Love it that we got to see one of our local favorites, Neal Schaffer, present at Social Media Success Summit on “How to Find Out Where Your Ideal Audience is Using Social Media”. Neal warns that this social success session is deep and tactical…so no general theory here. Roll your sleeves up and get ready! First, let’s set the target. Knowing your customer is so important, and remember… they are always evolving. Continually ask the following questions about your ideal client:
- How old are they?
- Where do they live?
- What media do they like / watch?
- What are their favorite brands?
- What do they do for fun?
- What social networks do they use?
- What devices are they using?
- How often do they login?
- What kind of info do they post?
Understanding Social Profiles vs Accounts
Social can be viewed from a couple perspectives. There are networks with company profiles, and those with individual profiles. Think back to your target market and how you would like to engage with them. Many times individual is easier to permeate. Company profiles can be found on:
- Google+
User accounts and profiles can be found on:
- YouTube
While you’re trying to build up your audience, first consider traffic to the major social networks so you can get the biggest bang for your buck. Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter and Pinterest are the top 5 in the US if you were not sure.
Facebook Niche-Seeking Suggestions
Find some relevant groups on Facebook for your target market. For example, if your target is ‘dentists’, join some dentist groups on Facebook and start interacting. Like dentist pages. Search for people who have ‘dentist’ in their profile. Also, you’ll want to create a Facebook Ad for these dentists. You can specify by age, location, interests (dentists who golf or surf), and much more. Talk about targeted advertising! Think about other pages your target market might like, and you can feed up ads to those specific individuals. Seriously, just look at the advanced connection targeting you can do:
TIP: Connect your email database with your Facebook page. Did you know you can create a custom audience on Facebook with your Mailchimp email database. Don’t have an email database? Well, you can even install a custom Facebook “cookie” on your website that targets the visitors who have been to your site to like you on Facebook. Ever wonder how the ads seem SO spooky relevant in your account? The HTML code to do this is simple and can be installed just like Google Analytics. Call us at 949-229-5932 x2 if this is too techie and you’d like help with implementation!
LinkedIn Legion Enhancement
Now let’s try the same ‘dentist’ search on LinkedIn. You can search for your target by keywords. Or groups. Or posts. Or people. Or companies / universities. Sometimes you’ll find way more of your target on LinkedIn than on Facebook…you just never know until you try. Join the relevant groups and start interacting. View profiles and send connections. Ask for introductions and keep on connecting!
LinkedIn also offers ads – but you have to start creating one to get to the keyword suggested data. You can target by skills, keywords, groups, and other demographics. Neal warns that LinkedIn ads are usually the most expensive, so you may want to save this network until you have a ‘working wheel’ formula with the other top social networks 😉
Twitter Audience Building Tips
Search and find your target audience here, too! Make sure to change your search to ‘all’ on Twitter, because it defaults to ‘top’. When you’re building your audience you want it all, right?! Also don’t forget to search:
- Twitter lists
- Trends
- Hashtags
- Competitor followers
- Photos & videos
Ready to try Twitter Ads? Click Twitter Ads in your profile, and then Add Campaign. Here’s a full tutorial from Twitter itself. You can target specific interests, followers, or twitter user accounts. Browse and select interests so you can really whittle down to your exact target. Twitter also has website card that can connect your tweeps with your website better – just ask your webmaster (or us!) to try it out. Building up your Twitter audience can help you get so much influence – we highly recommend you put a strategy in place if you haven’t yet!
Pinning Down Pinterest Pals
Grow your Pinterest by searching pins, or pinners, or specific interest boards. Don’t forget to search for the locations and hobbies your target market has, too. Unfortunately Pinterest does not have ads right now, however you can still search to find your ideal market and easily connect with them.
To Recap, we just gave you a ton of homework on how to build out your social sphere! Once you find your target….engage with them 🙂 Follow, friend, connect, comment, retweet & repin. Show some interest in your new niche connections BEFORE YOU ASK FOR FAVORS OR BUSINESS. Here’s a quick list of ways to enhance the process.
Organic Engagement – Spend Some Time:
- get introduced
- send an invite
- send inmail
- follow and comment
- join group and engage
- follow company and engage
- repin
- invite to community board or group
Paid Engagement – Spend Some Money:
- Facebook ads
- Twitter advertising
- LinkedIn ads (Remember these are more expensive, but many times more relevant)
Wait…..what’s this going to COST???! The cool part about social advertising is YOU determine your budget. Neal recommends to start with a budget of about $10-20/day for your ads, and adjust as necessary from there.
Cal Coast highly recommends you consult with an Internet Marketing Specialist before you launch your campaigns. Even if it is a small amount of money, paid advertising is still like being the new guy at the poker table…your money will continue to get taken until you figure out the formula. We can help you get there quicker, so call us today at 949-229-5932 x2 or tweet @CalCoast for an appointment.
