How Important is Planning?

Someone told me today, that in the Vietnam War, it took over 500 bullets to kill one enemy combatant, but for snipers, the average is 1.3. I guess, one major factor between the two, is the amount of training that a sniper would get. This training in the military, I think can be compared to the preparation that goes into a good Social Media marketing Campaign.

If you fail to plan effectively, and just jump straight in, will you actually achieve your objectives, or, even worse, do you actually know what your objectives are? Yes, it does seem that social media is taking over the world, and if you’re in business, ignoring this could be hugely detrimental,  but is just being “on” social media enough?

It’s quite simple to set up a Facebook Page and a Twitter account, and very easy to publish the odd Tweet or Update, but what’s the point if nobody is listening? As well as keeping your page populated with interesting “stuff” you also need to interact with people and find followers who are interested in your business. Quite simply, if you’re not interested in your potential client, why should they be interested in you?

So, when you’re planning, you need to make sure you have the answers to these questions, and others that will be pertinent to your own business…

• Who are my potential clients?
• What are their interests?
• What will encourage them to engage with me on Facebook / Twitter etc?
• How can I keep their interest and continue to build my following?
• What do I want to achieve e.g. sales, more web traffic, to be recognised as The Local Expert etc?

Once you’ve worked out the questions and determined the answers, then it’s time to make a plan and action it. If you’re struggling with any of this, a good Social Media Manager will be able to help you through it and manage your campaign, always keeping your objectives in mind. They can act as an integral part of your team, suggesting ideas and often bringing a wealth of experience and expertise to complement your own.

If you’d like to have a chat to see if I could be the right Social Media Manager for you, just give me a call on 01462 615821.