HOW TO DEFINE AN EFFECTIVE SMM PLAN FOR YOUR SMEs!

The presence of a brand on various social network is ever more critical. This is because social networks not only provide visibility and awareness but they also create real relationships and exchanges among people. Yes, exactly, people. No more clients, consumers or users.

Precisely for this reason, as a first crucial point for a social media marketing strategy, there is the identification of who you want to reach; with which people you want to get in touch.
You will have to identify their profiles and habits. An identikit that defines name, gender, age, profession, expectations. And also the network usage behavior: do they browse from home or office? do they use a smartphone? What do they do online? Which social network do they use?
This is because you aren’t communicating with simple clients (potential or real) but with people who may be network influencers. Which can become fans, supporters, but also, in case of a wrong or ineffective communication, they could begin so-called haters.

What you need to communicate? What content you have to put in the field?

Companies often have inside thousand of unexplored content: you not only have to share them, but you have to treat them specifically for people with whom you are approaching with. An example would be the inclusion of video tutorials or video production of your products. This creates not only more users engagement, but it also encourages the production of new content and sharing with friends and family. A great way not only to speak about you, but to get people talking about you.

But where to communicate this content?

To determine where you are going to communicate is important to know as much as possible about the scenario in which you are entering:

• communities that already exist, about a particular topic or area of interest, are the first place where you have to communicate. They are already formed by “fan” and, therefore, creating engagement will not be complicated.
• Are your competitors present in social networks? If so, where? And how?
• Remember that every territory or geographic market has different habits and even different social networks (such as China). Is not true that all the world over. Be careful then about the different cultures and the different customs of the areas where you are going to communicate.

How to communicate?

It is not true that, when in doubt, it is better to be present in all social networks. Each of them has differences, sometime abyssal, whether for its use than for the type of users.
For this reason it is important to understand what are your communication objectives and what is your budget. Each platform has characteristics that make it more or less suitable for a certain objective and at a certain moment.
Remember also that social networks are not an “island”: you must integrate your site with social networks in which you are present, with suitable handsets for like and shares, for example, but you must also include the link to your corporate site in the social profiles or in a post.

When you have to communicate?

A social media marketing plan takes the form of a work plan, with intermediate steps and dates (calendar). Proper time and resources planning allow even more ambitious plan to work. So be careful to the events or trends! For a long-term vision put beside shorter deadlines, up to weekly publishing schedule: better today, though imperfect, than ever (done is better than perfect!).
For this reason it can be very useful a content planning tool, such as Hootsuite, which we have talked about earlier.

In conclusion, therefore, let’s communicate on social networks: a communication made in connection with people, provided it is well-designed and well structured, will bring endless possibilities to enhance the image and reputation of your brand!