Social media is a large part of how successful brands do business. Businesses who use social media for growth will likely post new content on Instagram or TikTok before they’ve updated their website. But why is that?
It’s simple: social channels offer a relatively accessible way for brands to get their products/services or brick-and-mortar stores in front of millions of eyes, immediately and explicitly. It’s just that quick and simple!
So what once required decades of painstaking effort to transform a brand from a homegrown hidden gem into a worldwide sensation can now be feasible in a matter of weeks – or if you’re lucky, overnight!
That is the power of social media marketing!
The Rise of Social Media Platforms
Social media has come a long way from its humble beginnings as a platform for uploading vacation photos into a folder and posting life milestones.
With over 3.8 billion active users spending an average of 2 hours and 24 minutes daily across platforms like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, X (formerly Twitter), and TikTok, it’s no wonder they continuously implement changes to maintain the audience. This is apparent in the ever-evolving functionalities that make it integral to our daily lives (like checking a restaurant’s operating hours or inquiring about a next product restock). It’s enough that a lack of online presence can be considered a red flag and steer potential customers toward competitors with a dedicated digital footprint.
Popular Platforms for Businesses
Social media is necessary for any marketing toolkit. The beauty lies in the freedom businesses have in choosing where these customer-brand interactions can take place. This can depend on the advantages and format offered, or which best aligns with your content creation methods, audience preference, and brand’s goals:
- Facebook and Instagram – excellent for brand storytelling and visual marketing.
- LinkedIn – ideal for B2B marketing with its established professional network.
- X (or Twitter) – perfect for real-time engagement and customer service.
- TikTok – suited for younger audiences with its creative and video-first content approach.
But as we mentioned, social media is ever-changing. Keep an ear on the ground and watch out for how brands contribute to all the ways social media utilization is transforming! Better yet, partner with a PR and digital marketing agency that can keep you abreast of all these things.
Strategies for Effective Social Media Marketing
In the meantime, make sure you’re up to speed with the right strategies, too!
With social media influencing people and driving sales, businesses have seen this as a way to tap into trends and capitalize on opportunities they present. It’s not just the equation of “existing item or service + fun twist = success!” Like deep-frying everything and hoping to see if it sticks. The approach to social media requires more finesse by employing the following strategies:
- Creation and Curation – Create and curate engaging, relevant content that captures the attention of your audience and even encourages interaction (e.g., invite your audience to ask questions in the comment section and post a video with the answers).
- Utilize Analytics for Targeted Marketing – Leverage analytics provided by social media platforms to understand your audience’s behavior and preferences so you can craft targeted content and campaigns.
- Engage with the Audience – Regularly interact with your audience to foster community and loyalty (e.g., responding to comments and messages).
- Partner with Influencers – Collaborate with influencers to reach a larger, more engaged audience and enhance their credibility.
- Use Paid Advertising Options – Subscribe to paid advertising options offered by your selected social media platform to target specific demographics and increase marketing effectiveness.
Done right, these strategies can contribute to more than just a boost in your vanity metrics. Businesses can achieve a range of marketing and revenue objectives such as increased brand awareness, improved customer engagement, enhanced SEO rankings, higher conversion rates, and better cost-effectiveness.
Success Stories of Social Media Marketing
Small Business Success
Wellness brand Ming Sing successfully launched the ‘return’ of Agua de Florida in the Philippines. With the campaign handle #SheCanDoItAll, this brand set out to prove that women can do everything they set their hearts and minds to – and they can do it better with a wellness companion like Ming Sing’s product line. To date, Ming Sing continues to spread this message of women’s empowerment.
Mid-to-Large Corporation Strategy
Robinson’s Appliances recently launched its own TikTok account! And because they applied effective social media strategies anchored in a singular message, they were able to hit their goals quickly. They grew their following fast, and are now clocking hundreds of thousands of views with their videos. Best of all, customers are slowly associating the brand as a provider of ‘milestone appliances’ that mark special moments in their personal lives. Talk about connecting your story!
Advocacy and Outreach
It’s not just for-profit businesses that benefit from social media. Advocacies, such as MSD’s Hope From Within, continually keep their social media presence strong so they can meet their goal of providing timely information for Filipinos battling cancer. One campaign for cervical cancer, #SolidariTeal, benefitted not just from media coverage but from social media amplification via post-event reels, too!
How to Get Started with Social Media Marketing for Your Business
If your business is new to the social media game, don’t be overwhelmed! Instead, put your focus on following these steps to get you started:
- Set Clear Objectives
- Understand your Target Audience
- Choose the Right Platforms
- Create a Content Calendar
- Measure Success to Adjust Strategies as Needed
Focus on these things and your start on socials will be a breeze.
Diving deeper into social media may prove challenging for someone just starting. You must also remember to keep up with algorithm changes, manage negative feedback, and navigate platform limitations. To stay afloat it’s imperative to stay informed, adaptable, and proactive so you can adjust your social media presence accordingly. So like we said – it may be better to outsource your social media plans (awareness, conversion, etc) to a knowledgeable agency so you can focus on growing the core of your business instead. We’d love to help!
Start Today!
Social media marketing dominates the marketing scene, and while it runs the gamut from TikToks to Instagram, simply posting on social media doesn’t always guarantee being shared or promoted on social media. You need a dedicated strategy and informed knowledge for every decision you make. But when you do – you can harness its power to achieve growth and success!
Ready to get eyeballs on your socials? Work with NGP-IMC today to unlock your brand’s full potential on social media!
Harmony Adiao-Carrillo is the editorial lead of NGP-IMC.
