It is no secret that social media has become a huge part of online marketing and search engine optimization. It is not enough to have a great website- you need people to talk about it. Whether on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ or other social platforms, the more buzz you can create the better your product or brand will do.
How does one create a social buzz?
1. Find out who your audience is
As with most endeavors, your campaign should start with research. Who is your product or site aimed at? What are the demographics of that group? Go beyond the basics (female between 25 and 35 who works) and try to find out what hobbies and interests your audience has.
What tv shows are they watching right now? What do they read? Eat? Are they into fitness? A specific food or restaurant? Are they concerned about work place rights? Politics? Equality?
The more information you can gather the easier it will be to create a persona that will be able to connect with them.
2. Get Organized
Decide how you are going to keep track of your persona. If on Monday you post that your persona just drank a cup of fabulous Starbuck’s coffee, make sure that next week you aren’t posting about how Starbuck’s is ruining America!
You will need to keep a list of all the characteristics you give your persona, from family status to favorite flavor ice cream, it is important to be consistent so that your persona will be believable and real.
Flesh out as many details as possible about the persona’s family status, personality and habits. Using your research to guide you, create a person that will be able to connect with your target audience, talk about the topics they are interested in and share articles and videos on subjects your customers are interested in.
3. Start posting
Once you are organized and know how you will be tracking your progress, dive in! Start posting on the various social platforms and searching for people you can connect with.
Be careful never to spam on social sites by sending friend request/following people you have no connection to. The correct way to go about gathering friends and followers is to strike up a conversation with them. If you see someone who falls into your target demographic is talking about book they just read and you have also read that book, feel free to start a dialogue with them. Things will naturally progress and then, when you friend them, they may friend you back because they actually know who you are.
Keep in mind that no legitimate account gets 1000’s of friends and followers overnight. Social media is a long process that requires creativity and patience. However, if done right, it can provide a big return for your site.
Antonio Colani is an avid traveler and writer. He works for a number of websites, such as travel blogs and gaming sites like intercasino.com . He writes content and manages social profiles, allowing him to work from any destination in the world.
