3. Marketing

Online Marketing Best Practices

Managing a successful social media campaign does not need to be complex or particularly difficult. Below are a number of best practice considerations:

  • Start small. Both from an investment of time and money, it’s best to pick a single channel, invest your resources and grow from there.
  • Do less but do it well. Many companies have a temptation to appear on as many social channels as possible. It’s more efficient and effective to pick one or two right channels and focus on doing them well.
  • Adopt a “test and learn” mentality to your campaigns. Many channels are similar, but all are evolving rapidly. Explore what works and build upon past success.
  • Engage your channels on a regular basis. It’s better to be active even if the content isn’t perfect. Social media has a degree of imperfection at its core. Don’t overthink content at the expense of being active. To create regularity, devote a small period of time each day to engage rather than a large block weeks apart.
  • Not only is it important to engage regularly but strive for consistent content. Both from a visual perspective, but also in tone of voice and focus. It will help curate a voice for your brand.
  • Engage genuinely. Be proactive with users, engage in conversations, apologize if something goes wrong and celebrate when things go well.
  • Cross promote. If you’ve made the decision to be on multiple online channels, use channels to drive to deeper content. For example, a twitter post that points to Facebook content or YouTube video series. Think about how your website, search and social channels can interact with one another.

Engaging in the social and microblogging platforms above can occur in a very organic manner, with the food business creating and sharing its own content to its own pages or feeds. And, they can take the next logical step of amplifying their voice through paid promotion of those posts to potential consumers. However, the real power of these platforms is often when content is exponentially amplified through the voice of a social media influencer. An influencer is simply someone with a reputation and authority on a given subject. Many are familiar with celebrity influencers that have a significant impact on fashion or other lifestyle trends. However, there are influencers that are lesser known to the general public that may have tremendous influence on a smaller segment of the population. For example, a renowned chef with a blog may influence the product or dietary choices of their followers; or a physical fitness trainer may point their followers to various clothing or food in addition to following their workout advice.

The days of gaining the support of influencers for free has passed. If a person on the channel understands the value of their position and expertise, they will no doubt charge for their voice. That said, the cost does not necessarily need to be thousands of dollars. If you’re interested in gaining the support of an influencer, reach out to them via a private message. This should start a negotiation either with them or possibly an agency they may use to manage their content relationships. Do not post your request on their public feed. One way to increase your odds of securing their support is to engage with their content by following and sharing their posts. This will be visible to them and may make starting a conversation about paid support easier.