SMM means marketing on social networks, or the promotion of goods and services through digital media. Learn how to run a promotional campaign and increase traffic to your website.
Basic terms and ways of promotion
Social Media Marketing (SMM) is a type of internet marketing which uses the benefits of social networking sites as a tool of promoting websites, thus increasing traffic towards them and learning from users’ direct reactions.
SMM is based on the principle of organic search, which basically means that when the website or its connected social network page is more active, the website’s position on search engines rises, i.e. it will be in seen the first few results.
Considering the fact that 90% of users searching the internet do not look any further than the first page of the search engine, and that 70% clicks on the first three results only, it is obvious that the position on the first page of the search engine is the only goal to strive for when optimizing a website.
The main goal of SMM is to improve communication with users, increase brand visibility and reach more (potential) customers.
SMM is being done by creating quality content that the users of social networks share with their friends (via transmitting information electronically, i.e. Electronic Word of Mouth, or eWoM).
The point of SMM is to obtain direct feedback from users (or potential customers), so that the company gets a personal stamp at the same time, i.e. it appears more human-like.
By means of interactive options on social networks, the customers get the chance to be heard, either by asking questions or by making complaints.
This type of SMM is called Social Customer Relation Management (Social CRM), which can further lead to enhancing credibility and return on investment (ROI), of course, if the users are satisfied with content, relationship with the company and the service provided.
Active promotion means adding links (applications) which lead from the content on the website towards social networks (similarly to RSS and social media share buttons).
Social networks which can be used as a means of SMM are the following:
Facebook
Instagram
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube
Pinterest
Each social network has its own Terms of Use, which is different for natural persons and legal entities, i.e. companies.
What only companies get is the option of launching a paid ad campaign so as to reach wider audiences, thus improving traffic towards a website or a targeted web page.
Every post you make on a social media platform is an opportunity for customers to convert.
When you build a following, you’ll simultaneously have access to new customers, recent customers, and old customers, and you’ll be able to interact with all of them. Every blog post, image, video, or comment you share is a chance for someone to react, and every reaction could lead to a site visit, and eventually a conversion. Not every interaction with your brand results in a conversion, but every positive interaction increases the likelihood of an eventual conversion. Even if your click-through rates are low, the sheer number of opportunities you have on social media is significant.
