The Ultimate Social Media Planning Guide

For most businesses, social media can be a very overwhelming process. Digital marketing, in general, can feel like trying to hit a moving target as it’s constantly changing. However, there is hope! By doing some of the legwork upfront and developing a solid social media plan, you’ll be on your way to social media success in no time!

Precisely What Does A Social Media Plan Encompass?

We are so glad you asked! A social media plan defines how you create, post, and engage with your social media content. It also specifies guidelines for how often you post, marketing campaigns, and an engagement strategy.

Having a social media plan can help you overcome common challenges such as reaching your audience, measuring ROI, and obtaining business goals. So, let’s get started!

Your Target Audience

Start by defining your ideal customer if you haven’t already. What do they look like? Where do they shop? Create their profiles, give them a name, and assign them specific demographics.

Blog It Out

Creating a blogging strategy will not only increase your SEO ranking, but it’ll give you a solid source to direct to from social media. After all, the overall goal with social posts is to generate leads and get prospects back to your site. Having a blog with fresh new content is the perfect source.

Educate Your Audience

You are the expert in your business, services, and/or products. Developing checklists, ebooks, infographics, and videos to educate your target audience on why they should buy your goods and services should be the cornerstone of your content strategy. Remember to be purposeful and helpful to your audience, so they see value in what you’re putting out there.

Don’t Feel Like You Have To Post On Every Social Media Channel

When it comes to social media channels, think quality over quantity. Actually, that little adage is true for most aspects of the content creation process. Only select the social media channels that make sense for your business. For instance, if you’re a B2B, you may find that you get more engagement on LinkedIn than any other channel. So, focus all your content and efforts on that specific channel. Don’t run yourself ragged thinking you have to be posting on every social media channel under the sun.

Measure Your Results

As you’re rocking and rolling with your new strategy, don’t forget to take time to measure the results to make sure it’s performing the way you anticipate. Check your analytics and take note of trends that you see. Once you have a handle on the overall performance, set new goals and metrics for future content.

Remember: Success Takes Time

As you work through your social media strategies, you’ll adjust and tweak your content. It takes time to see results as your make your through the learning process. Keep working through the elements of your plan and adjust where needed. Sometimes, you may find that you need to adjust your target audience as business needs shift or develop over time.

Get Social

Now that you’re armed with the framework of developing your ultimate social media plan start putting your new knowledge to good use! And if you’re strapped for time, like most business owners, know that ARK Marketing can always help take that task off your plate!

Check back soon for more valuable tips on how to leverage your small business in a big world of competition. If you need help managing certain aspects of your small business, or you’d like to know more about the services ARK Marketing has to offer, contact us or comment below! Also, follow us on Facebook and Instagram for industry news, inspiration, and helpful tidbits for finding small business success.

Sincerely,

The ARK Crew