Why social media marketing needs thought before action

Effective social media marketing is something I spend a lot of time discussing with my clients and potential clients in Bristol, London, Bath and across the UK.

Working out social media campaigns which deliver results demands an investment of time, effort and energy. As with any marketing activity, social media marketing needs planning, preparation and purpose to be worthwhile. Asking questions comes easily to me – maybe that’s due, in part, to the decade I spent in newspaper and magazine newsrooms before getting engaged with social media consultancy and blogging outreach in 2005. The starting point for effective social media marketing should also be based on careful thinking and selective questioning. Here are six typical questions I ask clients when helping them to define what their social media strategy might be: * Why are you looking to undertake social media engagement? * What are your competitors doing on social media platforms? * How are you looking to connect with customers online? * Where are your ideal customers hanging out on social media? * When did social media become important to your marketing mix? * Who will deliver your social media engagement every day? These questions alone can go a long way to helping a business start to shape and define where, why and when they should be engaging online with potential clients and customers via social media platforms. The temptation of many businesses and individuals is to jump straight onto Twitter, Facebook, or to bang out a blog, without actually thinking first about who, why and when they want to engage with. The thought must come before the action online. Some consultancies offer a social media audit before engaging with new clients – I’d agree with this, unless the potential client already has an effective in-house marketing team, which has developed a thorough, well-rounded social media strategy. Often, a helping hand is needed. My main thrust with this blog post is – if you’re not thinking before engaging on social media platforms, how can it be anything other than simply adding to the white noise online? Is it worth wasting your time? Thinking first could make all the difference.