Among the insights in the Social Media Examiner’s 2017 report on the social media marketing industry was a significant finding regarding the importance of content sharing on social media. Of 5,700 marketers surveyed, 92% responded that social media was important to their business.
The refrain that social media marketing is some passing trend continues to fade into irrelevance with each passing year. Even in our digital age, not everyone knows how to leverage the power of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Pinterest.
Here are five content sharing tips for social media that anyone can use to join the ranks of successful social media marketers.
1. Cross-promote instead of cross-posting
When a marketer cross-posts, they first publish a post to their blog. They then copy and paste the link to the post on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook. With a few clicks, they put their new piece of content in front of a large, diverse audience. Great strategy right?
Not exactly. Each social media channel has users that exhibit vastly different behavior and preferences for content. As such, you should optimize each social media posting according to the channel you’re posting in. It takes a bit more time, but it’s worth it.
But how do you know how to promote for different channels? Read on: 2. Know your social media channels
Follow these guidelines for each social media channel:
Twitter: Short, snappy excerpts of interesting articles, or eye-catching images. Perfect for news and trending topics.
Facebook: Think social sharing. What will people want to share with their friends? Evoke emotions with headlines and descriptions.
LinkedIn: Cater to a professional audience. Shine the spotlight on your content to demonstrate usefulness.
Instagram: All about the visuals. If your content has a visual component, focus on that. If not, create one.
Pinterest: Almost like a blend of Instagram and LinkedIn. Heavy on visuals, but also focus on how-tos and practical advice.
3. Create a Posting Schedule
Just as it’s tempting to blast your social media channels with the same exact post, you may be tempted to share your post to every channel at once. Instead, consider staggering your content sharing on each social media channel by a couple of days or so to maximize the effect.
4. Experiment and Optimize Posting
Working off step #3, as with any marketing effort, you should be experimenting and optimizing with the frequency and timing of your content sharing. As you build a following, finding the right time to post on social media can make huge differences in the amount of traffic your content gets.
5. Use UTM parameters and track posts
It’s not as intimidating as it sounds. Adding UTM parameters to your social media links will help you track the performance of social media posts. Rafflecopter can show you exactly how to use this nifty tool. In the Social Media Examiner report mentioned earlier, 40% of the marketers surveyed didn’t know whether their Facebook marketing was working.
Separate yourself from the pack when it comes to content sharing on social media with UTM parameters and the rest of these useful tips!
Social media marketing is powerful, but only when it’s done right. Some of this does take some technical expertise and experience.
By V2Infotech