The Ultimate Guide to Social Media Marketing 2022

Social media marketing has become a go-to-market strategy for most small businesses. According to Fundera, 96% of growing companies use social media for marketing. This proves that social media marketing (SMM) is a proven essential marketing tool. And that is why we have created the ultimate guide to social media marketing to get you started today.

If you want to interact with customers, build brand awareness, increase sales, and drive website traffic, use SMM. Therefore, we will take you through everything you need to know about social media marketing. Below are the things this ultimate guide to social media marketing will cover:

• How to create a social media marketing strategy
• Building a seamless social media marketing work plan
• Businesses that require a social media marketing strategy
• How to create an effective content calendar
• Getting started with Digital marketing models
• Creating social media content for business

But first things first, before we proceed with our social media marketing guide, let us first understand what social media marketing is:

What is Social Media Marketing?

Social media marketing is another form of online/internet/digital marketing. It involves the use of social media apps to promote a brand’s products and services. 

Such apps may include Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube. It depends on the services, products, or the type of business that need social media advertisement. For instance, we have B2B or B2C company. This ultimate guide to social media marketing expounds on these below:

Business-to-business (B2B)

Business-to-business (B2B) is a transaction between one business and another. In other words, a company providing services or products to another company. Below are the examples of B2B businesses:

• Wholesaler and Retailer
• Manufacturing materials such as clothing, car parts, and semiconductors 
• Logistics companies that provide services to E-commerce brands

So, such businesses rely on B2B marketing. This strategy enables them to target and sell their products to a business or a team of people. For them to thrive, B2B businesses leverage the power of the following social media channels:

• YouTube
• LinkedIn
• Twitter
• SlideShare

We get the detail of each social channel later on in this ultimate guide to social media marketing for small businesses.

Business-to-consumer (B2C)

Business-to-Consumer (B2c) is a transaction or business conducted between Companies and consumers. In other words, companies that sell their products directly to consumers. Their primary clients are individuals or groups of individuals. B2C brands may include:

• Restaurants (KFC, Café Javas, Cafesseries)
• E-commerce brands (Jumia, Kikuubo Online, Amazon, Alibaba)
• First moving Consumer Goods Manufacturers (FMCG) (Mukwano Industries, Bidco, Nice House of Plastics)

Businesses in this category use B2C marketing to reach their target clients. This way, such brands use many tactics to get their consumer products to genuine buyers. Here are the best social media platforms for B2C Companies:

• Facebook
• YouTube
• WhatsApp
• Instagram
• Twitter

The most effective social media platforms for Business:

1. Facebook

Facebook is the most used social media platform scoring 2.9 billion monthly active users (MAUs). This figure represents up to 36.9% of the world population. 

Did you know that 200 million small businesses use Facebook as their marketing platform?

It is because brands get exposed to more consumers on Facebook than on any other channel. And this helps them save a lot while advertising. Actually, it is not a surprise that more than 7.0 million advertisers actively run Facebook ads.

Use Facebook if you are targeting direct consumers. It fits businesses like restaurants, coffee shops, Beauty and Makeup studios, etc.

2. YouTube

YouTube is the second social media marketing channel we recommend. It boasts 2.2 billion monthly active users. Mathematically, that means 28% of the world population uses YouTube. This figure puts YouTube at the top of the most used video channel in the whole world.

So, YouTube is a high-performing channel for brands that need aggressive marketing. Actually, today 50% of marketers use YouTube in their marketing strategy. Perhaps it yields results.

YouTube can support B2C and B2B marketing. So you can leverage the power of this video channel to reach your customers anywhere at any time.

3. WhatsApp

Here comes WhatsApp in the third position. Many marketers are not using WhatsApp as a marketing tool. However, it has 2.0 billion monthly active users any business can target.

With WhatsApp, you can engage users easily through direct marketing. It offers business partners a reliable, personal, and multimedia service around the clock.

The advantage of WhatsApp is that it can support B2B and B2C companies. It depends on how you want to use it to reach your target audience.

4. Instagram

Instagram sits in fourth place among the most used social media platform. Thus, boasting 1.21 billion monthly active users. And this makes it the 7th most visited website worldwide.

With Instagram, businesses are in a position to reach 850 million people through paid ads. That makes Instagram a go-to-market place for most Marketers. 

Use Instagram if your products target direct consumers (It is suitable for B2C brands)

5. LinkedIn

LinkedIn is another outstanding marketing platform marketers must include in their strategies. Individuals and brands that need to connect with professionals look up to LinkedIn. And this has helped the platform to gain up to 810 million monthly active users worldwide.

LinkedIn is B2B marketing platform you must use to target other brands that need your services. 

6. Twitter

Twitter is the 9th most visited website globally. And it is the 16th most popular social media platform. It has 329 million monthly active users, of which most are consumers.

Currently, 50% of consumers use Twitter. And approximately 54% of users take action after seeing a brand mentioned on Twitter.

Additionally, 59% B2B businesses use Twitter for digital marketing purposes. So, it is a proven Business-to-Business marketing platform. To understand the ultimate concept in this guide to social media marketing, you will have to go through the following steps we have created for you.

How to Create a Social Media Marketing Strategy

A social media marketing strategy is a list of things you should do while marketing on social media channels. It is sometimes called a to-do list or work plan, which contains the steps you should follow. 

A marketing strategy is essential since it will guide and keep you on track throughout the social media marketing process. With this approach, you can achieve your marketing objectives easier. So, the more specific a strategy is, the more effective it is in achieving your marketing goals.

At DIGting, we often time create different marketing strategies for our clients. For that case, we have extracted ten simple steps to help you learn how to create a marketing strategy that works. Below are our considerations while creating a social media marketing work plan.

Step #1: Choose a Digital Marketing Methodology

The first step while building any marketing strategy is to choose a path. Hence, the methodology you choose will define the direction you will take while marketing.

We recommend that you consider a suitable and sound method for your project. It is because such a method will guide your social media marketing strategy appropriately. Additionally, it will make your marketing process manageable, smooth, and effective.

At DIGting, we use different marketing methodologies/models for our projects. Below are the marketing models we found relevant to digital marketing:

1. SWOT Analysis

Marketers use this framework to determine the organizational internal strengths and weaknesses. Also, it defines the external factors that may affect the performance of your social media campaign.

So, we often use SWOT analysis to discover a client’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. As a result, we can craft a suitable marketing strategy for that specific client.

We recommend that you use the SWOT analysis model in the initial phases. Hence, while studying your competition, understanding your environment, etc. It will guide your social media marketing process and improve its effectiveness.

2. SMART

SMART is another essential model commonly used in IT development projects. It is an acronym for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-bound. 

We use SMART during the brainstorming phase. In other words, to define marketing goals and objectives for a project. Therefore, we recommend that you create specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely marketing goals.

3. AIDA Model

The AIDA model is a conversion or marketing funnel. Marketers use it to drive leads to the conversion phase. To rephrase it, AIDA takes leads through the customer journey until they take action.

AIDA comprises the following stages: Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action. At DIGting, here is how we help our clients achieve the best results through the AIDA model.

• We build content that attracts an audience’s eyes and ears.
• We generate customer interest for a given product or service,
• Then, we stimulate a desire for that product or service.
• Finally, we convince customers to take action by making a purchase.

NOTE: AIDA model depends on content marketing. So, use it during content creation. Hence, create content that:

• Attracts attention
• Interests a reader
• Invokes desire
• Prompts action

4. 7Ps of Digital Marketing

This is the wheel driving digital marketing. Marketers rely on the 7Ps of digital marketing to enhance marketing decision flow. As a result, they understand and achieve their marketing objectives easier. Let’s take a look at the marketing mix of the 7Ps below:

• Price: This defines the pricing plan you will use. For instance, some brands include discounts.
• Product: Includes Key features of a product such as its branding, quality, and appearance.
• Place: Distribution channels and other means through which the product reaches the market.
• People: How you prepare your staff to represent a brand before customers.
• Promotion: The methods you need to use to create brand awareness 
• Process: The processes that deliver the products to the customers
• Physical Evidence: Defines the elements the customer experiences throughout the buying process. For instance, the reviews that persuade a customer to buy a product, the shopping bag, etc.

Structure your products and services to sit at the center of the marketing mix. Thus, use the 7Ps while reviewing key issues that might affect the marketing journey.

Step #2: Situation Analysis

After choosing an appropriate marketing model, we can move to situation analysis. This is where we gather information about the organization.

We use SWOT analysis to extract information about its internal and external environments. Hence, we assess the organization’s current strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. 

So, before we know where our clients want to go, we must understand where they are currently. Below are the aspects you should focus on:

• Internal Strengths: Things your business does well
• Internal Weaknesses: Things your business doesn’t do well.
• External Opportunities: The external aspects you cannot control but can affect you positively. Research and discover the gap in the market.
• External Threats: The external aspects you cannot control but can affect you negatively. Research, discover, and analyze your competitors.

Step #3: Set Marketing Objectives 

We are now aware of our client’s position. The next step requires us to set suitable marketing objectives. These goals, however, must address the issues we identified in the previous step.

We often meet with the stakeholders to brainstorm these objectives and ensure we stay on track. To achieve this, we use the SMART methodology as explained earlier.

• Specific: Create marketing objectives your team will easily understand.
• Measurable: For instance, We want to increase user engagement by 50%
• Achievable: Set objectives that you can achieve with the available resources
• Realistic: For instance, We want to move from 200 to 50k followers by the end of next week.
• Timely: Set objectives that you can achieve in a given timescale.

Step #4: Build a Content Marketing Strategy

Content marketing is how we achieve the objectives we have set above. This phase is all about setting up a long-term lead generation strategy. Additionally, it focuses on improving customer retention and increasing brand authority. 

So, in this phase, we will realize the type of content to share across all marketing channels. While developing a basic content marketing strategy, here are the key aspects we focus on:

1. The What – We look at content types. Which content suits your business, available resources, and target audience? 

2. The Where – What channels are most likely to support this content type best? What tactics, techniques, and channels will distribute content and achieve the goal? Below are the content mixes we recommend:

• Inspirational content: Involves quotes, amazing facts, and personal stories of success.
• Interactive Content: Use quizzes, polls, infographics, calculators, and contests. But also product finders, questions, ask me anything, and caption this photo will help.
• Connecting Content: Give shout-outs, mention individuals, and ask for opinions or feedback.
• Educational content: It includes infographics, FAQs, case studies, tips and tricks, and how-to posts. And such content receives a lot of shares on social media. 
• Promotional content: Involves selling or promoting products or services to a specific audience.
• Entertainment content: Include puzzles, memes, viral videos, jokes, comics, contests, or giveaways.

Step #5: Prepare Distribution Channels

Knowing the content types necessary is not all you need. You will want to know how to distribute this content mix to reach the right audiences.

Thus, you must set up the required social media channels suitable for your business type. In case you already have social media channels, you must optimize them. In other words, shaping them professionally to attract customers. Here is what you can do:

• Provide or optimize Bio information
• Use the Company logo as a profile image.
• Provide Cover photos for channels that need them

Step #6: Allocate Responsibilities

At this point, we have most of the critical information and tools in place. So, we must divide responsibilities and roles among our marketing team.

When an organization hires a social media marketing agency, there might arise questions. For instance, who should take on the social media management and posting role for the company? This occurs most especially if the organization has an internal marketing staff. So, to avoid these conflicts, it would be better if you discussed and distributed roles in this phase.

Step #7: Establish a Content Calendar

A Content Calendar is a framework that will guide what you share in your social media marketing strategy. It is also called an editorial calendar. And it defines the content themes and posting cadences for all social media platforms.

Timing is an essential factor in digital marketing. And that is why you need a calendar. It will outline your content from the beginning of the campaign to the end. 

As a result, you will maximize the available resources and post content in time. Thus, keeping your productivity at its best throughout the campaign.

Therefore, find out when your Buyer persona will most likely read your content. Additionally, research and learn how social media algorithms rank content.

Many people have found this guide on “how to create a free content marketing calendar” useful. So we recommend that you check it out.

Step #8: Create Marketing Messages

The actual content creation process happens in this phase. You must reflect on the above steps during content creation. As a result, you will create interactive social media posts that inspire and attract users. So, here are things you should consider while creating social media marketing content:

• Ensure social media posts have a clear and measurable business goal.
• Create posts that target a specific audience.
• Your content must answer customers’ questions or solve a common problem.
• Don’t forget to include a call to action.
• Create unique and engaging content.
• Keep content consistent and up-to-date.
• Use Keywords and Hashtags
• Rely on analytics to track your performance.

Note: Always include an image for whichever content you post on your social platforms. It is because posts with images drive more engagement and generate more responses.

We recently created a standalone article about how to create engaging social media posts for business. Feel free to check it to expand your research.

Step #9: Schedule and Post Content

Once you have created the required marketing messages, push them to meet your users. Many social media scheduling tools can assist you in this phase. Some of the best ones include:

• Hootsuite
• Sprout Social
• Zoho Social

Don’t forget to promote your posts whenever it is necessary. It is because promoted posts tend to reach more users. Hence, they earn more engagements and better performance. There are many ultimately benefits to promoting social media posts, however, this guide to social media marketing will not expound on them.

Step #10: Control and Measure Performance

Finally, here is our last step while we conclude this ultimate guide to social media marketing strategy for small businesses. No need for assumptions if you can measure! So, digital marketing allows you to judge the success of a marketing strategy through analytics. Do this at the end of each marketing campaign. And here are the objectives to look out for:

• To understand conversations
• To identify how customers receive or react to your marketing messages.
• To determine the best content your customers love most.
• Derive customer sentiment towards products and services
• To identify data that will drive decision-making in an organization.

We use many tools to measure and analyze social media marketing data. But, here are some of the best and free digital marketing analytics tools you can consider.

Conclusion

DIGting’s marketing leaders invest time reviewing analytics reports, developing strategic plans, and meeting regularly with key stakeholders. This process intends to disseminate information and keep the project moving forward.

That is how we create a social media marketing strategy that suits our clients. We hope this ultimate guide to social media marketing has helped you understand how to streamline your digital marketing strategy.

If you want to learn more about how we drive brands to reach their marketing goals, sell products, and gain brand visibility through our social media marketing services, reach out to us today!