Social media is one of the latest buzzwords! And it doesn’t just hold true for people but also brand. Today, when you like a service or product, you tend to search for the brand on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram. It is because the customers today want to have a close connection with the brands. Your customers want to follow latest brand launches and updates as well.

Social media makes it real and raw. It creates a brand appear like a real person, which gives your brand a persona. You’re defined no more just by your products and services but also by your public posts and your response to customers.

Opening a social media profile for your brand is easy. However, arriving at a social media strategy is difficult. It is here that you need to assess and analyze several aspects. You need to think about what works better for you. Also, you need to arrive at those social media strategies that you can sustain for the long-run. Else, if your social media strategy becomes inactive within a few months, it will have a negative impact on your brand. Discussed below are five essential steps that will help you develop a smart social media strategy for your brand.

1.  Define your business objective

You shouldn’t look at social media as an extra marketing or promotion tool. You need to take it as an essential online marketing tool that will enable you to enhance your brand presence. Hence, before you open a social media account make sure you are well aware of your business objective. Some of the questions worth considering are:

· Do you want to expand your online sales and enhance your revenue stream?

· Do you want extra followers and subscribers?

· Do you want to etch out a different persona about your brand?

· Do you want to connect with your customers in a personal way?

· Do you want to share important company news with the customers that they can’t find on your website?

All these questions are worth considering. As when you answer these questions, you would know your objective better. For instance, your social media strategy will vary if you want more followers or want increased revenue. Sometimes, a brand creates a social media profile to gain more visibility. They want their social media profiles to be an extension of their website. Hence, deciding on your objective is the first step.

2. Make an audit of your present social media status

It is one of the most critical steps. So, before you set out to create a social media profile, assess your social presence. It will reveal your true social status. Ask yourself the following questions:

· Find out the networks you are remotely active on

· Is your social media profile well optimized?

· Which network is likely to get you more profits?

· Have you compared your profile with other market players?

Each of these questions is essential. For instance, having a social media profile isn’t sufficient. You need to optimize it with pictures and posts. So, if you have a profile that isn’t optimized it is as good as not having a profile. It means your present social media status is zero. And you need to start from scratch. Click here to go to their website

3. Understand your ideal consumer

Get as precise as possible here. For instance, if you have recognized that your target audience is the young adults, you know your audience. But success comes when you know that your target customer is in the United States, young adults within a specific age group, earning a certain income who uses mostly Instagram or Facebook, you can favorably use your social media strategy. Leading marketers will also fail when they address the wrong audience. Staying focused on the purchaser persona is essential. Consider aspects like:

· Age

· Gender

· Job type

· Location

· Social networks used

· Pain points

· Income

Once you have all these details, you can go ahead and create the best social media strategy that will work for you!

4. Choose the networks you want to use

It is one of the most important considerations to make! Having a successful social media strategy doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to be present in all the social media sites. You can choose two sites to start with and observe how it goes. Remember, that being active on social media is important. So, once you are present, you will have to make regular posts and also reply to your audience. So, research on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and others! Check out the services each provides and then make your choice accordingly. 

For instance, if yours is more picture-oriented posts, such as for cakes and make-up, you can select Instagram and Facebook. However, if you are here to share more information, you can choose any two between Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook. Have an understanding of what each social media site can do for you and then opt-in for the one or two sites you wish to. 

5. Make your posts interesting and be responsive

An exciting and original post will impress your customers. Make sure that you manage your posts well and share exciting updates about your company on a daily basis. Categorize your posts in the following way and share it accordingly:

· Generic posts

· Brand launches

· Online quizzes

· Polls

· Picture posts

· Throwback posts

· Post of the week

· Company updates

· Press announcements

These are some of the categories in which you can organize your social media posts. It is always better to alternate each type and share the same. It will help in developing a variety and will keep your customers engaged as well. Last but not least, don’t forget to respond to your customers when they post a reply or comment on your post. It will help in generating trust.

These are the main five steps of arriving at an advanced social media strategy! You can also add-in other steps if you want to. However, for starters, you can count on the strategies mentioned above and observe how it works for your brand and make the necessary changes.