Nathan Yerian
How many links in social media do you actually click on in a given day? If you're like most of us, the answer is "not very many."
We're inundated with content, so it's easy to skip anything that doesn't jump off the screen, enticing us to read more. There's quite a long distance between a tweet or a LinkedIn post from a company and an actual purchase on that company's site.
But take heart. Despite the noise, despite the competition, there are steps you can take to improve the quality of your ocial media marketing content as well as your website structure in order to make that distance shorter.
Monetizing Social Media Marketing
Tip #1: Trading Places
Before publishing a tweet or a Facebook status update on behalf of your company, take a moment to turn the tables, and imagine yourself in the shoes of your audience.
If you were going through your day, would this information be helpful to you? Would you be compelled to click on this link?
Don't fall into the trap of feeling that you need to share every single piece of company news. No one likes the friend who shares boring tidbits about his or her cat's dietary habits or traffic on the freeway. Share content that is actually valuable to your audience.
Your social media audience is just that -- an audience -- and you should consider whether or not you are providing them with discernible value before sharing a thought. The better the quality of what you put out there, the more trust you will earn, and the higher the likelihood you will gain attention.
It may seem like common sense, but taking a moment to imagine yourself in your audience's shoes can guard you from publishing effectively useless content that won't bring results.
Tip #2: Reverse Engineering
If you're able to convert someone from your social media audience into a website visitor, then what? The first step is to have a clear idea in mind of what actions you want them to take. And that doesn't mean "buy something."
Of course, completing a sale is always the end goal, but depending on your business, there may be multiple steps leading up to this final result.
Do you sell the type of product or service that people often mull over for awhile before they actually make a purchase? Consider adding in a "sign up for our newsletter" module on your landing page, creating an ebook that offers more information about a problem you can help them solve, or even add a customer service chat tool. Adding more accessible steps to the sales cycle will increase conversions and boost your ROI.
By placing calls-to-action strategically throughout your site you are giving your vistor a path to take that can help them navigate to the information they need. The key is to know what actions you want your customer to take if they don't immediately move through the conversion funnel and to create a clear path that guides them toward these actions, rather than giving them an excuse to exit the site.
In online marketing, small tweaks can go a long way. But don't take our word for it -- do some A/B testing and monitor your results in Google Analytics. Chances are, you'll be glad you did.
Find out how social media marketing fits into a larger marketing framework. Download our Inbound Marketing e-book.