Master Marketer Social Media Stratagies?

Most people who have their businesses' on social media are looking hard for answers to solutions for more traffic, engagement and conversions to build their brand..

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While great social media strategies don't simply fall off a truck in front of your doorstep, you don't have to make it any harder than it should be.

Nathan Pirtle, social media/digital marketing specialist and founder of Work With The Coach, is one person who snatched his success from the hands of fate. Pirtle became a hard core marketer because he wasn't looking for someone else's answers, he was looking for his own. These five important tips from his personal strategy can help your brand on social media.

1. Stop Being A Robot

There's a program and an app for everything you want to do with your social marketing, from analytics data to auto posting and direct messaging. While these are important aspects to your digital marketing business, at some point you need to make sure these robots aren't the primary source of your social media activity.

One thing Pirtle is direct in announcing is his approach to being personal with people on social media. Sure, your auto-posting social media tool is helping you stay relevant and seen, but it's not replying to people, nor is it responding to someone's questions in real time. In short, these are mistakes which can share negative messages to your audience.

People want conversation and engagement from your brand -- from the real you. Don't allow your brand to be controlled by these automated sources because it doesn't portray your true personality. Don't get me wrong, it's okay to use these tools because you're a smart marketer. However, because you are a smart marketer, you will understand when to pull back on the reins and allow a more personal touch.

2. Provide Real Content

Your brand pages and accounts need to understand what your audience enjoys. For Pirtle, it was a plethora of motivational, helpful and funny pictures or memes to get his audience engaging with his brand on a continual basis. He also advises the best way to attract more people with real content on your social account is by keeping your house (your social account) clean and orderly. If it is, people will want to stick around and listen to what you have to say.

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The rule of sharing is 80/20. This means 80 percent of the time, you're sharing content to either help, entertain and/or motivate your audience. The 80 percent has nothing to do with your brand at all. It's all about your customers and what they enjoy.

If you're having a hard time finding out what your audience is into -- let's use Facebook for this example -- you can take a look at Facebook Audience Insights. Simply type in a couple of interests you're looking for, and it will supply you with other brand pages, like yours, who are killing it with real content. Take some tips out of their playbook, and offer some similar posts on your page.

3. Learn To Follow In Order To Lead

Most people want to have a million followers, but they don't want to follow multiple people or accounts. It just doesn't work that way. To create a large social media following with real results, you need to be both a leader and a follower of people. "You have to know how to follow in order to be able to lead, so follow everyone who is relevant to your business," Pirtle said.

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Don't reject the idea of engaging with people. This is going to help your business in the long run because people will always remember a helpful conversation. Once you learn to follow the most relevant people to your brand, and you consistently give them help and guidance, you will soon find yourself leading these people. Don't be shy to follow.

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4. Measure Success From Engagement

There are lots of ways to measure your success on social media. Stats from analytics to learn different things about your social media accounts is a great way to build your business. However, Pirtle always measured his success based on the social engagement his brand was acquiring every day on social media.

How many people are interacting with you on a consistent basis? Learn who the key players are and who always seems to be there when you share. Anytime anyone likes, comments, retweets, etc., you should take notice, and respond to those people.

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One great way to measure success within each campaign is to set a specific goal within your brand. Perhaps you want to set a goal of 50 signups on Facebook or Twitter. You also would like to see 25 comments and at least 15 shares. These are personal engagement goals you should make for each update your brand does.

KISSmetrics shares a very helpful article on how you can measure each step of your engagement, and they include metrics of engagement like awareness, engagement, drive traffic, finding advocates and fans, and your brand's voice measurement.

It's important to understand and establish a set of goals in which you can measure your engagement success on your social platform of choice. Not all social networks are the same. The people may be the same, but their behaviors on each platform are different. You want to understand the behaviors of each person on your social platform of choice. It will help you provide the best possible content for them in the future.

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5. Build The Relationship

There is no social marketing tip any stronger than this -- build the relationship. This is pretty much self explanatory, and while it seems pretty hard to do, most people are susceptible to your brand on social media, providing you're not trying to hard sell them right out of the gate.

Relationship marketing creates brand loyalty and an avenue for other people like the one with whom you just built a relationship with. You spend the time, build the relationship, and establish the trust. In turn, this builds a bridge between someone who doesn't know you and your brand with the person you just created this with. You see how important it is? The reach of relationships is powerful marketing within your social community, and you should be taking advantage of it every day.

Guest Authored By Jennifer Spencer. Jennifer is a serial entrepreneur and founder of Energent Media, a digital branding agency focused on helping entrepreneurs share their stories on top podcasts. She is a passionate storyteller, online marketer and social media specialist. Follow Jennifer on Twitter.

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There are all kinds of social media strategies you should want to try out, but these five are the most important ones to always remember to do consistently.

You have a brand name to protect and an audience who wants to learn all they can about you.

Just like Pirtle, when you invest your time, money and knowledge into your audience, you will reap superb results with these strategies.."

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  Authored by:

  Fred Hansen Pied Piper of Social Media Marketing at YourWorldBrand.com & CEO of Millennium 7 Publishing Co. in Loveland, Colorado. I work deep in the trenches of social media strategy, community management and trends.  My interests include; online business educator, social media marketing, new marketing technology, skiing, hunting, fishing and The Rolling Stones..-Not necessarily in that order ;)

Grow And Maintain YOUR Social Media Brand?

A simple guide for growing and maintaining your brand on social media..

Social media is a major part of everyone’s daily life. Despite the shifting popularity and recent worries about the security of various platforms, business leaders use these platforms to create networks of followers for communicating their work and inspiring people around the world.

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Leaders can -- and should -- use these tools to raise awareness of their organizations, boost their personal brands and share important victories.

Over the years, I have personally grown a loyal and dedicated following on various social media channels -- one that I truly cherish, appreciate and value. Over the last 10 years, I have used social media to help advance and grow professional relationships that have resulted in hundreds of thousands of dollars in nonprofit revenue and in-kind services and have garnered tens of millions of impressions and views on content from our group, Beneath the Waves. And I've done it all without hiring a formal PR team.

I’ve also seen people, especially emerging leaders, use these tools improperly with disastrous personal and professional consequences. Thus, I was inspired to create a short guide to help leaders of organizations of all shapes and sizes grow their brands on social media.

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Focus On High Value

Share your victories, and celebrate them on social media. You and your team deserve it. However, be picky and use good judgment to share wins with the highest value.

Paring down what to post can be hard for aspiration doers and productive individuals who may have multiple high-value pieces to share each week. Major news stories, press and key outputs are items I would consider high value.

The majority of your posts should be high value since they communicate a sense of forward momentum and progress.

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You Are Not A God

Over-posting personal wins can come off as self-important and potentially aggravate people. Humble-bragging is real and driven only by personal ego. I've committed this crime in the past, and a family member actually called me out on it.

By sharing every story you are quoted or mentioned in, you are diluting your value and can come off as self-important. People can also see through disingenuous posts.

I can think of at least a few people in the conservation space who start almost every post with the tired and now meaningless, “I’m humbled and honored...” Don’t be that person.

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Diversity Always Wins

Diversify your content. Sharing social media posts is like running a restaurant. Some people will come for the same thing over and over again, so you need to be really good at serving and retaining them. But the key is to keep bringing in new customers (or followers). A great way to do that is with exciting new items and offerings, so mix it up.

However, there is value in specializing -- doing one thing really well and serving that up over and over (superfans will love it). But in my opinion, the most effective leaders are always looking for ways to innovate their platforms and brand vision. I believe that if you don't evolve and innovate, you become noise and will die a slow marketing death while the next person in line takes your place. I think this ethic should be applied to social media.

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Complaining Is Ugly

Complaining is a surefire way to lose support. Whereas airing your issues out to dry might feel good in the short-term and appease a small portion of your followers, talking smack about other groups or people really just looks bad.

Ask yourself, "If my greatest mentor or dream partner saw this, what would they think about me?" I have dealt with haters and detractors over the years but have always resisted the urge to complain about them. The greats don't complain, and neither should you. Resist your own ego, and take the high road. It will serve you well!

Share The Love

You are likely passionate and love what you do -- it's why you’ve gotten to where you are professionally. Treat social media as a way to communicate your passion and motivation to move forward and make the world a better place. In the end, this is what most people connect with, and it will help your social media presence reflect your own trajectory and drive to succeed.

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Final Thoughts

If done right, social media can be your biggest asset as a leader. Diverse, thoughtful and engaging content can lead to tangible quantitative outcomes, such as funding and partnerships, while adding numerous intangibles to your digital brand (awareness, always being on people's radar and new friendships).

Most weeks, I try to share one to two pieces of high-value content from my professional world early in the week and sprinkle one lighter, more lifestyle-type post toward the end of the week.

Guest Authored By Austin Gallagher. Austin is the CEO of Beneath the Waves, a leading environmental non-profit linking ocean conservation with brands and influencers. Follow Austin on Twitter.

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Does it work? Here are two ways to tell:

1) People recall what you've been up to when you see them at a cocktail party. This is proof that your strategy is connecting with people.

2) people you haven't spoken to in months or years come out of the social media shadows to reconnect with you and engage. In addition to expanding your social network, you never know what great things could come from interactions like these. In the end, you can run your social platforms however you like, but I think these points can truly help business leaders grow their brands.

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  Post Crafted By:

  Fred Hansen Pied Piper of Social Media Marketing at GetMoreHere.com & CEO of Millennium 7 Publishing Co. in Scottsdale, Arizona, where I work deep in the trenches of social media strategy, community management and trends.  My interests include; online business educator, social media marketing, new marketing technology, skiing, hunting, fishing and The Rolling Stones..-Not necessarily in that order ;)

YOUR Brand Storytelling Is The Future of Marketing?

In today’s fast-paced, overly-automated, and digitally-driven society, humanity is becoming the new premium. The internet constantly rewards us with convenience and instant gratification, making the human touch increasingly more scarce and coveted. In this environment, businesses can no longer afford to be faceless entities. To survive, businesses need to connect with audiences, pull at their heartstrings, and engage with them on a much deeper level than seen before. That’s where brand storytelling comes in. Brand storytelling is the cohesive narrative that weaves together the facts and emotions that your brand evokes. In addition to giving your customers reasons why they should buy a product or service, businesses need to start sharing the story behind their brand, why it exists, and why this matters, consistently across all communication. Brand storytelling is no longer a nice to have. It is a need to have, and what will ultimately maximize your business’s visibility, profit, and impact. Treat it as a compass for your marketing strategy, and the result will be a brand that is as profitable as it is captivating. Related Article: The Art of YOUR Storytelling in Business Here are 3 reasons why brand storytelling is the future of marketing: In A Sea of Sameness Be Different It’s a crowded marketplace out there: there are tens of millions of content being created, and even more being shared every day. Businesses are spending billions of dollars worldwide fighting for seconds of attention from audiences that are being bombarded with similar messaging. The internet has democratized marketing by making it accessible, but in the midst of this, it’s also made it very difficult for quality brands to stand out. It’s not enough to have a quality product or service, you need to know how to talk about it in a way that differentiates you from the crowd. That’s why brand storytelling is so important.  Instead of throwing facts, statistics, and testimonials at your audience, focus on making your brand thoughtful, memorable, and real. Wrap your message into a story that transports people, simplifies information, and provokes an emotional response. Use narrative to share your brand’s history, challenges, successes, and value propositions -- no other brand can copy YOUR story. Related Article: Lessons For YOUR Brand on Social Media? Storytelling will not only increase your brand favorability in your audience’s eyes, it can also be up to 22 times more memorable than facts. Ask yourself: what do you want to be remembered for? What is the message you want to transmit to your audience, and what do you never want them to forget? Consider the emotion you want to evoke in your audience every time they interact with your brand. Your audience may forget what you say, but they will not forget how you made them feel (which is important because emotions drive purchase more than logic. More Than Customers, Build A Tribe Take Apple, for example. They sell technology, but from the beginning, their audience needed to feel that it was okay (and even encouraged) to be brave, bold, and think differently from the crowd. Tesla’s customers need to feel that it’s worthwhile to support the environment and sustainable energy. Related Article: Instagram Tips For YOUR Small Business? For a brand to take off, it needs to become so much more than your product and service -- and that’s where storytelling comes in - That’s where storytelling comes in. Think about what emotions, values, and ideas you can offer your audience. What do you want them to walk away feeling when they interact with you? What sort of value are you offering them every time they engage with your content? What does your brand mean to them, beyond what you’re selling? Use your story to create a deep emotional connection: start conversations, ask for engagement (no strings attached), your audience in what you do as a business. Turn your brand into an experience they can consume -- that’s what will turn customers who pay for your product/services because they need to fix a problem into a rabid tribe that will support your success, follow along, be loyal, and comes back for more. Once your audience knows, trusts, and likes you, they will more likely buy from you. At the very least, you’ll have created relationships with people who will become advocates for years to come. Related Article: The Future of YOUR Social Media Platform? Be Profitable and Human A brand story can do so much more than connect you with your ideal audience, get you noticed in the noise of your competitors’ messaging, and drive profits -- it also has the potential to create major impact. In today’s day and age, marketing is no longer the key competitive differentiator. Consumers are increasingly demanding for companies to prove how their efforts are making an impact, supporting a cause, and achieving results beyond just profit . Ironically, knowing that a company cares about something other than their own profit is the incentive that consumers need to buy more. Guest Authored By Celinne Da Costa. Celine's a writer, speaker, and brand storytelling coach for visionary leaders who want to leverage storytelling to deeply connect with their audience, create a captivating brand that sells, and scale their business with impact. Since leaving corporate America to design life on her own terms, Celinne has helped her 6 and 7 figure clients become confident leaders with powerful stories, influential brands, international media coverage, and thousands of raving followers. Follow Celine on X. Related Article: Brand Awareness With Unexpected Platforms? So, how to make your brand more human? Storytelling -- the most ancient and powerful tool for effective education. We are  genetically wired to love and respond to stories, and a memorable brand story is exactly what people need to feel connected to your business, have a lasting positive impression of who you are and what you stand for, and become loyal clients. People will feel this, and not only that, they will buy from you before they buy from a competitor who offers a similar product or service. In a crowded marketplace where everyone is focused on doing things faster, more efficiently, and automated, be the brand who dares to be human. Show your customers that you care even if it means (gasp!) slowing down or doing things differently. Post Crafted By: Fred Hansen Brand Alchemist at YourWorldBrand.com & CEO of Millennium 7 Publishing Co. in Loveland, CO. where I work deep in the trenches of social media strategy, community management and trends.  My interests include; online business educator, social media marketing, new marketing technology, skiing, hunting, fishing and The Rolling Stones..-Not necessarily in that order ;)

Growing YOUR Business On Social Media?

How to grow a business using social media?

When Desiree Yazdan first graduated from dental school, she chose to work in several well-established dental practices.

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Each day as she walked into work, all she could see was opportunity!

To one day have her own business, to refine her skills, to use those refined skills to help people from all over the world.

About a year and a half after school, she became a partner in what she thought was a very well-established office. Little did she know what a turn the business would take. Shortly after the buy-in, the other partner that was in the office stopped practicing dentistry and I was left without any patients and a staff that expected to be paid. Most of the patients became angry and left, and she wasn’t sure how she was going to make it.

"At that point, I didn’t have money for marketing, so I turned to social media. I saw it as a way to market myself for free. I figured since everyone was on it, I may as well start showcasing my work. And I’m so glad that I did. Today, my practice looks much different than before. Today I have people traveling from all over the world for me to redesign their smiles. I have plenty of new patients in my office each month. And today, I have built the freedom in my business — and my life — that I had always dreamed of. And it's all because of social media.

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In a world where the internet has taken over, it’s silly to think that a new business would choose to not use social media as a marketing strategy.

My first step was to start using Facebook and Instagram to connect with people individually about my business.

I started sharing my passion with the world. Social media is all about the one-on-one connections and recognizing that early on can be a game changer. If you’re on social media, you need to be social. And that is exactly what I started doing — being social."

So, how do you grow a social media page that brings in new business? It comes down to four simple steps.

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1. Pick Your Niche

When you niche down, it will be easier for you to grow. Why? Because people are looking for specificity. One mistake I constantly see is trying to have a very broad audience so that as many people as possible notice you. In my experience, that's the wrong approach.

If you’re trying to establish yourself as a dog-training expert, then you will be marketing yourself to dog lovers and dog owners.

You should be creating content about training dogs: what type of collar to use, what kind of leash to use, what hand signals to use, what age to start training your dog.

If you instead created all kinds of content, such as posts about refurbishing furniture, you’re never going to gain a true following. Pick a niche and then create your social media content around that niche.

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2. Edit Your Bio

Your bio is the first thing people see when they land on your page. Use it to make clear who you are, what you do, where people can find you and how they can reach you.

3. Nail Down Your Ideal Audience

You aren’t going to be able to attract everyone, and you shouldn’t want to. It may feel effective in the beginning, but it’s hard to sustain long-term growth with this method. Why? Because when you’re talking to everyone, you’re actually talking to no one. When you are talking to a specific person, they will be drawn to you because it feels like your content was created for them and their needs.

Let’s say you’re a bride and you’re looking for a wedding photographer. You land on a page that has pretty photos, but they're lifestyle images. You're probably going to keep scrolling. But, let's say you land on a page filled with beautiful wedding photos. You will feel like this page was made for you, and you will likely start to be interested in the content they have created.

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4. Be Consistent

Your following on social media grows when you are consistent. In order to get people to follow you and engage with you, and in order for you to have opportunities from the platforms, you need to be consistent.

You can't expect to post 10 photos one day, then disappear for two weeks and still see growth.

Remember, you're building one-on-one connections. So if you aren't consistently showing up, people won't engage with you. They won't want to see what you are doing next.

If you want a platform that grows, you need to show up every single day, no matter what.

Guest Authored By Desiree Yazdan. Desiree is an expert in Reconstructive & Cosmetic Dentistry. Follow Desiree on X.

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Now that you have your four steps, it’s time to put them into action. 

And remember, social media is about long-term growth. It’s not a get-rich-quick strategy, so stick with it and stay consistent..

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  Post Crafted By:

  Fred Hansen Pied Piper of Social Media Marketing at YourWorldBrand.com & CEO of Millennium 7 Publishing Co. in Scottsdale, AZ, where I work deep in the trenches of social media strategy, community management and trends.  My interests include; online business educator, social media marketing, new marketing technology, skiing, hunting, fishing and The Rolling Stones..-Not necessarily in that order ;)