Advantages of Social Media Marketing-[2023]
Marketing has been around for a while and continues to evolve every decade, quarter century, and now it seems monthly. Word of mouth, radio, television, email, are still common ways to market but social media surpassed them in the early 2000’s. Social media has become ingrained in our day-to-day lives and advertisements have taken note.
When you’re mindlessly scrolling through content on Meta, TikTok, or Snap Chat – you will see various advertisements. Perhaps you clicked on an item of interest or there is a random advertisement for Crocks. Either way, advertisements on social media are inescapable and here to stay. The main reason is their reach, billions of people have access to internet on mobile phones, laptops, or desktops.
So, what are additional advantages of social media marketing?
Engaging with Your Audience
Social media is a great way to grow your brand awareness. And it enables you to engage with consumers easily via reviews, feedback, or general inquiries. Oh, suppose someone is unhappy about a product or service, they can easily leave a post. Once the team is aware of comment, respond quickly and professionally. Consumers like companies which are responsive to them regarding feedback(negative primarily or enhancements).
Increase brand awareness!
Brand Awareness. There are various ways to increase it, but none are more effective than using social media. For example, suppose you started a new business called bedhead-to-glam! And there is fabulous hairspray meant to transform client’s hair to look glamorous. To promote Glitz, you decided to create a YouTube video to highlight all benefits.
When people view the video, brand awareness will certainly increase. And, if other customers share the video, mention it online, or talk about – brand awareness will increase. It is important to strive to keep your brand fresh on people’s minds. Frankly, the quest is never ending because of all the distractions out there.
Higher conversion rates
When people are asked how they discover new brands, almost a third of them say social media (SMM). With that said, social media marketing has a wider reach. According to Statista, 2.65 billion people were using social media across the world in 2018. With the right strategy, know-how, and persistence a business can drive leads and increase your conversation rate.
With a larger audience, you can target your intended customers plus others who might be interested in your services. Targeted marketing has been used by various business to garner interest in certain products. Case in point. If a company wants to sell Jitterbug cellphones, they will need to target people sixty-five years or older. On social media platforms, there are settings to ensure content is directed toward that audience.
Monitor customer feedback
In one click, you can share a message with a large audience on social media. Shortly after, ten of thousands of people will be able to view your content in various time zones and locals. Customers can interact, share, and comment on content that has been published. Associates in the digital marketing department will find it easy to respond to messages posted online about the brand.
Boundless growth opportunities
Social media platforms and businesses have a symbiotic relationship. Businesses can open a free social media account In exchange, they will charge a certain fee for products sold on their platform. Also, there are ample opportunities to publish organic content which will draw in more potential customers.
Free organic traffic from social media will have a domino effect, potentially more advertising for less money. Simply put, social media marketing can increase the amount of leads. Leads turn into interested customers which result in sales.
Grow Your Business At Faster Rate
Unlike traditional marketing methods, social media marketing(SMM) typically has a higher market-to-lead rate. Why is this so? It is due to personalization that is possible with this marketing method(think cookies). Also, SMM offers direct communication with customers via chat, comments, or reviews. For those reasons, customers are more likely to move through the sales funnel at a faster rate. This is important because it results in more conversions than more sales.
Gain Access To Paid Advertising
Each business owner wants to take advantage organic or free traffic. Depending on your budget, you can opt to pay for advertising to expand the pool of customers. Paid advertisements typically display on the first page of Google/Bing which will ensure an increase in traffic, conversions and ultimately sales. Most people who view these advertisements are not likely following your social media accounts or aware of the brand.
Needless to say, promoting your products and services to this segment of the population will expand your reach and lead to increased business.
Summary
Social Media Marketing(SMM) has exploded in the digital age due to various reasons. Billions of people spend time on social media which makes it easier to advertise and target consumers. The advantages of SMM are the ease of engaging with customers. All you need is internet access and phone/laptop/computer in order to reply to messages. And businesses can increase brand awareness by promoting their products and services on Meta, YouTube or SnapChat – to name a few.
Since there are thousands, if not millions of people perusing the internet, conversions rates are going to be higher. And, it is easy to monitor customer feedback on SMM or the internet. Alerts can be setup to notify you if there is a negative comment on the net. Once aware, you can respond appropriately to avoid additional bad publicity.
After handling that situation, remember there are boundless opportunities to increase traffic on SMM platforms. Setup a free account then add content and video to promote your business. With the right strategy, your business can gain free traffic and increases sales. Without a doubt, any business is likely to grow faster online due to sheer amount of people online. Let’s not be mistaken, any business has to have the right strategy. Naturally to paid advertising is a typical for most businesses, because it generates more leads and conversions which lead to sales.
Sources
“7 Pros and Cons of Social Media Marketing.”Indeed.10 March 2023, https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/pros-and-cons-of-social-media-marketing.
Holmes, Katie.” Updated 2023: Average Conversion Rate By Industry and Marketing Source.”Ruler Analytics. 3rd February 2023, https://www.ruleranalytics.com/blog/insight/conversion-rate-by-industry/.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your article on the advantages of social media advertising. As someone who has dabbled in social media marketing for my own business, I can certainly attest to the benefits it brings.
One particular experience I had was when I launched a Facebook ad campaign for a new product. Through meticulous audience targeting and compelling ad copy, I was able to generate significant engagement and drive a substantial increase in website traffic. The ability to reach a wider audience, build brand awareness, and drive conversions is truly remarkable.
However, I also understand that social media advertising is not without its challenges. It requires continuous monitoring, testing, and adaptation to stay ahead of the competition and ensure a positive return on investment. It’s essential to strike a balance between creativity and data-driven decision-making to make the most of this powerful advertising channel.
Thank you for shedding light on the advantages of social media advertising and providing insights that align with my own experiences. I look forward to reading more from your blog.
Dave –
You made a great point, do not rely solely on data to make decisions. There are other things to consider when you decide to change your strategy or add a new product.
Overall, social media marketing is powerful tool to promote any business, get more leads, conversions, and generate sales.
Happy to provide my insight.
G
Social Media Marketing is going to be key for a lot of businesses out there. The only issue I have seen is being able to market specifically to a certain audience. For example, my kids’ karate dojo tried Facebook Ads, but even with the filters, they still received calls from people outside of the area or who were not part of the audience. How do you minimize that and how can you make social media marketing specific to each business?
Hi Kelly –
Great questions!
I am certain that associates at the Karate dojo had access to data showing those who visited the site. To narrow the audience, I would recommend using Facebook Custom Audiences. First, choose ads people recently viewed on the dojo site (these can be from any landing page). Feel free to exclude people who purchased or are unlikely to convert.
Go to Audiences with your Ads Manager. From the Create Audience dropdown, choose Custom Audience. Under sources, click Website. Choose your pixel. Under Events, choose which types of visitors to target.Name your audience and click Create audience.
As for making social media marketing specific for each business, I would recommend studying competitors. Who are they targeting then adjust your strategy based on the information. The key to targeting audiences in different businesses is having a sound strategy in my opinion.
Happy marketing,
G