An important aspect of Marketing is being able to adapt your strategies to meet the needs of your target audience. The world has drastically changed over the last several weeks which indicates your marketing strategy should have too. Consumers currently have a lot more free time on their hands and are spending a lot of that free time on social media platforms. Lots of industries are capitalizing on this by turning to social media marketing. The goal of this article is to help point you in the right direction when putting your social media strategy together. 

The ultimate goal of your social media marketing strategy should be to strike the right tone for your brand and audience. Below are four things to consider when putting your strategy together. 

1.Types of Content

While it may be tempting to direct all of your focus towards what is going on in the world right now, keep in mind that consumers are being bombarded with COVID-19 information from every angle. Social media is a place consumers go to relax, or let their minds take a break so having “normal” content being pushed out will likely be more received now than ever. Your followers will appreciate you giving them a “Covid break”.

Remember why people followed your page to begin with. Remain respectful of the times we are in but continue to provide the content you are known for, otherwise you may lose them as a follower. 

2. Sensitive Content

While we don’t recommend you focus all of your content on COVID-19, it is very important that you remain sensitive to what is going on. Avoid pushing out your own opinionated information and review your content from your audience’s perspective. Now is not the time for memes! Marketing relies heavily on empathy which means you need to understand the people you are talking to and customize your content accordingly. Remember that some within your audience have lost their jobs, have lost loved ones, are sick themselves, or trying to work from home with young children, etc. Consider how your information could be interpreted by people facing a different reality than yours. 

3. COVID Content/Keeping customers informed 

It is okay to occasionally post content in reference to COVID. Not doing so at all could push out the message that you are indifferent or inauthentic. You do not want your customers to perceive that you aren’t taking the matter seriously, but you also don’t want to send out a confusing message. We encourage you to consider more personal content when choosing to push out COVID sensitive information. For example, a video letting customers know you are there for them that includes business information relevant to what is going on. 

Keeping your customers informed of business changes is an excellent segway to briefly show your concerns and acknowledgement of the times. Hour changes, closures, re-opening, new regulations, appointments only, emergencies only, etc are all things your customers want and need to know. Note that if you are not already on a platform that allows you to update your business information across the entire web through one central hub, you should be! To learn how, check out Local Search Marketing.

Another suggestion is to create a graphic that is on brand and very straightforward so they know exactly what to expect and know where to look on your social media channels for more updates on your business as things progress.

4. Don’t forget about scheduled posts!

This ties into everything else we have been discussing. If you have been marketing on social media for some time, it is likely that you utilize the scheduled post publishing tool. It is very important that you re-evaluate all scheduled content to make sure it is still appropriate and relevant to what is going on right now. Being reluctant to do so could result in confusing or even brand damaging content. 

In summary: Keep posting the types of content that got your followers to begin with, remain sensitive to what is going on, keep consumers informed of business changes, and don’t forget about your scheduled posts!

Social media marketing is more important now than ever before. We hope this information was helpful and sparks your creativity. If you need help coming up with a strong social media strategy we would be happy to brainstorm with you!