8 Time Saving Tips for Social Media Marketing

Building a strong social media presence is so important in this era. Social media marketing has become an important marketing strategy for businesses whether big or small. Consistently producing quality and relevant social media content, however, can be a bit taxing and time-consuming. Social media marketing can quickly consume your valuable time if you’re not cautious. Here are tips that will help you save time when marketing on social media.

#Tip 1. Set your goals right.

If you want to incorporate social media marketing into your marketing strategy, you should first set clear goals. Turning to social media without a clear knowledge of what you want is counterproductive and a waste of time. Know who your target audience is, what you want to achieve, and how you will achieve it. Your goals will also help you measure your success.

#Tip 2. Use automation software.

While planning out your social media posts earlier saves time, you can save more time by using automation software that can be set up to post content on your behalf whether. You can sign up for tools that allow you to schedule your posts days or weeks before. It is better to spend some hours at once coming up with social media posts for a given period rather than get spending so much time with it every single day.

Examples of softwares you can use to schedule social media posts include Buffer, Hootsuite and HubSpot. Others such as IFTTT and Zapier can automatically post WordPress blogs to your social media pages.

#Tip 3. Save your hashtags

Using hashtags when posting is necessary for categorizing content and increasing engagement.  Save all the hashtags you are likely to use in a note on your phone or computer so that you can easily add them to your content while posting.  You can find some relevant and trending hashtags with tools like Twitonomy, Hashtagify.me and RiteTag

#Tip 4. Share Content

Coming up with new content every time can be overwhelming. In this case, user generated content can be very effective. User generated content is content that has been created by your fans.  This helps you save time, and decrease content creation cost. It also makes your account much interesting and cajoles the person who had posted it

#Tip 5.  Get a mobile device.

If you have a smartphone or tablet, you will no longer have to be at your work station or have your computer to post on social media. You can go about other businesses and still post content from your phone wherever you are as long as there is an internet connection.  Apps like Pocket let you store content you find online in one place until you’re ready to use it.

#Tip 7: Drop some platforms

Some platforms may promise a whole lot of value and a solid return on your investment but you may later realize that they don’t work for your brand. Dropping such platforms can help you focus your effort to platforms that give you better results.

#Tip 8: Republish your content

When going through your analytics you may identify old posts that attracted more traffic and you can update them with relevant content if things have changed and they are now outdated and repost. This strategy will save you enormous time and it will be a favor to your new followers who had not seen it.

Importance of Using Videos on Social Media.

Social media platforms are a fantastic option to reach millions  of people all around the world and it  offers one of the best ways to  interact with target audiences. It  also provides a number of opportunities for growth and it helps businesses raise awareness and build  stronger brands. However, many companies who heavily invest in social media are missing a trick by failing to make video a mainstay of their social strategy. Leveraging video on social media is necessary to capture and satisfy a content-hungry audience.

 Come to think of it, if a picture is worth a thousand words then a video must be worth a million words, right? Video content is one of the most impactful, adaptable and profitable digital marketing tool at your disposal, you’ll want to make it a key part of your social media marketing strategy.
Social media habits are changing and all of a sudden the old tricks are not working as they used to. Video content marketing is becoming more and more popular and it has become the key to success for many brands. Through video content brands are able to break through the latest algorithm of changes and grow their businesses. If you are planning to start or revamp your digital marketing strategy then you will need to focus on video content creation, it will definitely be worth your time. The reach of video content is farfetched.

Here are a few things you will need to keep in mind as you create your video content.

1. The quality of the videos
It goes without saying that quality matters over quantity— and it's no different when it comes to video content. You want people to fully consume your videos, the only way to get them to do so, is to create a high quality video.

2. Catch the attention of your target audience
People flock to social media to get informed and most importantly, entertained. Make sure that your, videos are fun, engaging  and enjoyable enough to  capture and retain the audience’s  attention.

3. Shoot your videos horizontally
 Horizontal format videos are more superior to vertical videos. Also, most people these days are using widescreens eg laptops and TVs and horizontal videos would be more appealing.

4. Upload native video content
So you have created your video, uploaded it on You Tube and now you want to share the link on other social media pages.  No, that’s not right; you will be sabotaging your video’s probability of being seen. Native videos get more views than shared video links.

5. Make the first  10 seconds count
Research shows that the average concentration span of human beings is 8 seconds; this means that people may not have the patience to watch long comprehensive content   and that is why you need to make your videos as interesting as possible and pass your message within the first ten seconds.

6. Add a call to action
In order to get a good ROI from your social media video marketing efforts, you need to have a strong and clear call to action. If you are not encouraging your audience to act, then what’s the use of creating social media video content for your brand?

If you haven’t incorporated video content marketing into your social media l marketing campaign, now you know that you should. You will also need the tools to get you started. If you’re more of hands off kind of person that doesn’t like to get too technical, then consider hiring a social media management agency to help you create and promote your video content.

Top 4 Social Media Trends in 2020

These days, you cannot separate people from social media, it’s so clear that many people spend a good part of their days on social media trying to stay up to date with things they care about and that is why marketers have flocked to social media to connect with potential customers.  As a marketer, you need to know that social media is dynamic and there is a need to keep up with the trends. This will help you come up with a social media strategy that ensures your brand stands out from the rest. Now here are the 4 hottest social media trends to get excited about in 2020.

Trend number 1- Removal of likes from Instagram

I don’t know about you but personally, every time I see a post on Instagram I must check how many likes it has attracted leave alone the comments. Now imagine not being able to see the likes on other people’s posts.

Instagram has already experimented with removing likes in seven countries. This is meant to change the users’ focus to the photos and videos and not on the likes.  Luckily, likes haven’t been scrapped off completely, you will still be able to see likes in your own posts just not other people’s posts

On the other side, I think that if Instagram removes likes then brands won’t be able to measure the direct impact of their campaigns as easily as they do now. This might force brands to invest in Instagram Ads which they can easily track their ROI.

Trend number 2: From Facebook News Feed to Facebook Stories

After over a decade of Facebook's News Feed, Facebook is now turning it’s the focus to stories. Facebook Stories are typically News Feeds that rely on visual information rather than written. They are  full-screen photos, videos that are only available for 24 hours, photos play for five seconds, while videos play for 20 seconds

When Facebook first launched Stories, a lot of people didn’t see the point because that’s what Snapchat and Instagram were for. But the numbers don’t lie: over 500 million people are engaging with this feature and the numbers are rising.

 As a marketer if you want your brand to be seen then it’s the high time you delight your customers with some visual content on Facebook then once you know who is  watching your stories it will be easier to adjust your targeting efforts

Trend number 3- video content continues to dominate

In the past, we have witnessed trends come and we get thrilled about them but they don’t last. On the other hand, some trends like video marketing are here to stay; it is a complete game changer. Today it is the preferred medium by most marketers seeking to put their content out there and increase their engagement. Consumers want to see the product in action. An information-rich, accessible, and user-friendly video content can build a great online following and boost your ROI.

Trend number 4 - Influencer marketing continues to boom

Have you recently purchased a certain product just because a certain person you admire is using it?

Influencer marketing uses popular content creators to create brand awareness through different channels such as YouTube, Instagram etc. The influencer can influence his/her followers purchasing decisions.

Before the advent of social media, traditional marketing ruled but now influencer marketing has become so popular that brands are reallocating their advertising budget from traditional marketing methods like advertising to digital channels in order to increase reach. This is not going to change in 2020, we expect to see the influencer marketing industry grow more this year.

And with that, we wrap up the most recent new and shiny social media trends in 2020. Don’t forget to evaluate a trend to ensure it is right for your brand before incorporating it into your social media marketing strategy.

Social Media Hashtags for Every Day of the Week

Hashtags are no longer a new thing in the social media world but if you are new to the social world then hashtags are something you need to get familiar with. Hashtags are used in almost all social media platforms and they play a vital role in creating attention and categorizing content for your audience. From a user’s viewpoint, hashtags allow people to find content that is relevant to their interests. For business owners it is your chance to be noticed and to establish your company as a voice for certain topics. Knowing when, why, and how to hashtags can transform your social media game and presence immensely.

Daily hashtags can help you decide what to post depending on the tags relevant to your brand. In this post we’ll go over hashtags that are related to days of the week, to help you build you social media presence and grow a relevant following.

MONDAY

Being the first day of the week it is definitely time to  throw an inspirational quote to your audience as they start a new week using the #MondayMotivation. You can also use #MondayBlues to share your low spirited Monday  mood  that almost everyone gets while trying to adjust to the working environment  after the weekend. On the other hand #ManicMonday is for those who have do not subscribe to Monday blues and they always have high energies after the weekend.

TUESDAY

Tuesdays are for personal and professional development. You can use #TransformationTuesday to talk about a new transformation in your business or to unveil a new product. You can also use #TipTuesday to answer FAQs about your business and provide insightful tips that are related to your area of specialization. Tuesdays are also for #TechTuesday, where you can reveal new gadgets that you are using in your business and how they are helping you.

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WEDNESDAY

We are all familiar with the #WomanCrushWednesday which is used to recognize the efforts of women in different sectors. Wednesdays are also for #WisdomWednesday where you can share words of insights related to your business. Also use #wellnessWednesday to share tips on staying healthy.

THURSDAY

Thursday is for the popular #ThrowBackThursday or #tbt , you can use this hashtag to share old and also  recent memories that your audience would be interested to know.

FRIDAY

Everyone dears Fridays;  to join in the celebration  you can tag pictures you post with #HappyFriday. #FearlessFriday is also a good way to showcase different ways that you have overcome challenges in the industry.

SATURDAY

Saturdays are for sending shout outs to your celebrated employees and customers, letting them know that you value them  using #shoutOutSaturday.  This increases their loyalty.

SUNDAY

Sundays have not been left out either #SelfieSunday encourages sharing photos of what’s happening in your world. Use this tag to share more about your business, your employees or showcase a valued customer.

Creating a Social Media Strategy 101

When most people hear the terms social media strategy and social media campaign, they often think that the two are the same thing, are they? I hope you said no because they are two very different things. These two terms have been used interchangeably quite a bit but they are complementary, so before we look at how to come up with a social media strategy, let’s first look at the difference between the two.

To start with, a social media campaign is short term, comes after the social media strategy and its main aim is to promote a product or a service. Also, it aims at increasing page views and increasing sales for the product or service.

 On the other hand, a social media strategy is a summary of everything you want to do on social media and what you hope to achieve from the same.  Basically, everything you post on social media has a purpose and a social media strategy acts as a reference point that you can use to measure your success or failure. It is long term and includes specific objectives, a clear analysis of your audience and maps and plans on how to allocate resources. Now let’s see at the steps you need to follow to come up with a social media strategy.

The first things you need are SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time- bound). These goals will guide your actions and make sure you get good results. For example, you can have goals such as to increase brand awareness, to drive traffic to your website, to generate new leads or to boost engagement.

 The second thing you need to do is to understand your audience. Knowing your audience and their needs is key. This will help you to come up with content that is customer-specific, that they will like, comment on and share.  Avoid making assumptions about your audience, you should do your research. Social media analytics can also provide a lot of important demographics about your audience; who your followers are, where they live, which languages they speak, and how they interact with your brand on social. This kind of understanding will allow you to perfect your strategy.  In addition you will also need to research on your competitors and know what kind of strategies they are using, this enables you adapt you strategy accordingly.

Third, you will need to identify key success metrics. It is said that if you cannot measure you cannot improve it.  Here you need to come up with tactics in that will help determine whether your social media efforts are successful. Some of the metrics to consider measuring are clicks, reach,  conversion rates, time spent on website, brand mentions and total shares.

After you have done research on your audience and what they want, the fourth step you need to take is to create engaging content.

Finally, you will need to assess what is working for you and what is not; having a bird’s eye view of your social media will go a long way in putting things into perspective. It is important that you adapt your strategy as time goes by  because in the social world, things change fast. New networks emerge, while others go through major changes. This means that your social media strategy should be a living document that you look at regularly and adjust as needed. Refer to it often to keep you on track, but don’t be afraid to make changes so that it better reflects new goals, tools, or plans.

Blogging: What about it?

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To many, blogging is still not an actually job.

Today’s post will seek to highlight what blogging is and what role it plays in today’s dynamic industry.

The name ‘blog’ is abbreviated from ‘weblog’ which is essentially a web site that hosts a continuously flow of information in reverse chronological order. This means that newer posts are at the top of the page. A blog allows for a diary type commentary and can also contain links to other web sites and can range from personal to political to PR (like this one). A person/group can choose to focus on one or a wide range of subjects.

The standard template of blogs involves a main content area where articles are listed, newest at the top, and organized into categories to easier find content on the site. Blog sites also have one or more feeds, an archive of older articles, a comments section below each post and a list of related sites that are sometimes known as ‘blogrolls’. For more information on this you can visit Wordpress.

Blogging started taking off in the late 1990s and was mainly used as a platform for sharing thoughts, experience, feelings and opinions. Nowadays, everyone including the Fortune 500 companies use blogs to increase digital presence that in turn positively affects their earning potential.

Blogging is beneficial to your business. It helps the company stay current because in order to remain relevant in the ever changing business environment, you need to be the first to break news to your readers and stay ahead of your competition. It also sets you up as an expert in your field and increases brand visibility. It also increases traffic to the website that then rises up the ranks on search engines; you of course have to keep the blog content relevant to your trade. It also allows you to share a bulk of information that you are not able to share on social media. It also acts as a bridge between the social media and your website.

There is however a misconception that anyone can blog. This is true but not if you want your business to be taken seriously. This is because professionals have the ability to take your words and improve them in order to influence your readers. Blogging in itself is not efficient and a blogging pro would know the need to combine the blog with other digital PR and marketing tools to reach a wider audience. They are also aware of how to use search engine optimization (SEO) by using key words to increase your brand visibility on search engines.

Next time you are tempted ask a professional blogger ‘Why should I pay you more money?’ know they will in the long run increase your clients and earning potential.  

What Makes a Topic Trend?

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Popular conversation topics on Twitter are known as ‘trends’ and it allows users to tweet why the topic is important or interesting to them. The trend may be about a breaking news story or a fun topic to engage twitter users. It is also useful when in content development in that you can create content relevant to a hashtag, creating more traffic to your site/blog. It also allows a person to gauge the opinions or ideas from people on a topic. People however can get banned from the site if they use vulgar language, abuse the system or spam. A topic becomes a trend after polling of repeated hashtags found on tweets is done. The trend status is also determined by the time tweeted and volume of tweets that contain a certain hashtag.

The topics are usually around what is currently being discussed most rather than the overall popular topics from the community. You can view both international and regional tweets and this allows users to access current information creating a buzz. Media stations sometimes rely on trends since they are often times formed before they reach newsrooms. There are currently more that 500 million tweets generated per day and trends allow news, media and advertising industries to tailor their content to their target audience.  

Twitter’s trends algorithm, though not released to the public, is what determines a trend and not a person. Though they have been accused of not letting more deserving trends get on the list or even censoring possible trends, they maintain that the trend algorithm is what interprets the data and determines if a topic will become a trend. According to their support page when they rolled out the Twitter algorithm, “The new algorithm identifies topics that are immediately popular, rather than topics that have been popular for a while or on a daily basis, to help people discover the ‘most breaking’ breaking news from across the world” This was so as to capture the most interesting topics taking place on Twitter.

The issue however with the algorithm is that searching a topic is useless. Google adds weight to a topic depending on how many users have searched it and where they go next. With Twitter, the constant changing of topics then makes it difficult to apply relevance to a particular topic or hashtag. You often find that what makes the trending list is not particularly what people are interested in. There has however been a new and more accurate algorithm put in place that analyzes the general pattern of tweets in a given topic in about 90 minutes sooner than the Twitter algorithm.  

This new innovation allows users to break news before media stations air it. For many Kenyans, especially given recent events, trends have been how many people have gain access to breaking news wherever they are.

Social Media Competitions

Social media competitions or contest are a quick fun way of gaining followers on social media and the good thing about it is you only have to part with very little. New businesses use this method to create awareness of their product by offering free goodies to those with the most likes either on a photo or comment or have the most retweets. The catch is that those who want to participate have to like the page or follow the company.

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The other advantage to these competitions is that a company is able to generate interested traffic to the site which means increased brand awareness and/or revenue. To however run a successful social media competition, like any successful event, strategic planning is required. A strategy needs to be in place in order to turn the competition into a long term PR and marketing machine.

Social Media Plan

The basic plan requires:

• A clear goal- What do you want to achieve?
• Targets- How much traffic do you want to gain?
• A calendar- How long should the competition run for?
• A swipe file- how much product information and ideas will you gather?

You also need to know which social media platforms you will use: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+? You can choose more than one platform.

Clear Goal

To make the competition profitable, it is essential to have a clear goal. During a promotion, choose which of the following you would like the competition to achieve and tailor your message accordingly:

• Fans (audience traffic)
• Sales
• PR/Brand awareness
• Mailing list

 A clear goal helps track performance and knowing if expected targets are being met.

3^rd Party Apps

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There are free apps that you can use to host competition provided by social media platforms. Aim not to get banned from the platform of choice by reading the terms of services required for running photo contests, sweepstakes, or vote to win competitions. 

Getting the word out 

Marketing plays a role in pushing the contest forward. You can rely on some of the following to get started:

• Existing social media platforms
• Blog and website
• Mailing list
• Paid print or web advertising

Before taking this step make sure that your website is informative, up to date and presentable. Ensure that there is information about the company, working contacts and current location, all links are working, your brand is clear and information about how people can purchase your product (or explains how and where to get it) is provided as well.

The competition

During the competition, give participants tips on how to increase their winning chances as well as start conversations with them. Also, teach the audience how to share your content and as a company, post relevant content that can actually be shared. Chat with your fans, don’t just like or retweet!

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Follow-up

The most important people after the competition will not be the winners but the people who did not win. Your company needs to find ways to keep them engaged and let them know of future competitions. During this time you could run special offers and post valuable content for the new fan base. Also, to keep users engaged, offer bonuses or special rewards for the most active users.

Build hype and excitement around the competition and begin building your community. Fans will seek out your company for information, not merely read articles and updates you post. Also, your brand will become a trusted leader for resource and information in your niche. 

Brand management on Social Media

We have all at one point or another done a Google search of an organization before going for an interview. Nowadays it’s not just nervous interviewees doing so. Many people now opt to search for a company online before transacting business with them. Based on the information they find about the organization, they will either go on to do business or look for an alternative. Mainstream social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter provide good reviews based on past customer experience. 

For this reason brand managers need to understand the use of social media sites in a company's success. The advantage of these sites is that they can serve both as PR and advertising tools as well as entice new customers. Special attention needs to be given when posting or tweeting because poor posts, comments or tweets can easily damage a brand.

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Brand managers should also make sure to have daily posts and tweets providing information on industry news, new products, upcoming events and apologies or solutions for complaining customers. One should aim to post on Facebook at least once and Twitter between 2-4 times a day. If your account is not as active, it will lead to customers unliking your page or unfollowing your brand.

(A good brand example is Safaricom. After tweeting a complaint/query, they will give you quick solutions or if you have an account problem they will follow you, ask you to DM your number and if need be, call and assist you. They have managed to provide industry news, promote new products and upcoming events and send apologies or solutions to their subscribers)

As a function of PR, companies need to be active in their brand management. This also goes hand in hand with search engine optimization (SEO) writing to put you at the top of search engines when a keyword search is done.  

How is your brand being managed? 

Role of Social Media on Westgate Mall siege

The siege at Westgate Mall made news not just on local and international news stations but on social media as well. Most people found out about the siege through social media and witnesses also confessed having doing the same thing while in hiding from the suspected Al Shabaab terrorists waiting to be rescued by the Kenya Defence Forces. For most people twitter was the tool of choice and that included the Kenyan Defence Forces and the Harakat al-Shabaab al-Mujahideen.

Red Cross must be and should be commended for their use of social media to assist in all aspects of this tragedy that befell Kenya. It was through this platform that people were able to get help for the injured, locating missing members, donate blood and other materials to help those affected by this heinous act. Twitter proved to be the fastest way to send messages out to the public. Kenya Defence Forces also used twitter to both update and reassure Kenyans that they are in control of the situations amid scepticism.

The Cabinet Affairs account was also active during this dark hour for Kenyans along with the Disaster Operations Centre giving updates on what was happening on the ground to Kenyans and the international community.

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Most notably however were the many blunders committed by Kenyan media houses, some going as far as to broadcast the locations of civilians in Westgate mall who had communicated their ware bouts in the hope of being rescue by the Kenyan Defence Force. It was in this time the security forces cautioned the media against airing sensitive information that may jeopardize the lives of those left trapped within the building. This is especially the case after a picture was aired of the armed terrorists holding what appeared to be mobile phones in their hands (see image).

The media, both local and international, in some cases lacked of ability to differentiate between sensitive information and what was morally right to report. It is for this reason they were pushed back from Westgate to avoid such errors. After the first 24 hours little or no information was given to the media and by extension the public in the hope to keep the strategic plans of the Kenyan defence team from leaking to the terrorist. Such moments of vacuum left room for speculation and misinformation. This was the case for Henna who was mistaken for Samantha Lewthwaite ‘White Widow’, a British terrorist whose husband was responsible for the London train bombings.

It is in times like these where social media works against the truth. International news centres were also involved in the speculation bringing expert sources to comment on the matter.

Along with the freedom of expression, many other freedoms were violated during this time. The right of privacy and decency was specially ignored as horrifying and gory images circulated in the media and online platforms. The deceased and injured were featured, leaving family members and those who knew them shocked and grieved by finding out about their love ones state in such an insensitive manner.

Social media was also used as a ‘complaining’ tool as many stated they had to turn to international news agencies for information as the local media was not providing adequate information. This hunger for information pushed many to generate their own views about what was happening and many mistook this for the truth. The government was also giving contradicting information about those who died in the attacks as well as those injured through their social media page.

Twitter officials were also quick to act and suspend the Harakat al-Shabaab al-Mujahideen (HSM) twitter accounts. A sixth was however opened hours later and gained more than 3700 followers in less than 15 hours. This is a typical case of empowering the wrong people. 

Social media took centre stage in keeping Kenyans informed during the four day siege that ended in victory for Kenyans. Most of all, the greatest thing that could ever have come out of this barbaric assault on innocent people was that it united Kenyans. Messages of hope, condolence and quick recovery were sent along with prayers of healing through social media. Even more it united people from all religions. Al Shabaab was even publicly disowned by their Muslim counterparts. In the coming months it is is worth waiting to see what new role social media will play against the war on terror. 

Glass House PR would like to send their condolences to those who lost love ones in the Westgate Mall attack. For those who were injured and are in or out of hospital we wish you a quick recovery. Those with missing members may God comfort you in this time of distress. To our Kenyan Defence Forces and those who lost their lived to protect fellow citizens, we salute you. To everyone who helped a brother or sister in any way during this tragedy, may God bless you. Let us now work together to heal our nation. 

Danger of Firefighting using Social Media

Put out the fire while it is still dancing at the end of the match instead of waiting for the whole building to catch fire. On Monday PR Tips we found out the importance of social PR and how a positive or negative experience shared by a customer on social media can either increase or hurt  a company’s profits. On Social Media Wednesday we will look at how not to use social media especially when dealing with bad customer experiences.

Suggestion boxes are widely left unused in our rushed Kenyan economy but customers will voice their displeasure especially if they have experienced it more than once. As a company/organization, these complaints should be taken seriously and addressed immediately. The problem should be fixed before people complain about your brand on social media while they are still in the queue.

Here in Kenya, instead of working to fix the problem on the ground, many companies have opted to only address the issues that have been aired on social media to save the company’s image. A quick trip to Twitter will confirm this. A lot of time and money then goes into social media to fight fires instead of seeking other means. For example, spend money on Customer Service workshops and seminars at the beginning of each financial year to avoid mishaps that could cost your company its hard earned profits.

Customer service employees, and everyone who interacts with customers, need to be coached on how to handle the customer correctly. They need to go above and beyond the Kenyan norm of mediocrity and give those who seek their services/product an experience they do not expect.

If a customer complains online and you do manage to fix their problem, they will in many cases seek out competing brands in hope of a better customer experience. These online fixes are rarely seen as genuine but as a way to save the brand from a bad reputation. A worse of class of companies are those who send irrelevant responses to queries, post links to their site or even ignoring questions and complains from the public.

Social media should be used to give customers helpful information and updates that are relevant to them, not putting out fires created by laxity. Getting it right from the get go will save your company money used in social media fire fighting and crisis marketing caused by brand bashing. 

Aim to have positive posts from clients and this will in turn help your brand maintain a good reputation. Social media should not be your first line of defense  You can however use it to handle the one off mishap that is bound to happen in this less than perfect world. 

Images courtesy of Google.