8 Ways to Improve Your Social Media Marketing

Social media can be fun. It can also be rewarding, or distracting. But if you are using social media to promote your business, here are eight ways to make it pay off no matter how much time you spend on it.

1. Create a posting schedule – You can keep your social media content focused by providing a calendar or content schedule. Know which piece of content you plan to post on each day and rotate them around so that you post different content pieces on different social media accounts on different days of the week.
2. Use images – Make your content more visual. You’ll get better responses and more interaction. It really does increase engagement.
3. Optimize your posts – Search engine optimization is not dead. You can increase the likelihood that your posts will be found in search if you lightly sprinkle your keywords in them.
4. Diversify your content – Instead of focusing all of your own content on your brand, diversify your content. Share third-party links and even competitor links. If your goal is to provide value to your social media followers, then you’ll share valuable content–whether you created it or not.
5. Set yourself a time limit – Social media can be distracting. Instead of allowing yourself to get sidetracked by pictures of cats, set a time limit on your social media activities. Use a timer and when the bell goes off, move on to something else. You should be able to update your social media accounts in 10 or 15 minutes a day.
6. Provide exclusive content for each social media channel – I’m not saying every post has to be unique, but give your followers on each social media account something unique. That’s what they follow you on that channel for. These can be unique special offers available only for users of Twitter or a discount for anyone who likes your Facebook page. However you want to do it, offer something followers can only get on that channel.
7. Write longer posts – This is especially useful on your Facebook page, Google+, LinkedIn, and Pinterest. Instead of one liners (except on Twitter), make your posts just a little longer. Of course, people on Facebook tend to like posts no more than 100 words or so, but Google+ users really like long posts.
8. Interact with your followers more – Your followers are following you for a reason. Reach out and engage them in comversation. Engagement leads to more engagement.

If you’re going to use social media for marketing, do it right. Connect and drive traffic back to your website with these eight techniques.