Social media is a powerful tool for marketing and connecting with your potential buyers. It shouldn’t be your only marketing strategy; it’s too saturated to work entirely on its own, and it misses key demographics. However, as part of a larger marketing plan, it can check some essential boxes, increase your reach and create new sales. You need to learn how to incorporate it into that plan and get the most out of what these social platforms — both new and established — have to offer. Here are a few key tips to get it done:

1: Explore All of Your Options

Yes, Facebook revolutionized social media by making it something that everyone uses, rather than just a fringe interest — such as previous internet forums and blogs. But all social media outlets have different audiences, and some people use one app and not another. To get a wide and diverse audience, you want to look into all of your options. These can include things like Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and StumbleUpon — just to name a few options.

2: Consider Daily Posts

Social media typically isn’t effective if you use it once a month. You need consistent posts to grow your audience and keep them engaged. At the very least, you want multiple posts per week. Your best option, if you can, is to post daily. People are far more likely to follow accounts that are active and consistently give them more content to read or watch. Setting up social media profiles is not enough. You have to remember not to neglect them and to put in the time and work needed to accomplish your goals.

3: When You Do Post, Come Back and Engage with Users

Content that simply gets posted into the void and then ignored can make users feel a lack of connection with your company as a brand. Yes, you gave them something valuable, and that helps, but you want to come back and answer questions, like comments, offer insights and generally engage with the audience. When you do this, you show them that you value them as an audience and they feel a connection with your brand. Believe it or not, responding to someone’s comment could be enough to make them a customer for life. People crave that connection, and you can use it to your advantage.

Plus, people often use social media as a way to seek answers. You may post about a new product you have coming out because you’re excited about it. A commenter may ask for a certain specification or detail because that’s what matters most to them. Taking just a few seconds to answer can create a conversion right then! They’ll feel a sense of brand loyalty since you answered and, as long as your product gives them what they’re after, they’ll pick you over the competition.

4: Focus on Being Clever, Original and Creative

One of the downsides of modern social media is that it is massively saturated. You’ve likely already seen branding that works or even that goes viral. While you can pick up tips from this, don’t try to mimic it. You’ll blend in and people will see it as a knock-off. Create original content that stands out from the crowd.

5: Pay Attention to What Works

You can use services like Google Analytics to track your numbers. This helps you refine your approach. Do you get more engagement when you ask questions or when you make statements? Do users interact more if you post in the morning or in the evening? Are they more likely to read longer content, to read shorter content or to watch videos? Track everything, crunch the numbers and find out what works for your specific brand.

Creating Your Brand

The best thing you can do is offer a top-notch product or service. That’s what creates customer loyalty. Beyond that, though, the best way to create new exposure to those products — no one is buying if they don’t know it exists — is to use a vast array of social media sites and to use them correctly. It doesn’t work overnight, but consistent focus can grow your brand, increase traffic and increase sales.