These days, almost all of us are active on one social media platform or another—or maybe more than one! Aside from being a place to connect with friends, family, and that kid who was your lab partner in high school, social media is also the easiest way to tap into your target audience. Don’t make the mistake of thinking “easy” is the same thing as “simple” in this context, however! Advertising on social media can increase your reach, build brand awareness, and attract new leads—but only if you do it right. That’s where we come in! We’re here to tell you the 5 simple dos and don’ts of social media advertising.
To advertise effectively on social media, you need a purpose and a plan. Are you looking to increase engagement on your business pages? Do you want to build a bigger following? Is your goal to get more people to your website? When you approach social media advertising with a measurable goal, you can build a successful strategy around it instead of throwing every marketing trick at the wall to see what sticks.
We wrote a whole series recently on how to create amazing social media content—you can start here if you want to catch up!—and we’ve touched on the topic of digital ads several times. Today we’re going to talk about the most important DOS and DON’TS of social media advertising! If you’re new to marketing this way, this is the perfect jumping-off point for you. Keep reading below to learn more about how to smash advertising on social media with all the success you deserve!
DO: use video content to your advantage
Generally speaking, you have about three seconds to catch a viewer’s eye and convince them to engage with your content. Videos are an excellent way to grab someone’s attention and stop them from scrolling past! This type of easily digested content is so effective that almost 60% of marketers say it tends to drive significantly more engagement than static images.
You don’t need to be Steven Spielberg or Martin Scorsese to take advantage of videos, either. Take viewers behind-the-scenes of your business, share information on fundraisers or community events you’re involved in, spotlight your services—there’s no need for complex stories or big special effects when you’re sharing authentic content that is helpful or entertaining to your target audience.
DO: keep your brand’s messaging consistent
When you think of McDonald’s, do you automatically see those golden arches in your mind? What about Nike? You probably just thought of their distinctive swoosh or the “Just Do It” slogan. These images are ingrained in our memory because they’ve used the same messaging consistently throughout the years. If you’re looking to establish a social media presence for your brand and amplify it, you’ll need to do the same!
Fortunately, this isn’t a complicated process. One of the most important ways to maintain brand consistency is also one of the easiest—simply ensure your account name, profile picture, and “voice” are the same on all your social media platforms. This will help strengthen your brand identity, generate loyalty, and reinforce your marketing message. Since this messaging sets the stage for every interaction a person has with your brand, adopting a cohesive look and tone is imperative to further engagement.
DO: use clear calls-to-action
A call-to-action is a prompt that invites the user to take a specific action of some sort. Creating well-defined calls-to-action will encourage followers to take the next step, whether it’s signing up for a newsletter, scheduling a consultation, or leaving a review for your business. Since most social media users are swimming in a sea of neverending information, keep your message clear, concise, and easy to achieve for the best results. Some examples include:
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DON’T: be too wordy
Remember that short attention span we talked about earlier? It applies to text, too. It can be tempting to add exposition, commentary, and assorted other explanations to your graphics and videos, but less really is more when it comes to social media copy. In fact, Facebook discourages this very thing by showing only the first few lines of text in your preview. Keeping things short and sweet will capture your audience’s attention more effectively and allow you to focus on the main points you want to highlight. We say that “a picture is worth a thousand words” for a reason, after all!
DON’T: be afraid to be yourself
Part of what makes social media so special is how it facilitates connections between people. This is true on the individual level, and it works on a professional level, too. Through your social media platforms, you can engage with your target audience and build meaningful relationships with your followers. But this only works if it doesn’t feel forced!
Users crave online authenticity and if you’re faking it, they’ll know. Don’t be afraid to be yourself on your social media pages, and don’t be afraid to have fun sometimes, too! It’s great to tackle important topics and share trusted resources, but keeping your content too dry will lose you followers in a hurry. When your audience feels like they’re engaging with actual humans on the other side of the screen, they’ll be much more inclined to participate in purposeful ways. That boosts brand loyalty and can lead to more referrals for your business.
If you’re not sure how to maximize your online marketing, Neon Canvas provides comprehensive social media services! Our expert team will help ensure all your platforms are branded consistently, streamline your content, and show you how to achieve an engaging social media presence. Get in touch to learn more about how we can turn your brand into a social media success story!