Social Media Marketing FAQ

What is Social Media Marketing?

Social media marketing is a form of digital marketing that uses social media channels to promote a business or individual through paid and organic means. Social media offers a platform where businesses can showcase their products and services, connect with the right group of users, get feedback and recommendations, resolve complaints and build communities. In a world with over 3+ billion active social media users, social media marketing has become integral to the digital marketing strategy of any business.

What are the different types of social media ?

Contrary to many of us think, social media isn’t confined to social networks alone. There are different kinds of social media namely:

Social Networks: Social networks are used to connect with people and brands online. These include the likes of Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn and allow users to connect online to share information and ideas.

Media-sharing Networks: Media-sharing networks such as Instagram and YouTube allow people to share photos, videos and other media.

Discussion Forums: Forums such as Reddit and Quora are used to discuss and share news, information and opinion.

Consumer Review Networks: TripAdvisor, Zomato and other similar sites allow users to review and find information about brands, restaurants, travel destinations and so on.

Interest-Based Networks: These are used by people to connect with other users sharing similar interests. Goodreads and Houzz are good examples.

What are the top 5 social media marketing sites ?

Here’s our list of top 5 social media marketing sites:

Facebook: With over 2.4 billion daily active users, Facebook is the hands down the most popular social network. Regardless of whether you need to build awareness about your brand, generate leads, attract website traffic or bolster online conversion, Facebook is the platform to go for. Its advertising platform is the most powerful of all social networks.

YouTube: YouTube has over 2 billion monthly active users; plus, it offers the benefit of video-based content which not every site offers.

Instagram: As a visual platform, Instagram allows you to post appealing pictures and videos. Being owned by Facebook, Instagram lets you access the same user base and advertising platform as Facebook.

Twitter: This microblogging social channel has over 336 million monthly active users. Twitter allows you to leverage hashtags to connect with the right set of users and spread awareness about your brand.

LinkedIn: If you have a B2B business model, LinkedIn is the site to be on. Regarded as the social network for businesses, LinkedIn has over 300 million monthly active users, most of which are either in the working world or close to it. LinkedIn is highly beneficial for targeting specific accounts or designations..

How can I learn Social Media Marketing?

You can learn social media marketing in many ways such as:

Follow Social Media Blogs: Blogs such as Social Media Explorer and Social Media Examiner are packed with powerful tips to sharpen your social media prowess.

Take up an Online Course: E-learning websites such as Udemy, Simplilearn and Coursera offer premium online courses on social media marketing curated by industry experts. By taking up any such course, you can not only gain practical knowledge of social media marketing but also become a certified professional.

Learn from YouTube Channels: YouTube Channels by Ryan Hildreth, Jordan Steen, Aaron Ward and Andrew Macarthy are some of the best resources to gain in-depth knowledge of social media.

Start Social Media Marketing for a hands-on experience: This microblogging social channel has over 336 million monthly active users. Twitter allows you to leverage hashtags to connect with the right set of users and spread awareness about your brand.

Does social media marketing really work?

Yes, it does. Millions of users across the globe are already using social media actively and the number will only continue to surge in the days to come. So, by creating a robust social media strategy and working consistently towards your goals, you can easily accomplish your online marketing goals. Social media marketing can help you connect with the right audience, boost website traffic, augment brand awareness and reach a wider audience.

Besides, you can measure the success of your campaigns and constantly tweak your plan if it doesn’t yield the desired results. Of course, you need to be aware of who your target audience is and what all tactics should be deployed to target them effectively.

What tools do you use for social media marketing?

There are numerous tools which can be used for social media marketing. A few of them are Buffer, Hootsuite, Sprout Social, Agorapulse and Socialbakers. Among these, Hootsuite is considered one of the best social media management tools. It serves multiple purposes for large scale businesses as it grants them the freedom of managing numerous accounts and pages.

How to measure ROI in Social Media?

ROI stands for Return on Investment. Measuring ROI in social media marketing is easy. For instance, you spent $1000 on an advertisement campaign. Thereafter, you generated a revenue amounting to $2000. This means that the net profit is $2000-$1000= $1000. The ROI here is 1000 divided by 1000 multiplied by 100 percent. This equals 100 percent for illustration.

How to handle negative comments on social media?

Criticism is at the core of every argument. In social media, it is alternatively referred to as a negative comment. Every negative comment has to be respected as a unique shade of opinion. It has to be responded to quickly and politely. This is especially important if you are a social media marketing company, as it can even have dire consequences for your business.

Is paid Social Media advertising a good idea?

While drafting your budget, it is always a good idea to plan for investing in social media advertising. This serves the dual benefits of not only being cost effective but also reaching a large number of people in one go. Paid social media advertising is one of the proven methods of social media marketing.

What common social media marketing mistakes should my business avoid?

If you are not planning, you are planning to fail. If you fail to create a social media marketing strategy, you might have already committed the first mistake in your business. Other mistakes that you should try to avoid include spamming and very little interaction.