Module Four

Social Media Marketing

In our digital marketing module, we have already discussed several elements that are useful for the promotion of your eCommerce store. Social media marketing plays an important role today, especially in making people aware of your business. 

 

What can be a better way to reach the vast majority of the population today than social media? Right! Social media marketing is of phenomenal importance, considering the scenario today. 

With a mobile phone in every hand and digital connectivity reaching billions of people, the reach that your social media marketing campaign is unmatched. So, how are you planning to use it to your advantage? 

 

Today, there are about 5.17 billion social media users in the world. So, utilizing social media to your advantage can provide a unique edge to your business. Let us understand the details of it that will help boost your eCommerce business. 

 

What is the Choice of Your Platform?

So, we understand clearly that social media marketing is one way we can bring in more reach to our eCommerce business. But wait! There is one aspect that you need to keep in consideration. 

 

What is the choice of your platform? Having a detailed understanding of your audience will help you in several ways. Where is your audience spending their time? It means that different demographics prefer different platforms. So, you need to keep track of what your target audience prefers. 

 

Let us discuss this with an example. If your eCommerce business targets teenagers, you should go for platforms like Instagram. Do you know that as of 2024, about one-third of total Instagram users are from the age group 18-24, the most? Since most of your audience will be on that platform, it becomes essential for you to focus there. 

 

Now let us suppose that your target audience is professional individuals. To target them, you should rely on a platform like LinkedIn, which has over 1 billion members as of today. 

 

So, choose your platform as per the audience you are targeting. Now the question that comes is if there are any particular platform strengths that one can leverage. Well, yes! The following are some specific platform strengths you need to consider:

 

• Facebook – You can target this platform as an eCommerce business for broader reach and better community building. The platform is ideal if you are targeting a wide age range. 
• Instagram – Instagram serves as an amazing platform for visual content and engaging younger audiences. A lot of young people are present here. So, use features like stories and reels to help reel engagement. 
• Twitter – It is one of the best social media platforms for real-time updates, customer services, and understanding trends. An ideal choice for industries like news, entertainment, and politics. 
• LinkedIn – When it comes to B2B marketing, networking, and also for professional content, LinkedIn serves the purpose right. 
• Multi-Platform Strategy – This strategy is one of the most effective ways to engage with audiences across all channels. Why not build a content strategy focusing on every social media platform for the best results? 

 

Creating Engaging Content

 

What is the purpose of the content you are delivering if it is not engaging? Although you are putting in efforts to ensure that your business and vision reach the masses, you also have to make sure that you produce engaging content. How? 

 

Ask yourself a question. How will you be able to make good content for your audience? Well, it will be possible when you know your audience’s interests. Put in the effort to understand your audience and know them well. With this, you will make content that will resonate with your audience’s needs and preferences. 

 

Let us take two examples to understand things better. As a tech brand, your focus should be on making how-to videos, product reviews, or other industry news. On the other hand, a beauty eCommerce business should focus on making tutorials and product launches. 

The following are some of the tips you can consider for creating engaging and relevant content:

 

• Including high-quality images is very important, especially on platforms such as Instagram and Pinterest. High-quality images grab attention and make the overall visiting experience better. 
• Today, short videos such as Reels and YouTube shorts perform amazingly because they are engaging and snackable in nature. So, make sure that you use these platforms to reach more and more customers.
• You can also focus on engaging with your audience in real time, answering questions, and showcasing products. For this, Facebook and Instagram Live are popular options.
• One of the biggest factors you should always keep in mind is consistency. Regular posting helps in building a strong online presence. So, develop a content strategy that can help you in building a strong online presence for your brand. Develop a content calendar to plan and schedule posts.
• Do you know that about 79% of people believe that user-generated content plays a crucial role in impacting their purchasing decisions? 

 

So, when you have put in all your efforts in building your eCommerce business, why not focus on these aspects of social media marketing? With these useful tips, you will experience the difference and will proceed in the right direction. 

 

Paid Advertising Strategies 

 

Now there might be instances where your business may not be receiving enough audience interaction and visitors. What should you be doing in those situations? With paid advertising strategies, you can take your social media marketing to the next level. 

 

First, be very clear about your goals. You must determine what it is that you want to achieve. So, ask yourself this question: whether you are looking for brand awareness, website traffic, lead generation, or sales with the content. 

 

Let us understand this using an example. Think of yourself as a small business. At the moment, your focus might be on driving traffic to your website. So, your paid advertising strategies will be in alignment with this goal. 

 

While doing paid advertising, what are the targeting options that you can focus on? The following are the major options to consider:

Demographics: Age, gender, location, etc. Focus on tailoring your ads to reach specific segments. Depending on the demographics you need to make changes to get the best possible outcome. 

Interests: To get the best results, you must target the audience depending on their interests and behaviors. 

 

So, utilize this paid advertising strategy on content such as sponsored posts, display ads, video ads, carousel ads, story ads, and more. 

 

Also, it is essential to always keep track of essential metrics such as click-through rate (CTR), conversion rate, and return on ad spend (ROAS). With this data, you can always refine your campaigns and yield better results. 

 

Social media marketing has the potential to provide a new identity to your business. It holds the key with which you can unlock unlimited potential for customer engagement and clicks that turn into conversions. 

 

Image Source: Unsplash.

 

Crucial Takeaways from this Chapter

 

• Choose social media platforms based on your target audience’s preferences, leveraging each platform’s unique strengths, like Instagram for younger audiences and LinkedIn for professionals.
• Create content that resonates with your audience by understanding their interests, using high-quality visuals, short videos, and consistent posting to maintain a strong online presence.
• Implement a strategy that engages audiences across multiple social media channels, enhancing your reach and brand visibility.
• Use targeted paid advertising strategies to achieve specific goals, such as driving website traffic or generating leads, and track key metrics to optimize performance.
• Leverage user-generated content to influence purchasing decisions, enhancing credibility and engagement with your brand.