#MODtalks Social Media

Ahh, social media. Nearly everyone uses it, but is it always on point? Our content and social media guru Lauren shares her insights on the importance of social media for brand awareness and her sources of inspiration.

How does social media build a company’s brand?
Today, we are more attached to our smart phones than ever before, absorbing content, advertisements, and more for 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This can sound like a negative or alienating concept; however, engaging with social media is an incredible way to build connections. Because everyone is on social media (Facebook estimates that there are nearly 2 billion users worldwide), we are all connected and that is a mind-blowing thing.

Brands use social media in a similar way that we all do, to connect. To connect with their customers, to reach out to potential customers, and to further increase their brand awareness. Social media allows brands a unique look at what kind of people most interact with their brand, as well as ways they could improve their content through posting insights.
Social media is an extension of a company’s brand. It acts as the main form of external communication for many companies and has the ability to transform people’s opinions and truly make a difference.

What tips can you share on increasing audience engagement?
A good way to increase audience engagement is to figure out exactly what kinds of people you want to reach. Log on to Facebook and look at the people who already like your page, as well as the pages they like. From there, outline a persona and alter your content around that persona, constantly thinking “Does this align with my brand and my brand’s voice?” and “Would my target customer be interested in this content?”

Content must always be on brand, have a consistent voice, and have a purpose. Posting just to post is never an optimal strategy.

If you are posting great content, but still not getting the results you would like, research the best times to post. If you’re posting only early in the morning, you’ll miss engaging with those who log on after work hours and late at night.

What have you found is the biggest challenge in social media marketing?
Social Media marketing is more multi-faceted than I had originally believed before coming to MOD. When planning out a month-long overview for social media, I look at any important days that are coming up, local events that would interest our client’s audiences, as well as making sure there is an even spacing of posts and varied content.

On Instagram, I’ve really enjoyed viewing it from more of an Art Director’s standpoint. For a business, your Instagram feed should look cohesive with a mix of colors and posts that are (like always) relevant to your brand. Quality wins out over quantity.

When coming up with content, where do you seek inspiration? Any specific companies?
I love seeing what other brands are producing. Scrolling through my Instagram feed is definitely my go-to for social media content ideas. West Elm just launched a fun campaign for the upcoming election. Refinery29 always has a vibrant and interactive Instagram feed as well.

Because social media is constant, there are always new things happening, new ideas being pushed out, and new people to follow. I’ve recently learned about stop motion video and hope to bring that to some of our client’s news feeds.

How has marketing evolved since the introduction of social media?
Social media has completely changed the marketing game. Social media allows companies to reach hundreds of thousands of people in a way that is not only relevant, but immediate. Traditional marketing forms like direct mail and email are still great ways to personally connect with your customers, but as social media continues to grow, optimizing your social posts and creating clever and engaging content is the best way to reach people.