How do you integrate social media into your daily operations?<\/b><\/p>\n
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Power suggests devoting 30 minutes a week to social media.<\/p>\n
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\u201cI usually do this on Tuesday. I take 30 minutes out of the day, put all of the content I want to share for the week in an Excel spreadsheet and then pre-schedule the posts either from the platform or via a third party program like Hootsuite or Sprout Social.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The spreadsheet should work as an editorial calendar and content you share on social media platforms should also match content on e-newsletters, media releases and major events. I create an editorial calendar for the year and I plan up to six months in advance.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Thomson, however, sets aside time each day to devote to social media.<\/p>\n
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\u201cYou\u2019re probably already reading news online about your industry. So when you read something of interest, share it,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
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\u201cBut consistency is very important, which is why you need to set aside a specific time each day, as opposed to logging in every now and then.\u201d<\/p>\n
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What are the potential returns?<\/b><\/p>\n
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Power says potential returns are considerable and include increases in website traffic, brand engagement and advocacy, potential leads and database size.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThe other added benefits are profits, media and press in relation to your use of social media and also a reduction on the amount of money spent on staff recruitment,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
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Campbell says for her business, social media is hugely effective for seeking feedback and generating support for Posse. \u201cIt\u2019s not free because we have full time staff focused on social media, but it\u2019s much more effective than advertising.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Thomson says if you\u2019re engaging with your audience on social media there\u2019s a good chance they will purchase from you.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThe real value is when your followers start to recommend you; that\u2019s when you get the viral effect. The idea is to create brand advocates who will share your content and market your business for you. That\u2019s where the magic happens.\u201d<\/p>\n
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What are the common mistakes you need to avoid?<\/b><\/p>\n
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Campbell says spamming and annoying people are high on the list of things not to do. She says people are aware of this and have become reluctant to use social media as effectively as possible.<\/p>\n
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\u201cPinterest heavily used Facebook in its early days to attract millions of users, even bordering on spam. They pushed the boundaries but they got results.\u201d<\/p>\n
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According to Power, if you are considering starting a blog, keep in mind this is a much larger commitment then a Facebook or Twitter page.<\/p>\n
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\u201cBlogs have one of the highest abandon rates of any social media platforms and can do the opposite of bringing a positive return to your company. It reflects poorly on your business if your blog is a museum of four-year-old posts.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Thomson says a common mistake is not identifying your target audience properly.<\/p>\n
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\u201cDon\u2019t try and target anyone and everyone. And without genuinely interesting content you\u2019re unlikely to offer real value and people won\u2019t buy from you or refer you. There\u2019s no point just getting any old like \u2013 it has to be a targeted customer.\u201d<\/p>\n
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1. Why does social media matter to your business?<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n What\u2019s the purpose of engaging in social media? What benefits will it deliver to your business?<\/p>\n <\/p>\n 2. Start small and build your presence gradually<\/b><\/p>\n <\/p>\n There\u2019s no point starting accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn and then running out of puff in a month\u2019s time. Start with a Facebook account for your business and once you think you\u2019ve mastered that platform, dip your toe in the other ones.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n 3. Develop unique content<\/b><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Anyone can share someone else\u2019s article on social media. The best contributors come up with their own content, which authentically reflects their point of view. This is also the best way to encourage others to share your posts and start great online conversation.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n 4. Measure your efforts<\/b><\/p>\n <\/p>\n A great resource is Social Sprout, which allows you to see which posts prompted the most interaction.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n 5. Results should dictate strategy<\/b><\/p>\n <\/p>\n If you find conducting straw polls of your customers\u2019 opinions and sharing the results on social media is the best way to engage with your audience think about upping those sorts of posts. Similarly, if you find no one\u2019s reading the articles you share, focus your efforts on tactics that do deliver results.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" How do you integrate social media into your daily operations? Power suggests devoting 30 minutes a week to social<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":58706,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,27,1,15],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45516"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45516"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45516\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58706"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45516"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45516"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45516"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}