Why?

Often I get asked why a client’s business should be using social media. Often the question is answered by another question-Why do you need advertising? At this point, most social media gurus will start gawking at me for comparing social media to advertising. They are not the same, they do not and will not ever replace each other. They actually blend quite well together. What they both do is create revenue, profits and results.

If your business has a unfocused marketing or advertising plan, then the results will surely suffer. The same is true for social media – having an unfocused approach to social media will also manifest less then favourable results.

Having a plan

Having a solid social media strategy and tactical plan will ensure your business has successful results. Stakeholders in your business must also fully grasp and stand behind your social media strategy. A business with a great social media strategy but no support from its executive team will also struggle to achieve their desired results.

Results

You must tie in your business goals to each point within your social media strategy. It is a great and effective way to measure and formulate a strong social media strategy. Creating an ideal outcome for each goal is essential. For example, do you want to have 500 new website leads? Or are you looking to increase online sales by 20% for your e-commerce store?  To make sure you plan is on target with your business goals, make sure you have a method to measure periodically your process towards your goal. Remember that it is all about the results – make it happen!