It’s no surprise that social media is super important when it comes to your business. Social media is how you connect with clients and potential customers; it’s how you give your company and brand that authentic personal touch.
But the whole marketing aspect of social media is tough. It’s more than just a few tweets here and a couple re-pins there. In order to get the most out of your social media marketing, you have to be strategic about your posts, tweets & pins.

Social media marketers are the perfect examples of this, so let’s learn from the experts!

Here are 5 habits of successful social media experts:

1. They listen to their audience.

   Social media experts know that, without their audience, they have nothing. They understand the importance of listening to what their customers want. If they just sat back and spit out whatever content they felt like with no regard to their audience, they would be missing a ton of potential.
   Social media experts pay attention to what their consumers are saying and how they’re saying it. Then they take that information and use it to create more content. They take note of what works and what doesn’t, what gets engagement and what gets ignored. They play off of what their audience likes and what they don’t. (Read: How to Drive Traffic To Your Blog from Pinterest)

2. They utilize the different social media platforms in different ways.

   Every social media platform is different, and social media marketers take advantage of that. Each platform caters to different demographics. Depending on the industry of their business, marketers choose to focus on the few platforms that will benefit them the most, instead of spreading themselves too thin by trying to tackle all of them.
   Social media marketers also pay attention to what kind of information does that best, at what time. Each platform has certain types of content that outshine the rest and certain posting times that usually get more engagement.
   For example, videos do really well on Twitter and Facebook, but not so well on Pinterest. (By now you must want to learn more, please consider to read: How to use Twitter for Digital and Social Media Marketing
   Pinterest seems to perform better in the evening, and Facebook tends to get more engagement during the day. Paying attention to these differences can make a world of a difference in your marketing strategy. Here is a Guide to using Pinterest for successful marketing.

3. They set clear, attainable goals.

   In order for social media experts to meet a goal…they have to have one. The more specific the better, that way they can easily tell if what they were doing is working or not.
   For example, if you want to increase your Facebook page likes, you should have a specific number or percentage in mind. Why? Because if you look at your page and you have 250 likes and you want to “increase them,” than technically getting 1 “like” would make you meet your goal. Would you be happy with a +1 increase? Probably not.
   When you get specific about your goals, it gives you a clear visualization of what matters. By saying “I want to increase my Facebook likes by 50 because it will increase my exposure with potential clients,” you’re giving yourself a very clear objective. Now that you know what you want and why, all you need is the how. Understanding your goals can help you plan out a strategy that will benefit your business in the most powerful way.
   Also, don’t set goals that are too far out of your reach. Start your goals small. Small improvements can add up to big successes, without the stress and discouragement. Please check out Top 5 LinkedIn Marketing Tips for Business

4. They track & analyze the important data.

   In order to get insights from their social media efforts, experts track and analyze a lot of information. Which information do they look at directly? Well that depends on the goal they have. (See why #3 is so important?!)
   They break down their goals and pay attention to the data that affects them. If something isn’t working, they adjust it. Tracking and analyzing information helps them to compare numbers…which ultimately helps them decide if their efforts are working or not.
   If you’re just tossing content out there to your audience and you’re not measuring it’s effectiveness, how are you going to make it better? You would have nothing to compare it to. It’s like going into a war zone…..blind-folded and just hoping for the best.

5. They engage and connect with their customers.

   Okay, so we know that successful social media experts listen to their audience (that was #1), but what they also do is connect with them. That’s the whole point of social media, right? To be social.
   Social media marketers try to build meaningful relationships with their customers, because without their customers, there’s no business. They share great content with them, comment on their thoughts and opinions, and ultimately let them know that, as a customer, they’re important.
   Connecting with your audience and engaging with them, whether it’s from posting tips/tricks, commenting or conversations, builds trust. They start to see a personality behind the business, which makes your business more authentic and personable, and ultimately leads to more trust & more sales. (Read: Drive Free Targeted Traffic Using Facebook Groups)

When it comes to social media marketing, there’s more than meets the eye. If you want to get the most from your efforts, you have to develop the best habits that surround them. Social media is forever changing, but understanding the habits of social media experts can help your efforts be powerful and effective, regardless of the algorithm.


Want more information on blogging, small business, web tips/tricks, social media & WordPress? Follow us on Pinterest and Facebook.