2014 Social Media Marketing Tips

Do you want to boost your social media marketing strategy to increase web traffic and generate more leads for your business?

Do you want to stay ahead of your social competition?

Supercharge your social media marketing strategy with these tips from the pros:

1. Schedule posts just before or after the hour

When you’re scheduling your posts, schedule them just before or after the hour as you’re more likely to hit more people. You’re more likely to catch people checking social media just before or after a work meeting.

2. Don’t ignore paid advertising

Organic posts simply do not have a large enough reach. You must invest in paid advertising as well to reach more people beyond your current fan base.

3. Create lists on Twitter

Twitter lists are handy in more ways than one. We recommend creating lists for clients, leads, and competitors.

You’ll want to create a list of your clients who are on Twitter so that you can see what they’re tweeting about. Knowing what they’re interested in (besides your brand) will help with your content marketing strategy.

An easy way to build your lead list is to search for people who need your services. Go to Twitter search and type in keywords related to your business. If you can answer a person’s question, for example, you may have scored a business lead.

See what your competitors are up to on social by referring to your competitor list. Sometimes your biggest competitors may inspire you.

4. Acknowledge engagement  

Keep an eye on who is sharing your content. Type your company name in Twitter search to see who is interested in your content. Try to reply back to all users who mention you. Follow those users who mention you, or at the very least favourite their tweet.

5. Drive engagement

According to a report by Buddy Media, Facebook posts with questions generate 92 percent higher comment rates than posts without questions. Ask a question at the end of your post to drive a higher comment rate, but ensure your post is short and simple. Include a call to action with your post, such as “check it out”, or “comment below” to drive engagement.

How have these social media marketing strategies worked for your business?

Do you have any effective social media marketing tips you’d like to share?

 

Easy To Use Tools for Designing Social Media Visuals

You don’t have to be a graphic designer to create stunning images for your social media channels. It’s now easier than ever to design your very own images (for free!) on the web. We’ve put together a list of our favourite resources to create professional-grade graphics for your social media pages.

1. PicMonkey  

The basic (free) version of PicMonkey is all you need to create one-of-a-kind graphics. You can upload an image and edit directly on the web or you can design a graphic from scratch.  You can crop and re-size your image and add text in almost any font style. Frame your image with a border and add a special effect to make it really pop.

There is also a paid version which offers even more cool features.

www.picmonkey.com

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2. Share As Image

This program is useful if you are frequently sharing quotes. When you install the bookmarklet, it’s conveniently located in your browser’s toolbar for easy access. When you find a quote online that you’d like to share, simply highlight the text and click the Share As Image button in your toolbar. Another window will open where you’ll have the option to choose font style and background. You can either upload your own background image or design your own. There are limited background features with the free version, however with the ability to upload your own background image, the design possibilities are endless.

https://shareasimage.com/

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3. Canva

Designing a new Facebook cover photo is a piece of cake with Canva, a free online design platform for just about anything – including posters, presentations, social media, and blog pages. For social media use, you can upload and edit your own images or create an entirely new image using their layout designs for free backgrounds. And did I mention the designs are already sized appropriately?

Canva does not yet support Internet Explorer – you’ll have to login with your Facebook account using the latest version of Chrome, Firefox or Safari.

www.canva.com

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What free online-image creation tools are you using? What other tools would you recommend for creating social media visuals?