10 Commandments of Social Media

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Standard Marketing - ebook - The 10 Commandments of Social Media Page 1
Standard Marketing - ebook
The 10
Commandments
of Social Media

Table of contents
Introduction - 3
1. Brand It! - 4
2. Be Socially Proactive - 6
3. Know Who to Follow/Like - 8
4. Show Personality - 10
5. Create Content - 12
6. Interact - 14
7. Engage - 16
8. Keep Current - 18
9. Schedule - 20
10. Link Back to Your Website - 22
11. How Standard Marketing Can Help - 24

Social Media has grown from being a Facebook
thing to a wide range of social networks each
with their own niche and reputation. Now there’s
a social network out there for everyone. Whether
you work in manufacturing, service, or retail,
there’s a social network for your business. But be-
fore you start testing out which platforms pres-
ent the best opportunities there are some impor-
tant guidelines you should be aware of.
While every Social Network has some unique
rules and functions, there are a number of
guidelines that apply to all successful Social
Media Campaigns. Our team has put together a
list of 10 that we feel should be followed by any
business planning a social media campaign.

1. Brand It!

When possible, avoid the default look of your chosen Social Networks. Use your logo, company colors,
and any brand identifiers that you can when setting up your profile. This includes background images,
backdrop images, profile pictures, taglines and more. Try to ensure your entire social presence is well
branded, professional and consistent. This will help the general public and your followers recognize
you better, and it also reflects a higher level of professionalism.

2. Be Socially Proactive

Follow and “like” others first and they will
reciprocate. Develop personas for your ideal
target markets and discover where they get
together online. Your target market may
prefer YouTube to Facebook, or Tumblr
over Google+. A little research will help you
understand which social networks work best
for your business.
Once you find your prospects earn their trust
and acknowledgement by sharing relevant
and interesting content. Don’t be pushy.
Remember social media is just like any other
social setting you’ve ever been to, like walking
into a party where you don’t know anybody -
you want to create conversation with people,
not yell at them or talk so much they can’t
share their own opinions.
With an increasing number of social networks some are becoming known for attracting specific
demographics. For instance, Pinterest and Snapchat are predominately used by the female market, where
as LinkedIn is known for being the most mature social network, often attracting middle-aged users.

3. Know Who to Follow/Like

Many businesses pack their Social Media
networks with businesses similar to theirs,
but aside from industry networking there
is little value to this practice and no ROI.
Again, find out where your customers and
prospects are and follow them.
It’s also recommended to connect with
some of your company’s suppliers and
associates. This will help you build a
more accurate online presence because
it brings offline connections online. It
establishes a professional network for
your company, and allows your followers
to see what other companies you are
close to. So while following companies
is good it’s better to follow potential
customers, current customers and even
past customers.
When users you don’t know interact with
your content make sure to acknowledge
them with a Thank You, and if they’re in
an industry relevant to yours follow them.
This is a tried and true way of expanding
your network and attracting more traffic
to your social profiles and website.

4. Show Personality

Link Dropping is when you include a link in your
social media content without saying anything about
where the link will take users. It’s about the same as
copying a bunch of links to articles and pasting them
all over your social networks. People don’t respond
to link dropping because they don’t know where
the link goes, how it relates to them and what’s in
it for them. When you share a link make sure you
introduce the article and let your followers know
why they should click it.
When on social media it’s also recommended that
your company chooses specific interests to share
with your networks. These interests can be related to
your company or not, but they should be something
you and your team knows something about. Sharing
emerging artists, trending photography and
promotions for concerts, and gallery shows is a good
way to say your company is interested in the arts and
culture.
Some people choose to share a lot of content on
concept cars, the latest gadgets and scientific
breakthroughs - this could indicate that your
company embraces technology. Whatever topic
your company chooses it should reflect the persona
of your brand and team members. This will help
followers connect with your brand on new levels and
could lead to more attention and an improved online
presence.

5. Create Content

Create content for use on your website that can be
used on your Social Media accounts. It’s best if you
can use information valuable to your social media
fans/followers so they will return to your page and
potentially visit your website.
Blogs posts, photos, videos, and/or shared articles
about your product, service, or industry are great
ways to keep your accounts active. But it’s best if
you can introduce your content in a way that your
followers can make a connection. If the content
doesn’t need much of an introduction, such as a
photo, make sure to include a little back story on
what was going on when the photo was taken or
why the photo is important.

6. Interact

Don’t hesitate to like, share, +1, or retweet
other people’s content that you appreciate
or agree with. Paying attention to what your
followers and networks are talking about is a
part of market research, and it’s good to stay on
top of trending topics. This could help you form
ideas for your next blog post or other projects.
Interacting with your network is a good way to
increase engagement and will lead to more likes
for your company.
When someone comments on your content,
make sure to tag them in your reply so they are
properly notified that you responded to them.
This goes a long way to building interaction
with your network because it’s a direct
response to an individual and people appreciate
the gesture.

7. Engage

Engage your audience, don’t sell to them. Present them with the opportunity to experience your product in
the form of contests, sample giveaways and large discount opportunities. Don’t force them into a purchase
to take advantage of these campaigns. Just make sure they share the opportunity with their own network
(friends) to gain access to the offer. This will help your business grow its network and online presence.

8. Keep Current

Update your accounts regularly - daily is best, or just as
often as you can. Even if you find yourself completely
stumped about what content to post on a particular
day, a simple “Good Morning!” can go a long way in
developing your brand’s online persona.
Pay attention to local news, industry news, and
national and international news, as these all present
opportunities for sharing current stories. Staying on
top of world events is a sure way to “newsjack” a story
and be the first to inform your network on the event.
Also, keeping on top of industry news is a good way to
establish your company as an authority figure in the
industry.
Also, staying on top of trending topics is a good way to
develop common ground with your followers. However,
exercise caution as you want to maintain a level of
professionalism and branding. Some trending topics
won’t be relevant to your industry or your followers,
and sharing content like this may reflect poorly on your
brand.

9. Schedule

You don’t have to spend time on Social
Media every day to maintain your brand’s
presence on a daily basis. There are fantastic
free software options, such as HootSuite,
that allow you to pre-schedule tweets and
Facebook posts days, weeks, or months in
advance.
However, solely relying on Hootsuite is not
recommended as you miss out on a lot of
content shared by your network, and if you
never interact with your own network how
will you build a trusting and loyal following?
It’s best to use a mix of scheduling posts and
actually visiting each social media website
to interact with your network and see what
they’re sharing.
Also, if there is a catastrophe or international
event you’ll have to pause your prescheduled
content releases or risk coming off as
insensitive, callous, and uninformed.

10. Link Back to Your Website

Your website is the foundation of all
your Internet marketing, and Social
Media Networks are just the icing on
the cake. While it is possible to make
sales from Social Media accounts
directly it’s usually better to bring
people back to your website. There
you have the opportunity to educate
them, engage them, and convince
them.
It’s good to ensure people have to
visit your website to redeem offers,
finish the article they’re reading, or
to “learn more” about whatever your
interesting post was about in the
first place.

11. How Standard Marketing can Help

We Get To Know Your Business - First we get a good
understanding of your business, your clients, your needs
and goals. We’re not here to reinvent your company but
to build on your strengths.
We Look At Your Entire Internet Presence - Then we
look at your whole internet presence – your website,
your social media, your current rankings on Google, and
every link on the internet that points to your website.
And we look at your competition. We look at the whole
picture.
We Show You What’s Right For You - So many people
make Internet Marketing complicated saying things like
“You need Facebook”. We say “Maybe you do, maybe
you don’t”. It’s a traffic strategy. That’s all it is, one of
many. We look at all the possibilities - all the traffic
strategies, all the contact information strategies, and
all the closing strategies for your particular business,
for your target clients, and for this particular time. And
if it’s appropriate we fit Facebook into your strategy in
terms of priority, and how it works with all the other
parts of your strategy.
We Do The Most Effective Things First - Then we pick
the Traffic, Contact Information, and Closing strategies
that will make you the most money in the least amount
of time, and we do those first.
604 722-9375604 722-9375
info@standardmarketing.cainfo@standardmarketing.ca
Let’s talk about how we can help your
business grow.

By Anthony Baisi
Anthony Baisi manages social media & customer
relations at Standard Marketing. He’s also responsible
for developing clients’ content strategy and carrying
out their Search Engine Optimization.
He strategizes each client’s content to address the
needs of their target audience while establishing a
professional and consistent persona for the brand.
He’s an important part of our marketing strategy team. Written by Anthony Baisi
Follow me on Twitter
@anthonybaisi

10 Commandments of Social Media

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