Warning: This article may give you déjà vu if you also work in social media marketing. Proceed with agreeable laughter.
I direct content at Likeable Media, and I’ve been so proud to work with a wide variety of brands: start-ups, long-standing, B2B, B2C, fashion, pharma, tech, etc. And the best brands I work with are not the flashiest or the funniest. They’re the brands with the most consistent and specific branding.
The most challenging meetings I have are with brands that can’t answer some key questions. Other social media strategists will agree – we can’t deliver the best social media presence for you unless you know who you want and what you want to convey. Here’s what I recommend you really nail down internally before you meet with your social media agency.
What are your customer target demographics?
Hint: “Everyone” is not an answer. While everyone might potentially love your product, who is making the decision to buy it and where? For instance, did you know that 80% of Millennial dads claim grocery shopping responsibilities, compared to just 45% overall? Try to narrow your demographics with insights like these.
What is your customer behavior like?
A lot of companies know this information but don’t bring it up with their social media agency. MISTAKE! Behavioral details – what time of day your customer interacts, who they are with, how long it takes them to decide – can determine not only how you post on social but also what content you should present.
What are three words to describe your brand tone?
You’re going to have to resuscitate me in the meeting if you can’t answer this. What is your brand vs. what isn’t it? This will help determine the direction copy, the subject matter, even the networks you should use. (For example, Snapchat is very playful, whereas LinkedIn is a great place for professionalism.)
Which brands have a social media presence you admire?
I’m asking you to do some homework, and please take it seriously. If you know the answer to this question, your social media agency can get a sense of the things you value, like beautiful creative or authentic storytelling. But please, try to go beyond the obvious answers like “Coca-Cola.”
Can you rank the importance of the following three goals: awareness, engagement, and conversion?
To be fair, this is a tough question, yet it leads to a really great social media strategy. Prioritizing these three goals (or setting them as equals) will determine the distribution of your budget, the types of content and the ad units your agency will utilize, and more.
Bottom line: Let’s make great content together. Align with the questions above before you meet with a social media agency, and the work will be strong and effective.
This post originally appeared on the Likeable Media blog.