While Social Media platforms are themselves free for businesses to use, there is plenty to be said in the case for allocating budget to support your business or brand’s presence on channels like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tik Tok, LinkedIn and Pinterest.
Statistics show that after following a brand on social media, up to 90% of users/customers will take a look at their website, and many go on to purchase, so having an engaged community is a valuable asset.
How Much?
This is the age-old question, and of course, there’s no one-size-guaranteed-to-fit-all answer, but studies have shown that on average, brands tend to allocate an average of 12% of their Marketing budget to Social Media. Using tactics like targeted ads, influencer marketing or sponsored content, a skilled Social Media Manager will be able to put this modest portion of your budget to work creating valuable connections with your community.
Statistics show that after following a brand on social media, up to 90% of users/customers will take a look at their website, and many go on to purchase, so having an engaged community is a valuable asset.
While other Marketing channels such as print can be costly, you can tailor Social Media campaigns to work for almost any budget.
Instant Insights
Knowing and understanding your customer is essential for any Marketing channel, but Social Media allows for a degree of flexibility and instant response to changing trends quickly.
There are plenty of tools available to help you analyse data from your accounts, alerting you and your team to the need to switch things up if necessary, and to learn from the work that you’ve done so far. They aren’t all free, so it’s important that you equip your Social Media Manager with software that works for you, your brand and your audience, delivering insights, analysis and recommendations for your content, to ensure that your community is regularly furnished with content that is relevant and holds value for them.
ROI
Measuring the value that Social Media Marketing can bring to your business is not just a case of looking at sales, but taking other actions into consideration. Newsletter database sign-ups and email subscriptions, website and blog traffic, and sharing content are all examples of ways to measure the success of your Social Media campaigns and how they impact your business.
Social Media Marketing doesn’t need to monopolise a huge chunk of your budget, but committing to investing in your presence on these channels offers a wealth of potential, not only in reaching more people who may be interested in your brand, but in creating value for the wider business and creating engaged relationships with a community of customers. Investing in your team and setting them up for success will also prove to be a worthwhile investment, so that you can initiate best practices and adapt quickly to a marketing channel which is constantly in flux. In short, a little goes a long way!
About the Author: Stephanie Weekes
Stephanie is a Freelance Social Media Manager and Marketing Consultant. With almost 10 years of experience working in-house with global brands and agencies, she has an in-depth understanding of multi-channel marketing and brand management.
IG: @stephgetssocial
LinkedIn: LinkedIn