target audience such as an image, a video, or even a link.

Then, the second step is, the Campaign Planning: This step involves choosing your target audience and preparing the campaign material to publish.

Finally, the Listening and Analysis. So, after the audience starts interacting with your campaign, you, now have the chance to maximize the outcome of your campaign by analyzing user insights and showing these users that their feedback is taken into considerations to improves the company’s image in the eyes of your customers.