Time for some Social Media Expert Tips for business growth and success.

I don’t have to tell you how important social media is to your marketing mix but what I thought might help, is to recap some social platform details and give you some Social Media Expert Tips for 2017.

Facebook is ever-changing and, according to Facebook expert Mari Smith, has a LOT more changes coming next year. In fact, in one of Mari’s latest posts, she said that they’re only 1% into all that they have planned. With ‘LIVE’ gaining popularity and Zuckerberg’s desire to cater to the end-user, I think Facebook will continue to overshadow most of the social world and be a major driving force for digital advertising and sales.

Twitter has had it’s place in social media history but the common feeling is that it’s just not as popular for business marketing as it once was and it’s not going to get better. In the past year and a bit Instagram, WhatsApp and even iChat have grown in individual users over Twitter. Twitter has tried to make some changes but they don’t seem able to change the direction of this once powerful platform.

Instagram is a force to be reckoned with and with Facebook at the helm, it’s certainly geared to continue in growth and positive progress. Let’s face it, visual platforms are always going to lead the way – colourful visuals increase people’s willingness to read a piece of content by 80% and this platform has captured that philosophy.

YouTube is over-the-top with growth & popularity! Owned by Google, this giant has the market for video and even search with an astounding 4 billion video views per day… PER DAY! The average time spent on YouTube is about 40 minutes and with about 300 hours/minute of new video uploads, that’s only going to get higher. In fact, I’ve heard that there are many users out there who have traded in their cable TV to watch YouTube & Netflix exclusively. Wow!

LinkedIn is still in it’s unique business environment with no reason to stop growing and serving its niche market. There’s some skepticism about recent changes to the free platform, however. LinkedIn is pushing people towards using ‘Sales Navigator’, a purchased account ($79.99USD/mo. after a free trial month). With a geographical reach of 200 countries and territories, and106 million monthly unique visitors, 2017 will unveil how well they do with their push towards paid.

Pinterest focuses on products which is different from any other platform, especially because its done visually (refer to stat above). It’s primary audience is women in their 30’s with young families (the fastest growing consumer segment in America). Pinterest is often referred to as a ‘social commerce platform’ and is the 2nd largest driver of traffic from social media sites, next only to Facebook.

With all of that said, here’s some social media expert tips to get you started:

HAVE A FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE WHETHER YOUR A B2B or B2C

More importantly, make sure your ‘ACTIVE’ on the platform (I recommend posting 5x/week at minimum)
likes & follows = higher consumer retention, but must be attained authentically through organic or paid reach (quality is more important than quantity)
with Facebook apps, you have the ability to convert visitors into newsletter subscribers, connect with you on other social platforms and much more
‘LIVE’ is a great new way to interact – take some time out to plan how you can make it work for your organization
if you’re actively writing relevant copy, you’ll rank higher in search
when you’re ready to launch a campaign, paid advertising on Facebook is not only highly effective but affordable
combining Facebook campaigns in other mediums including your website, drives traffic
contests can be incredibly successful and Facebook is a great place to conduct them, combine that with Instagram and you’ll have a winning initiative.

DON’T UNDERESTIMATE THE POWER OF LINKEDIN

take the time to create an “All Star” profile
if you’re a B2B and sales is a big part of your job, consider testing out Sales Navigator – it could be a small investment into much bigger business
spend 20 minutes a day making new connections & nurturing existing connections
a good profile with completed information, recommendations and endorsements on LinkedIn can provide great credibility in the professional realm
if you’re active on LinkedIn, you can also rank higher in search

PIN, REPIN AND MAKE BOARDS

if you have a product that appeals to women and the ability to take a lot of awesome photos, you need to be on Pinterest
Pinterest can be a huge website traffic generator and increase sales
free tools like canva.com can be useful if you’re a do-it-yourself graphic designer

GET VISUAL

no matter how you’re marketing your business or which social platform you prefer, if you’re not getting serious about your appearance, you’re missing the mark
use Instagram – even if you can only post a few times per week, as you progress so will your use of this mighty platform
create a list of hashtag’s that fit for your business and then use them accordingly

DO SOME VIDEO

Facebook LIVE is taking what you can do and who you can reach on social to a whole new level – investigate it and brainstorm how it can work for your business
people don’t expect every video to be movie star quality – people are more interested in being educated, entertained and informed on topics relevant to your business – so do that!
Google loves to rank videos from YouTube – don’t forget to add keyword rich text in the descriptions

GIVE

businesses who give their best secrets, information to educate and even simple advice – authentically and without obligation will continue to thrive. Philanthropy will continue to rise in an atmosphere of corporate transparency and savvy, intelligent consumers.
don’t be afraid to share your knowledge… and even some of your BEST SECRETS!

And don’t forget to share these social media expert tips with your community … it could help someone!

Sources: The New Yorker; Hubspot; expandedramblings.com; brandwatch.com; socialmediaexaminer.com