When it comes to social media, agencies have a lot to take into consideration. Which tone? Which audience? What purpose? What kind of content? Each decision contributes to the presence your agency has online; you need to carefully consider each factor to make the most of your efforts.
Audience
It’s important to remember that you cannot be everything to everyone all the time. Stay focused on your message, and never lose sight of your identity.
That being said, a good place to start is with the relationships that already exist: clients, past business partners, etc. You know these are people who have already expressed interest in you, and it is vital to keep them involved.
Next, move to the target audience you genuinely want to engage. These are the people who will ultimately appreciate you enough to stick around for the long haul. Every tweet, Facebook post, pin and blog post can go a long way if the right person sees it.
We no longer have to rely solely on Facebook’s EdgeRank algorithms to hit the right target with the right message. We can use platforms to make sure we’re speaking to the right people and, ultimately, reaching our social media goals. We feel so passionately about the power of targeting that our company built an entire platform around its importance.
Purpose
Most agencies have a number of goals in mind when it comes to social media, including garnering new clients, proving that they’re social media-savvy and gaining recognition as experts in their fields. Having a wide variety of goals means more work — researching what is and isn’t working, curating more content and engaging more — but it also means better results. Determine your own goals and be willing to work hard for them.
Content
There are a lot of people looking to agencies to stay in the know about industry information and innovations while separating themselves from competition. It’s important to show social-savvy industry leaders and clients that you can walk the walk. Don’t just talk about engagement — engage. Don’t mention original content — start writing. Showing your audience that you know what you’re doing will speak volumes.
Keep in mind that generating a lot of original content from multiple people within an agency is a valuable practice. We value providing developer, designer, sales and social perspectives to our audience. The last thing anyone wants to see is the same content repurposed over and over.
Choosing original content is where it gets fun. Each agency has its own ideal ratio between education, personality and self-promotion. Selecting which element to emphasize is up to you. One thing is for certain: as you start testing out different ratios, you will quickly learn what hits the mark and what doesn’t.
Tone
There are two important things to consider with tone:
1. Who is your audience?
Put yourself in your ideal audience’s shoes and think, “What do I want to hear?” This isn’t always the easiest question to answer, especially when you have multiple audiences, but it’s an important one to attempt.
2. What is your agency’s mission?
Your tone on social media needs to stay in line with what your agency is trying to accomplish as a whole. Social media functions as a complement to your strategy.
Too much of the same thing will become monotonous no matter which tone you choose, so pick a few voice guidelines and stick to them. Always keep in mind that the main goal of social media is to be engaging; no one wants to engage with a robot.
As an agency, stay human and talk to your audience as people. By considering each of these factors, you can engage the right people so they’ll want to engage with you, too.
