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2021 is not the year for predictions. As we’ve seen with the past year, nothing is certain, and forecasts can quickly go to waste in a snap. Still, all marketers need to get ahead of the year is to make plans that they can actually see working. So, instead of the usual yearly predictions of what will go big, we’re taking a page out of 2020, and we’re going to take a look at things we’ve learned from the previous year and what tips we can carry from it. From embracing TikTok to taking a stand on social issues, here are some tips to keep in mind when planning out this year’s social media strategy.
While there might have been a time when posting more seemed like such a good idea, that time is far over. These days, going by the mentality you need to publish at a high frequency can be counterproductive. For your audience, posting too much—say a couple of posts a day or even just every day—can come across as spammy. Meanwhile, for your social media team, the need to create at equally high frequencies can quickly burn them out.
These days, quality is the winning horse in the social media game. And as social algorithms continue to evolve, there has been an increasing need to prioritize relevance over quantity. To better do this, marketers need social listening tools to understand their audience and figure out what they want to see. Meeting their expectations and being in touch with them is what will fuel your engagement.
In recent years, plenty of huge brands have taken bold stances against specific social issues. Nike stood with Colin Kaepernick in his protest against racial injustice; Ben & Jerry’s have been outspoken about LGBTQ+ rights and criminal injustice, among many others; Chobani hired refugees to emphasize immigrants and refugees’ value and so many more. And in the past year, there has been increasing pressure for brands to speak out on socio-political issues.
According to Sprout Social, 70% of consumers think it’s essential for brands to take a stand, which makes sense given that most consumers want to support brands with who they share the same views. However, while staying may hurt a brand, it is also crucial for brands to know when to join the conversation and adequately do so. Remember, whatever you post on social media can affect your customers, so make sure you can support the statements and stands you take.
These days, TikTok is where trends are born before they become viral. Unfortunately, most brands are still skeptical about it. When you coansider the platform’s more than 700 million users, you can immediately see that that is where the market is heading. And nowadays, that number isn’t just populated by Gen Z dancing to all those various trends. Now, you can find professionals, moms, and even boomers on there who have found their audiences, so there is a strong likelihood you’ll find an audience on TikTok as well.
If you think your brand isn’t ready for it yet, that doesn’t mean you have to ignore it completely. Instead, use it to get a feel of emerging trends that can inspire your other social media content. You can modify trends to fit various social networks, and you can even repurpose clips for various platforms. This way, even if you’re not on the platform directly, you can still take advantage of it.
While quality and relevance help catch customers’ attention, it’s social customer service that makes them stay. Investing in it will help strengthen customer relationships and build brand loyalty.
When your customers have questions, complaints, or anything they want to say to you, they’ll always turn to social media. That’s why it’s wise to come prepared with a customer support plan. To help you track its effectiveness, track metrics like sentiment and response rate. This way, you can meet your customer’s demands. Remember, aside from your posts, your audience is also watching how you interact with them because this tells them the kind of experience they’ll have with your brand.
While lumping them together might help you see the overall performance of your content a lot easier, there is a chance you might miss the granular details that will actually help you elevate your social strategy.
To catch these details, it helps to organize and tag your content by campaign, by event, or by function. This way, you can monitor each individual performance and identify opportunities that can help improve your future social media plans.
The data you get from your socials is valuable not only to you and your team but to your entire company. There are plenty of valuable consumer insights nestled in all that data that other departments can use to elevate their own operations. So, don’t be afraid to share your social reports with your stakeholders and other departments. This won’t only demonstrate the value of social but it will also keep them informed of your projects.