Social media is gaining more and more steam.  You’ve likely seen some predictions for 2012 – there are some additional platforms gaining momentum (Tumblr, pinterest), others are a big question mark (Google+), and some of the “oldies but goodies” are still around and going strong (Facebook, Twitter).

Yet many, many are still not using social media strategically.  Many businesses and businesspeople are in the mode of fire, ready, aim, instead of planning and aiming first before making a move.

So what can you do?  What are some ways to better ensure your social media is on target?  Here are 3 checkpoints for you to consider right now:

1.  Have you identified your audience – or prioritized which of your target audiences is most important to reach?  You need to know who you want to reach with your messaging – and use the social media channels where this audience is.  It might be a blog, it might be Facebook, Twitter, or another channel.  You don’t need to be a part of every social media channel out there – but you MUST be where your audience is.

2. Is your content engaging?  Is it what your audience wants to hear, so they can learn, talk to you and each other, and move on to the next step of their relationship to you?  A big mistake many make is posting content that is not of value to your target audience.  Remember, your audience is going to ask, “what’s in it for me?”

3. Do you have a call to action – are you looking to build the relationship beyond social media?  Before you post, figure out what you would like your audience to do.  Likely you’d like someone to visit your website to learn more and get more of an idea of your story and what you are all about.  You might want to encourage that person to engage with you on a different social media channel (such as watch a video on YouTube, have a conversation on Facebook or Twitter).  Or you might want to encourage a call or invite someone to schedule of a meeting with you.

Here is a recent video where I discuss the strategic side of social media (a bit of a different angle from above):   

What can you do next?  Learn more about my views on social media at the MMC website.  Want to ask some questions?  Have some insight you’d like to share?  You can do so on the MMC Facebook page or via Twitter.  Or, feel free to contact me in another way.

Filed under: Audience, Branding, Marketing Campaigns, Messaging, Social Media, Strategic marketing on January 13th, 2012