Social media has become one of the most cost-effective ways to target an audience for almost any product or service. While free social media posts can drive organic traffic, social media paid advertising should be a part of every marketing strategy.
“The nice thing about social media paid advertising is you can target your audience in lots of different ways: age, gender, where they live geographically or income.” – Cheryl Weedmark, Director of Marketing & Customer Experience, IN2communications.com
Social media advertising gives you the opportunity to place your message directly in front of your most likely customer by targeting the right platform. This is the key to a successful paid social media strategy. Networks, where your organic content resonates with your target market, are the logical place to start.
Know where your customers go for information. For example, Pinterest lends itself more to female users, while younger consumers may gravitate towards Instagram or Snapchat.
“Think of it like fishing. If you knew exactly where the fish you wanted to catch were, you could go directly to the spot and drop your lure in and catch more fish, the kind you want, and faster.” – Rick Lambert, B2B Sales Performance Coach Rick Lambert of selltowin.com
What Are Your Goals?
No matter which platform you choose your objectives should remain the same.
- Awareness – Increase your reach and define your brand.
- Consideration – Your ads should drive traffic and increase engagement, encourage app installs, video views, or downloads.
- Conversion – Create online conversions, make sales, or drive traffic to brick and mortar stores.
Let’s take a look at three social media platforms to consider.
When it comes to social, Facebook is still king. After all, 97% of marketers choose Facebook as a paid outlet for their products or services. It offers the largest user base, and one of the most engaged. Facebook allows you to build an audience based on demographics like location, age, and interests. Facebook also offers tools to help you re-target previous visitors to your site. Whatever you do, make sure that your ad has a strong call to action!
Instagram uses the Facebook Ad Manager as well–so it’s a great second choice for ad placement. If your product reads well visually, Instagram is a great option.
If you’re looking to boost your followers, promoted accounts are prime real estate on Twitter. This places your brand front and center in your audience’s “Who to Follow” section, making you just a click away from your prospects.
LinkedIn has 630 million users and out of that 63 million are in the position of being a decision maker in a company making it a fantastic platform for B2B.
Best Practices…
- Whenever possible, include video. Short videos have higher completion rates.
- Focus less on the cost per click, and look more at your daily budget.
- Whenever possible use branded images or pictures of your team and avoid stock anything in your ads!
Social media paid advertising can be a very effective part of your marketing strategy! Have any questions, or want to learn more? Send us an email or give us a call!
View the video version of this content now on THE SMARKETING SHOW – Episode 27.
Filmed live on location in London, Ontario, The SMARKETING SHOW features award winning B2B Sales Performance Coach Rick Lambert of selltowin.com and former TV News Anchor Cheryl Weedmark, now Director of Marketing & Customer Experience at IN2communications.com.
Join Rick and Cheryl Thursdays on YouTube when B2B sales and marketing meet!
