Goal: To educate Business Owners that Social Media Marketing is essential to bring revenue to their business in this economy.
Headline: Why is Social Media Marketing Important for your Business?
Description: Social Media Marketing is one of the most important aspects of Digital Marketing. Get ready to reach millions of customers, worldwide.
We’re hoping that by the time you are reading this, you would already have a Social Media page and account dedicated for your Business.
If you haven’t, you might want to do it RIGHT NOW.
That’s because Singaporeans are HUGE Social Media users. We’re talking an average usage of AT LEAST 2 HOURS, per day.
Out of 5.83 million people in Singapore, 72% of Singaporeans are Mobile Social Media Users.
The very ONE reason why you should be marketing on Social Media is simple — Your Customers are on Social Media. You would want to be there where your potential customers are. If you are a Small Business, it is especially important and a good opportunity to reach a diverse Online Audience.
Of the Internet Users in Singapore:
- 89% searched Online for a Product or Services
- 73% purchased Product or Services Online
- 54% made Online Purchases via a Mobile Device
- 1 in 4 users are following Brands on Social Media which they Might make a Purchase
(Hootsuite data)
And It’s proven. It increases Brand Engagement and Recognition and eventually, Increases Sales as well. The reason is simple — Consumers use Social Media platforms to research or find products to buy.
The crazy thing: Consumers in Singapore Has Spent $999 Million on Fashion and Beauty and $647 Million on Food and Personal Care IN SINGAPORE. That’s literally HOW MUCH is spent on E-Commerce, and online sales are exploding continuously. Of course, this also means that competitions are tough.
At 1103 STUDIOS, we talked a lot about getting an online presence for your business to gain a competitive edge. Many prospects pose similar inquiries about Digital Marketing. Here, we answer some of the Frequently Asked Questions to understand more about Social Media Marketing! Read on to find out more 👇
Got More Questions? Speak to Us, Real-Time!
1) Is Social Media Marketing different from Digital Marketing?
The short answer is Yes.
Digital Marketing is the use of digital channels, platforms and marketing strategy to connect with consumers online. Digital Marketing consists of: Email Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and basically any form of Marketing that exists online.
Basically, Social Media Marketing is just one aspect of Digital Marketing.
2) What falls under Social Media Marketing?
The major Social Media platforms are:
- Youtube
Managers and content marketers connect with audiences through the use of these platforms to build brand, drive traffic to a landing page and increase sales.
To manage these platforms, many types of content and digital media are published to engage with the audiences. This could be in the form of:
– videos
– Graphics
– Blog Posts
– Infographics
– Ebooks and more!
If you have a specific message to send across to a set of audience, this is where Social Media Advertising comes into. Social Media Advertising is really, really powerful. We are saying this because you are reaching audiences who have similar Behaviour, Demographics and Interests as your Current Customer Lists.
For a Starter, Instagram and Facebook advertising are common and easiest to set up. Through Facebook ads, you can pay for Videos, Images and even traffic to websites! The possibility is endless, so do spend some time navigating through the Ads Manager.
Ultimately, Social Media Marketing should promote your brand and services. This can be through the usage of digital media, content and campaigns. Don’t forget to communicate with your customers on social platforms!
3) Can I use Social Media to get Leads for my Business?
Whether it’s high-ticket sales or day-to-day products, leads are important to generate business growth.
The Social Media landscape has changed so rapidly that it is now relatively easier and better to get prospects, as compared to the old-school telemarketing and street marketing.
The best part? Lead Generation through Social Media can bring you High-quality Leads, lower cost and time. So yes, you can definitely use Social Media to get Leads, but how do you go about it?
Here are some of our best ways to provide quality leads for your sales team:
- 1. Take advantage of your existing clients’ information and identify and research more their behaviour. You can discover their demographics, favourite hobbies, locations where they live etc.! This will guide you to target a similar audience with your ads.
- 2. Remember to provide value to prospect. This can be in the form of gated content such as sharing an external link to your website or signing up for newsletters to gain access to your valuable content.
<br/ >Be kind and offer something Free. People who use your free products will already have a relationship with your brand, which acts as a ‘soft opening’ to warm up your cold leads. Doing so can gather detailed information about the prospects which your sales team can follow up with.
Facebook has a specialised ad format that helps you to generate leads. All it takes is just a few taps for the prospects to enter their information. It is extremely effective when done right!
Our Client, Leco Prestige Pte Ltd has generated quality leads at a cost of $4 with 4 cars sold per month.
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# 1103STUDIOSTips
When asking for information, do not request for too much, you will scare the user away! Be concise and straight to the point. You would want to minimise their time to enter the fields as much as possible.
Minimal Fields Required
Ensure that you have sufficient information you need to contact them. You can ask for detailed information later when you meet them face-to-face.
”
Generating Leads from Social Media is quick and easy, but remember to provide value or an irresistible offer that entices your consumers. ✅
4) How long does it take to see social media marketing results?
Ah, we love prospects and clients that care about the numbers instead of the journey.
What does ‘results’ mean to you?
How much marketing budget are you putting in?
How Committed are you?
We definitely agree that results matter. After all, what is the point of putting so much budget behind it if we do not see any increase in ROI right?
BUT be prepared to see a slow (but steady) increase over time. ROI would not come right crashing into your face immediately, if that is what you are expecting. Imagine a New Brand placing Foreign Products right in front of you, will you make a purchase immediately?
You need time to test your content and optimise your ads accordingly. Let your consumers get to know you and build trust. If you want to see faster results, invest in advertisements. Nothing works better and easier than Facebook and Instagram Ads.
Ideally, though, we would say that it will take six to twelve months to see results. Six months is an ideal testing period to determine which content is working and which is not, so that is where your results will start pumping in. Keep the traffic to your business page steady so that it will increase overtime and build brand reputation. Over time when consumers trust your brand, you will then see an increase in conversation.
Keep in mind that Social Media Marketing is a long-term strategy. Set your expectations straight with clear and consistent strategy. It will NOT happen overnight, but it WILL happen.
5) How do I plan a Social Media Marketing Strategy?
Just like how you would create a Digital Marketing Plan, you would have to create one for your Social Media platforms. Before you get started with your content, there are several things to recognise before executing your strategy.
STRATEGISE
- 1. Identify what is your objective and goals. You do not want to send out a mixed and unaligned message to your audience.
- 2. Know your Target Audience. Just knowing your target audience can already determine the tone, language, type of graphics and videos to put out.
Being everywhere is great. Not being consistent? Not so great. - 3. If you want to be on TikTok and WeChat as well, there could be a possibility of a mismatched message that you are sending out. Pick a Few Platforms that you know your Target Audience, you would know which platform they are using.
- 4. After identifying your audience, you then can easily decide what kind of content strategy you would want to put out. Educational, Entertainment, Testimonial, Reviews, Product Release, Location are some of the best content strategies to put out.
PUBLISHING
Let’s be honest, manual postings are taxing, repetitive and inefficient.
Invest in Marketing Automation tools to make your process easier. There are tons of Social Media scheduling tools out there, such as Later, Loomly, Hootsuite, Buffer and Sprout Social (our pick!). They provide a Calendar for you so that you can see everything at a glance. Look out for the plans to see which tools suit your Business goals the best.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Social Media MEANS being SOCIAL, and that is one key point that many business owners neglect. Monitor conversations and understand your content’s performance. Listen to your audience, are they providing feedback about your service and product? Respond to their Feedback and engage with your consumers!
Consumers will become more receptive if your brand becomes more receptive. That will make an authentic connection so that you can know your audience in a more personal way.
ANALYSIS
To put it simply: Strategise – Publishing – Community Engagement – Analysis should be part of your Social Media Strategy.
Analyse your Post Reach, Engagement and Sales on Social Media to see if what you are putting out is relating to your audience. Are you seeing growth month to month? Check your Brand’s hashtag, or even use Social Media analytics tool.
Some of the Social Media scheduling tools include cross-channel reports so you can look across all platforms at a glance. Gain customers insight by generating reports and analysing it.
6) Why should I continue to post even if no one is interacting with my post?
If nobody is interacting with your posts, It simply means that your content is not resonating with your audience. But why should you still continue to do so?
STRATEGISE
- 1. Identify what is your objective and goals. You do not want to send out a mixed and unaligned message to your audience.
- 2. Know your Target Audience. Just knowing your target audience can already determine the tone, language, type of graphics and videos to put out.
Being everywhere is great. Not being consistent? Not so great. - 3. If you want to be on TikTok and WeChat as well, there could be a possibility of a mismatched message that you are sending out. Pick a Few Platforms that you know your Target Audience, you would know which platform they are using.
- 4. After identifying your audience, you then can easily decide what kind of content strategy you would want to put out. Educational, Entertainment, Testimonial, Reviews, Product Release, Location are some of the best content strategies to put out.
PUBLISHING
Let’s be honest, manual postings are taxing, repetitive and inefficient.
Invest in Marketing Automation tools to make your process easier. There are tons of Social Media scheduling tools out there, such as Later, Loomly, Hootsuite, Buffer and Sprout Social (our pick!). They provide a Calendar for you so that you can see everything at a glance. Look out for the plans to see which tools suit your Business goals the best.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Social Media MEANS being SOCIAL, and that is one key point that many business owners neglect. Monitor conversations and understand your content’s performance. Listen to your audience, are they providing feedback about your service and product? Respond to their Feedback and engage with your consumers!
Consumers will become more receptive if your brand becomes more receptive. That will make an authentic connection so that you can know your audience in a more personal way.
ANALYSIS
Some of the Social Media scheduling tools include cross-channel reports so you can look across all platforms at a glance. Gain customers insight by generating reports and analysing it.
Analyse your Post Reach, Engagement and Sales on Social Media to see if what you are putting out is relating to your audience. Are you seeing growth month to month? Check your Brand’s hashtag, or even use Social Media analytics tool.
To put it simply: Strategise – Publishing – Community Engagement – Analysis should be part of your Social Media Strategy.
Picture this: Business A & Competitor B has a Business Page with the same amount of followers and reputation. If you observed that Competitor B posts more frequently, it shows that they are functioning, live and up and running. Business A just gave Competitor B a Competitive Edge.
So how should you ensure that your content and post is engaging? If no one is engaging with your post, it does not mean that you should STOP. Take a step back and analyse your posts. Are you answering what your consumers want to know?
Post compelling content that adds value for the target audience. Your content is for nobody if you are not providing value.
One way to track topics that are completely FREE would be Google Trends. Just type in a keyword and you can see what people are searching for!
Remember, your content is providing consumers an opportunity to convert. Put out relevant content, you will even see an increase in the Search Engine Rankings as well.
If you’re ready, start immediately.
Online Marketing and Social Media Management is not as daunting and confusing as it looks. In fact, it should be easy, efficient and cost-effective. Start including Social Media Marketing into your DIgital Marketing Strategy and watch the numbers grow steadily.
Written on 17 February 2020. By Ferlyn Koh.
Keep in mind that results do not come immediately. Conversion comes from conversations that count. Keep posting and investing and convert your audience to customers!
