The Wednesday Social: Investing in Social Media

Well hello, Wednesday!

Welcome to this week’s social, where we’ll discuss big things happening in the social media space and/or respond to your blog requests and/or make an observation of something we’re dealing with on the business side…
 
It’s very often we get asked questions that range across the spectrum of, and include, “what do I invest,” “where do I invest,” and “what’s the ROI,” or comments based on a lack of understanding about the power of social media. We don’t expect to sum up all of these answers in one blog post and to be honest, we don’t have all the answers, but we wanted to organize some resources we have learned from just for you…
 
If you’re considering the use of this amazingly economical and organic tool, here are some resources:
 
How to Start Investing in Social Media in the Right Way via Forbes

Which Social Media Networks Should Your Business Invest In via Bruce Clay

Global social media research summary 2016 via Smart Insights

And you should know, social media is NOT a fad…

Where Will Social Media Users Go in 2017? via News Cred

Why Selling On Social Is A Fad And ‘Social Selling’ Is Not via We Are Social Media

If you’re using social media but could use some inspiration or support:

Top Social Media Trends That’ll Change Your Business in 2016 via Post Planner

Branding in the Age of Social Media via Harvard Business Review

10 Social Media Blogs You Should Be Reading via Sprout Social
 
At BW, we wholeheartedly LOVE social media and have seen great results from sharing a brand’s message across the interwebs. But take it from us, it is a LOT of work, especially if you want to do it right. It’s an investment in money and time…
 
Here are some tips on optimizing your time and efforts and make the most of your investment on social media…

• You don’t have to be on every platform. Focus on the one where your target audience is and/or the one you are most excited about. Once you have a captive audience, you have people to follow you onto the next/new platform.
• Try a 3rd party social media scheduler to plan your efforts and monitor your online reputation. We use Sprout but also recommend Hootsuite and Buffer.
• Set aside time to brainstorm content ideas and creative ideas to set your brand apart.
• Look around. Observe what your competitors are doing and what people/brands are doing in other industries for inspiration.
• Feeling overwhelmed? Make it a team effort: have someone collect content, have someone manage the content, have someone organize/post the content.
• Post with a purpose. Make it good, or… don’t make it at all.
• Make time to develop a strategy, messaging, brand voice, graphics, plan, etc.
• Allocate some of your traditional ad dollars to your social media ad budget
  • You can buy ads for Facebook and instagram through Facebook at the same time
  • How to determine your social media marketing budget via the Next Web
  • The Complete, Always-Updated Guide to Facebook Advertising via Buffer
• Seek out apps that can help you manage your efforts
  • IFTTT
  • Canva
  • iMovie
• GET HELP. Ask us for help, email us with questions. We want you to love social media and to reap all the rewards it has to offer.

 
DISCUSS: If you are or represent a brand, how much time do you spend on social media? How do you decide when and where to invest? How much money do you spend on social media and how to you measure your investment’s ROI?

We want to hear from you! Leave us a comment here or find us on the interwebs: @bwsocialco. See ya next week for another installment of The Wednesday Social and if you have any specific requests on what we should talk about, email us!