Use social media marketing the right way and find more leads in less time

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Whatever your business, whether you run a large company or have an online shop you operate from home, or anything in between, you’ve probably been told that you must have social media accounts to reach out to your audience.

That sounds great, and it is, in theory. For most, and this may apply to you, social media marketing is just an endlessly frustrating experience. What happens is that you never quite get the results you want, you seem to spend an awful lot of time doing it, and really, it can mostly seem like a lot of effort for little reward. But it doesn’t have to be like that!

Social media marketing is a skill, and like every skill, you need to learn it. Don’t worry though, there is nothing here you cannot do. Once you know the secrets to social media marketing, you can get the results you want, and have read endlessly about. Let’s start with the basics.

The right platform

Think about your audience, where are they? Choosing the best social media platforms means a more effective campaign. For instance, if you are offering a business to business product, then LinkedIn would be a platform to concentrate on.  Also, think about your product or service, what platform fits it best? A photographer may focus on Instagram for instance, as a visual medium it is more suited to the service.

That doesn’t mean ignore all other social media platforms, but effective social media marketing means spending the most time on the things that get results.

Optimize your profiles

When embarking on a marketing campaign, it is easy to get caught up in the message you want to send out, but for social media, the beginning is your account profile. Make sure that it has the right contact information, a link to the page or pages you want leads to visit, and a strong call to action. Your profile can be a lead generator all on its own!

Remember, social media is a conversation

It is important to remember that social media is a two-way conversation, and the best way to engage with an audience on any platform is to listen first.

Set up alerts to track mentions of your company or brand, see the keywords or hashtags that are used, keep an eye on how competitors use each platform. Being informed allows you to tailor your message to fit in with audience expectations. The idea of social media marketing is not to preach a message at potential leads, but to be a part of the conversation.

A social media management tool can help with this, and many have great scheduling capabilities to make sure your message is received at the optimum time.

Use Gated Content

Sharing content is great, but that two-way conversation on social media should also give you something in return. Simply asking for an email to get access to an eBook, video or other added value piece of content is a great way to generate leads.

The important thing is to build it into a steady supply of quality free content, be in the conversation, then ask for the reward.

Paid, targeted ads

They vary a little depending on the platform you are looking at, but Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and the rest all have tools that allow advanced targeting for paid advertising. This makes social media ads a cost-effective approach, and many marketers find paid social more effective than organic.

To make use of just how precisely ads can be targeted, you must really know your target audience. When the filters can even dig down into targeting a specific job title, audience research is crucial. With paid and targeted ads such as these, create unique, targeted content too. The personalized approach can be an excellent way to increase lead generation.

Make them an offer

To increase lead generation, offer something in return for your audience’s contact details. There are several ways to do this, and you can use them all separately over time.

  • A Competition or Sweepstake – A free entry competition is a great way to persuade leads to provide their contact information. The prize could be your product or service, or something related.
  • A free trial – If it is practical, for instance with a digital product of some kind, offer a free trial of the service for a short period. Not only is this an effective way to convert buyers, it is also a great way to build a list of contact information from your audience.
  • Conduct Research – Ask your audience to answer questions relevant to your product or service. You market this as a way to shape future iterations. Just remember to ask for contact details somewhere on the questionnaire. There are great tools for this, such as SurveyMonkey.

Track everything

The key to knowing where to focus your marketing efforts is tracking. Many marketing managers spend too much time on strategies that are not delivering simply because they don’t have enough data to know that it isn’t working.

Comprehensive tracking allows you to see where leads are coming from, what works, what doesn’t, and refine your approach to suit.

Conclusion

Social media marketing works, and when done properly, works well. Don’t get left behind, develop proper strategies, cross promote, because your audience on Twitter will be different to the following on Facebook, plan, track results, and give your audience added value. In return, your lead acquisition rate will soar.

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BizWell is a Swedish company located in the heart of Stockholm that provides business data of companies, authorities, and organizations in more than 100 countries right now. By using BizWell’s lead generation services you can grow your sales by finding new qualified leads for your product or service.
We hope that you found this information helpful and we would love to talk to you about your needs when it comes to lead generation! Since there is little to no risk involved, why not give this a try? Contact us today to start growing your business.

Mark Bishop

Mark Bishop
Digital Marketing Expert