How To Use Social Media To Reach Your Target Audience And Generate Better Leads

In years past, marketers would create a mailing list, make telephone calls, or run a print advertising campaign to attract potential clients. But the digital age has completely changed all that. Now, marketers have to make a concerted effort to connect with consumers on the platforms they use most. Thanks to our reliance on the internet, your marketing budget will be better spent on SEO, digital ads, and -- perhaps most intriguing of all -- social media. 

Smart Social Selling

Social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube might seem trivial or even overwhelming to some marketers, but they can help you reach audiences you never thought possible. In fact, Forbes estimates that up to two-thirds of the world’s top sales experts consider social media an important tool for sales and lead generation. And HubSpot found that 84% of marketers say devoting as little as six hours per week to social media activities was enough to increase their website traffic. 

These platforms are highly visual and interactive in nature, which makes them much more appealing to consumers. While 90% of top decision-makers say they never respond to cold calls, 76% of buyers say they’re ready and willing to have a conversation with a brand on social media. An engaging instagram post with comments from the company itself feels a lot more personal than a phone call from a telemarketer, that’s for sure. But if you don’t know where to start with social media marketing, you might want to try out the following tips: 

• Use Geotargeting For Lead Generation

If your business has a physical brick-and-mortar location (or you’re trying to appeal to customers within a certain radius), you’ll want to embrace geotargeting. Not only should your SEO and advertising be geotargeted, but you can even use it for what’s known as “social searching.” A geotargeted social search can find posts that are a good match for your company’s products and services. Then, you can reach out to these individuals or businesses and provide them with additional information or special offers. You can easily conduct a social search on Twitter or Hootsuite, or you can monitor hashtags on platforms like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. 

• Place Social Media Ads

While you shouldn’t sponsor every single post you make, social media advertising can allow you to really zero in on the customers you want to reach with much more accuracy. Audiences typically respond more to relevant posts, meaning that they’ll be more likely to check out your website and buy your products or services if they feel it’s pertinent to their interests. Facebook and Instagram ads allow marketers to collect leads within the platform itself; by allowing customers to engage with your business without ever leaving their social network of choice, you’ll be more likely to get the information you’re after. The more aesthetically pleasing and interactive your ad is, the better response you’ll get. Just make sure you follow the platform’s guidelines when creating and submitting your ad. 

• Host A Live Stream

If your business has something exciting to announce or simply wants to connect on a more personal level with potential customers, a live stream can be a great way to go. Just make sure that the video is high-quality and that you take steps to prevent technical difficulties from derailing your plans. Otherwise, viewers might not tune in again. Be sure to mention any contests or special offers you’re running and answer any questions in real time. Don’t forget to include your other social media channels and link to your website to ensure this tactic will translate into viable leads. 

• Measure ROI

Unless a company understands the overall long-term value of social media marketing, it can initially be a challenge to prove Return On Investment (ROI) when clients want immediate results. First I explain the excellent value they get from social media marketing compared to pricey alternatives like television commercials, radio ads, billboards or print advertisements, field marketing campaigns, and even Google AdWords. Then I discuss the measurable data that they receive from accounts and ads on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, etc that they don't get from traditional media channels. Finally I advise utilizing trackable URL's to custom landing pages to effectively track conversions such as sales (obviously), ebook or white paper downloads, email newsletter signups, mobile application downloads, and other KPIs with a defined value. Utilizing tools like Google Analytics and their Campaign URL Builder is effective and free.

SMM Lead Gen Conclusion

Ultimately, the platforms you use for social media marketing should line up with your brand and ideal audience. For example, if you want to target millennial or Gen Z buyers, Snapchat, TikTok, or Instagram will likely make more of an impact than LinkedIn. And remember: it’s not enough to simply post an image and a hashtag or two. The beauty of social media is that it allows you to be creative with your content and how you market it. Don’t pass up the opportunity to engage in meaningful ways and find those hard-to-reach leads through these popular platforms.

Dave Orecchio is one of the earliest adopters of Inbound Marketing. As one of Hubspot’s first customers and CEO of a Boston-based startup, he experienced the benefits of this effective digital marketing methodology. Dave now provides Inbound (marketing & Sales) services to businesses to help them grow and realize the positive results that an integrated program can provide. Dave is a high-tech marketing and sales expert with more than 25 years of business experience.

I hope you enjoyed this article about how to use social media to reach your target audience and generate better leads.

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