Social Media Marketing Plan: The Consultant Sheet<\/p>\n
#1: Clarify Your Social Media Strategy to Develop a Clear Path Forward<\/p>\n
Marketers know that having a documented strategy is strongly correlated with success. But we also know that social media marketing moves fast, often leaving documented strategies obsolete shortly after they\u2019re written.<\/p>\n
The best approach, then, is to keep your strategy simple, flexible, and adaptable. That way, you can provide your team with a framework to follow without spending an excessive amount of time crafting a plan that will be rendered useless tomorrow.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s what a basic strategy should include:<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Goals. What will you achieve?<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Customer persona. Who are you targeting?<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Brand voice summary. How should your content sound?<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Selected networks. Where will you be present?<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Posting frequency. How often will you post?<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Budget. How much will it cost?<\/p>\n
You can easily document your strategy by creating a Word document or PowerPoint presentation with sections dedicated to each of these points.<\/p>\n
To save some time, you can use this publicly available Google Sheets template . It\u2019s easily editable and includes a slide for each of the following sections.<\/p>\n
ALT<\/p>\n
Set Goals<\/p>\n
This post is all about getting organized to improve your odds of success. Before you can define success, however, you need to set clear goals. They\u2019re what you\u2019ll measure your results against.<\/p>\n
The first step is to determine your business objectives, and then set social media goals that align with those objectives . This will ensure that your strategy impacts actual business outcomes.<\/p>\n
Marketers commonly ask how they can set ambitious yet achievable goals. This question is difficult to answer without knowing how your business is currently performing, how long it\u2019s been active on a given network, and other factors.<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re struggling to nail down numbers, consider starting with the average of your performance over the last 90 days on any given metrics, and aim for a 10% improvement over the next quarter. Should you blow past that goal, increase the percentage for the following quarter after that. Fall short, however, and you may need to reconsider your strategy or tactics.<\/p>\n
Using an experimental approach, the idea is to simply find a starting point, and then go from there based on data and performance.<\/p>\n
What matters most is that you\u2019re paying attention to the social media metrics that most closely align with what your business needs to achieve.<\/p>\n
Develop a Customer Persona<\/p>\n
If your marketing team has already created a persona for your target customer , then this step will be easy.<\/p>\n
However, if you\u2019re developing one from scratch, there are ways to simplify the process. Creating personas can be complex but you can take a lean approach to get started.<\/p>\n
Begin by determining who your target customer might be. Your marketing team may have this information or it might be within another business unit in your organization.<\/p>\n
Next, use in-app analytics on your company\u2019s Facebook page to find some basic information about your fans.<\/p>\n
Log into your company\u2019s Facebook page, then visit the Insights tab , and click People within the left-hand navigation. Here, you can find some basic information about your fans:<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Age<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Gender<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Geographic location<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Language<\/p>\n
Next, ask the following questions:<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Who do we believe is our target customer?<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Does our social media following align with this demographic?<\/p>\n
\u00b7 How can we construct a basic description of our ideal customer?<\/p>\n
The answers to these questions will help you understand whether social media is attracting the best prospects to your business. It can also help you understand the interests of the visitors who convert most on your website.<\/p>\n
Establish a Brand Voice for Social Media<\/p>\n
What do many of the most successful brands on social media have in common?<\/p>\n
A distinctive voice\/personality.<\/p>\n
How do these brands do it? They understand their brand voice. Developing one for your company is a key part of staying organized versus having your posts sound scattershot.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s an easy way to establish brand voice:<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Ask a few questions about who you are?<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Ask a few questions regarding who you are not?<\/p>\n
For example, your finished brand voice summary might be:<\/p>\n
We are light-hearted, but we are not goofy.<\/p>\n
We are humorous, but we are not snarky.<\/p>\n
We are inspirational, but we are not cheesy.<\/p>\n
Try it and see what you can come up with that might resonate with your audience.<\/p>\n
Audit and Prioritize Your Networks<\/p>\n
The next step in getting organized is understanding which networks you need to be on.<\/p>\n
This includes determining:<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Which networks are performing well right now: Analytics of each platform will let you know what\u2019s doing well and what isn\u2019t.<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Which networks are underperforming: Consider whether they\u2019re worth keeping or if your execution simply needs improvement.<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Which networks you should consider joining: Are there networks you\u2019re not on but that could be effective for your business?<\/p>\n
It\u2019s best to manage each network within a social media scheduling and management platform. There are many of these available. Consider options that include collaboration, workflow, and task management capabilities to maximize your organizational power.<\/p>\n
Establish a Posting Frequency<\/p>\n
There\u2019s no set posting frequency that can guarantee success. However, maintaining a consistent posting schedule is vital for staying organized and maintaining a continuous presence.<\/p>\n
A business could start with the following schedule for each network:<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Facebook: 1 post per day<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Twitter: 3 tweets per day<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Pinterest: 2 pins per day<\/p>\n
\u00b7 LinkedIn: 1 post per day<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Instagram: 2 post per day<\/p>\n
\u00b7 TikTok: 1 post per week<\/p>\n
\u00b7 YouTube: 2 videos per week<\/p>\n
Adjust your approach according to resulting social media metrics, which networks you\u2019re active on, and available resources to create social content.<\/p>\n
#2: Organize Project Planning to Eliminate Ambiguity<\/p>\n
Proper planning precedes success. Marketers who carefully plan their campaigns and project ( help with nursing paper writing from experts with MSN & DNP degrees)s are more likely to be successful.<\/p>\n
Start Every Campaign With a Creative Brief<\/p>\n
It\u2019s easier to keep project ( help with nursing paper writing from experts with MSN & DNP degrees)s organized when everyone is (literally) on the same page.<\/p>\n
A creative brief (or project ( help with nursing paper writing from experts with MSN & DNP degrees) brief , depending on your preferred terminology) is a one-page document that lists the requirements for a project ( help with nursing paper writing from experts with MSN & DNP degrees) or campaign. It should include the following pieces of information:<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Project summary: Describe the project ( help with nursing paper writing from experts with MSN & DNP degrees) or campaign at a high level.<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Details: This should answer who the project ( help with nursing paper writing from experts with MSN & DNP degrees) is aimed at, its goal, and the technical requirements for deliverables (e.g., image sizes, video resolution, etc.).<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Process: List the steps that need to be completed in order.<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Team members: Who will work on this project ( help with nursing paper writing from experts with MSN & DNP degrees)?<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Timeline: When is the project ( help with nursing paper writing from experts with MSN & DNP degrees) due?<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Resources: What will you need to get this done?<\/p>\n
You can also use the template pictured below, which you can find here .<\/p>\n
ALT<\/p>\n
Set Up Social Media Workflows With Checklists<\/p>\n
Checklists are powerful organizational tools when wielded the right way.<\/p>\n
By documenting your workflows as checklists, you can make sure every task and campaign gets completed the right way every time. They ensure nothing gets missed and help develop positive habits.<\/p>\n
Follow these steps to plan out an effective workflow:<\/p>\n
\u00b7 List all the steps required to complete a certain type of project ( help with nursing paper writing from experts with MSN & DNP degrees) (campaign planning, video shoot, etc.).<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Estimate how long each step generally takes (and if you don\u2019t know the answer, ask the person who typically completes that task).<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Assign each task to a team member along with a deadline for each task.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s a sample set of steps for creating a social media campaign.<\/p>\n
[ ] Develop campaign concept.<\/p>\n
[ ] Write social media posts.<\/p>\n
[ ] Draft direction for social media design.<\/p>\n
[ ] Design social media graphics.<\/p>\n
[ ] Review copy and design.<\/p>\n
[ ] Import copy and graphics into social media scheduling tool.<\/p>\n
[ ] Set publishing date and time.<\/p>\n
Now, here\u2019s the same workflow with a team member assigned to each step:<\/p>\n
[ ] Develop campaign concept. (Strategist)<\/p>\n
[ ] Write social media posts. (Copywriter)<\/p>\n
[ ] Draft direction for social media design. (Copywriter)<\/p>\n
[ ] Design social media graphics. (Graphic Designer)<\/p>\n
[ ] Review copy and design. (Manager)<\/p>\n
[ ] Import copy and graphics into social media scheduling tool. (Strategist)<\/p>\n
[ ] Set publishing date and time. (Strategist)<\/p>\n
Follow this process to develop workflows that make sense for you. Start with tasks, then add assignees and estimated completion times.<\/p>\n
#3: Coordinate Posts and Campaigns With a Social Media Calendar<\/p>\n
How often have you been asked to create a post (or even a campaign) on the spot? And how have you felt about the work you\u2019ve completed without planning? The answer to those questions is probably \u201ctoo often\u201d and \u201cnot great.\u201d<\/p>\n
What\u2019s the solution? Use a social media calendar to strategically plan posts and make sure you always have enough content to keep your audience engaged.<\/p>\n
The most cost-effective way to build a calendar is with a spreadsheet; you can find a publicly available template at no cost here (please download the file or click File > Make a Copy to create a copy for yourself). This is what it looks like:<\/p>\n
ALT<\/p>\n
It\u2019s simple and straightforward to use. For each post, include the following:<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Post copy: Your caption or post text.<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Image link: Store your image in cloud storage (Google Drive, Dropbox, etc.) or a digital asset manager, and link to where each image can be found.<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Time: When should the post be published?<\/p>\n
\u00b7 URL: If the post will include an external link.<\/p>\n
Next, devise a simple color-coding system to organize your calendar. Here are some ideas for how your calendar could be organized by color :<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Campaigns: All posts tied to one campaign should be color-coded together.<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Content types: Videos, posts sharing blog posts, and others<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Team members: Who\u2019s responsible for creating each post?<\/p>\n
You can edit or color-code this calendar to fit as many posts as you need, and organize it any way you\u2019d like.<\/p>\n
Pro Tip: Use a content-approval process to review work efficiently and make sure errors don\u2019t get published.<\/p>\n
#4: Develop a Budget Showing Costs<\/p>\n
Although much of social media is free, there are usually costs associated with increased usage options for business purposes.<\/p>\n
As you develop your social media marketing plan, include the costs involved for personnel, promotion, hardware acquisition and software utilization.<\/p>\n
#5: Establish a Reporting Schedule to Prove Your Value<\/p>\n
Part of the reason we\u2019re taking time to get organized is to improve business and marketing outcomes. To show how you\u2019re doing this, you\u2019ll need to report on social media marketing performance . This should be something that\u2019s done on a regular basis so you aren\u2019t caught without an answer when asked how you\u2019re contributing value to the company.<\/p>\n
Most social media management platforms include analytics and reporting functionality. Use yours to export and email reports on a weekly or monthly basis. Consider looping in anyone who might benefit from having that information (or anyone who may be interested).<\/p>\n
Adapted from the Social Media Marketing Plan by Ben Sailer.<\/p>\n
———–<\/p>\n
The Consultant Sheet for a Social Media Marketing Plan<\/p>\n
#1: Develop a clear path forward by clarifying your social media strategy.<\/p>\n
Marketers are well aware that having a well-documented strategy is closely linked to success. But, as we all know, social media marketing evolves at a breakneck pace, making documented tactics obsolete almost as soon as they’re created.<\/p>\n
Keeping your strategy simple, fluid, and adaptive is the ideal approach. That way, you can provide your team a framework to work inside without wasting time creating a strategy that will be obsolete tomorrow.<\/p>\n
A simple strategy should incorporate the following elements:<\/p>\n
Objectives. What will you achieve?<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Customer persona. Who are you targeting?<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Brand voice summary. How should your content sound?<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Selected networks. Where will you be present?<\/p>\n
\u00b7 Posting<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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