Hands down, one of the most significant pain points for our clients is developing and sticking to a consistent social media strategy.

You might know that social media is important in attracting new customers, but it’s also critical in building brand loyalty. While each platform’s effectiveness for your business will heavily depend on your buyer persona’s interests, there are several tips you can incorporate into your strategy now to get the most out of your marketing efforts.

1. Create a Content Calendar

While it can be difficult to draft a content calendar for the first time, it proves immensely beneficial for your social media strategy in the long term. Content calendars not only keep your publishing schedule organized, but they prevent you from missing any important dates.

At Criterion.B, we use Google’s collaborative platform to manage clients’ content calendars so our internal team of project managers, designers, writers, and editors are able to communicate and interact in real time.

With your marketing team, create a content calendar that typically includes regular blog topics, social media imagery, and interesting articles and local events. As you consider your calendar, don’t forget to highlight a few fun days that can bring exposure to your business! For example, on National Margarita Day, be sure to plan a social media post showing your team cheers-ing at happy hour.  

Remember to plan ahead as your business and surrounding area evolve. These posts can all be added to your content calendar in advance so that you can plan out your days to ensure nothing overlaps, you aren’t over-promoting your business, and that you are diversifying your content appropriately.

2. Follow the 20/80 Rule

Social media, regardless of the platform, is not a microphone for self-promotion. While it’s tempting to blast your latest offers, promotions, and new amenities across each channel, this “interruptive” promotion is not always effective. There’s a time and a place for promotional content, and that time accounts for about 20% of your feed.

Overall, 20% of your shared content should focus on you, while the remaining 80% should be about your audience and what interests them. Take this 80% opportunity to be a resource, a thought-leader, and a value-add for your customers.

At Criterion.B, we refer to this rule as the “cocktail party methodology.” When you arrive at a cocktail party, what do you do? Most people walk up to a small group of people and ask about them: their names, their work, where they live. You ask follow up questions to get to know them and seek out common interests.

With time, the conversation turns back to you, allowing you to share about yourself. It would be rude to interrupt the current conversations and talk about yourself first. This is how social media works, too — it’s a conversation.

3. Pin Posts to Your Twitter and Facebook Feeds

Did you know you can pin important posts to the top of your feed? From your latest press release announcing a new product line to a fun giveaway promoting your participation at an upcoming trade show, there are plenty of opportunities to highlight important social posts.

Pinning posts to your feed is a simple three-step process:

• Go to your Facebook or Twitter newsfeed and find the post you want to pin.
• Click the down arrow in the corner of your post.
• Select “Pin to Top.”

By pinning an important post you can extend your reach, potentially attracting more engagement and interest. Don’t forget to “unpin” your post after three to four days to prevent ad fatigue. These reminders can be part of your content calendar.

4. Take Advantage of Influencer Marketing

From reviews to thought leadership, social media offers a unique outlet to turn fans into influencers. Influencers are recognized by their large following and insights covering all aspects of your respective market. A strong social presence is necessary to hold an influencer status, as well as quality posts that followers are actively engaging. Often, influencers are viewed as a more trustworthy resource than advertisers, thus better capturing your audience.

By connecting with these influencers, you can market your business simply by becoming visible through their followers. Rather than spending large marketing dollars on print ads, influencer outreach is free or significantly cheaper. Consider allowing an influencer to guest blog on your site, for example, or have them take over one of your channels for a day to motivate your followers to engage.

For example, The Morris Apartments in Nashville regularly has social media influencers “take over” their Instagram page for a day. More recently, beauty blogger Leigh Taylor — with her 15,300 followers — took over the property’s Instagram Story to share beauty tips and advice.

A Guide to Developing a Social Media Strategy

Social media is key to attracting and engaging with your customers, but each platform is unique. This issue is further compounded if your property has more than one buyer persona. How do you effectively market to each persona in a way that will appeal to their unique desires? Download our guide to learn the dynamics of developing a social media strategy.