by Lindsay Sydenham
Last year came and went and 2013 is here to stay! Using social media effectively is more important than ever before. Popular social networks, such as Twitter and Facebook, are stronger than ever, newer networks, such as Pinterest and Instagram, are making huge waves in the social media world and new networking sites are continuing to pop-up right and left. Social media is here to stay! Businesses, brands and people all over the country should adopt healthy social media practices into their daily activities in order to brand themselves successfully. Aim for balance while creating your social media strategy for 2013 and try some of these social media resolutions as you embark upon the New Year!
1. Utilize Effective Multimedia
Visual marketing will be even more popular in 2013. More videos. More pictures. And more charts, graphs and infographics. Provide your audience with good content that is accompanied by rich media. Try using Instagram and Pinterest where you can brand yourself, or your business, using illustrations, photos, graphs and other forms of multi-media. You’ll be surprised what you can learn when you begin to understand your audience from a visual perspective!
2. Meet People in Real Life
Make an effort this year to meet face-to-face with some of your favorite social media connections who live in your area. If you actively engage on social media with particular users on a frequent basis, then why not go to lunch or plan a meet-up with those connections? Think about the networking possibilities if you make the leap from a digital connection to a real life connection!
3. Listen and Respond to Your Audience
It can be difficult to find peace and quiet within the fast-paced, chaotic nature of the digital world. Some people find themselves pushing content out on social media without even stopping to listen to their audience and their followers. Thank people who re-post your content. Thank people for following and connecting with you. Answer questions that your followers ask you. If someone takes the time to reach out to you to ask for your expertise, be sure to respond and engage with them. Your active reach outs and responses to your audience will do wonders for your business and branding goals.
4. Congratulate Your Audience
Make a special effort to reach out to your social media audience and engage with them one-on-one. Congratulate your connections on life-changing events in their lives. If there is one thing most people love, it is receiving compliments, praise and excitement about their latest life changes. LinkedIn informs you when a connection has had a job promotion or has been hired at a new job. Facebook informs you when a friend buys a new house, has a baby or gets married. Don’t miss an opportunity to connect with someone and engage with them!