The necessity of social media and the need to get the message right

The necessity of social media and the need to get the message right

Co-written by Kirby Barr, Senior Marketing and Communication Advisor and  Patricia Paolini, Business Development Manager, Training

The world of social media practically has its own language, and this new language has become part of our everyday conversations.  For many of us, social media platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok have become a necessary daily activity. This is true, certainly, on a professional level and on a personal level, with Smart Insights stating the average daily use of social media is 2 hours and 27 minutes across the globe1. 

Why is social media necessary? 
Businesses now rely on it to spread their messages ‘instantly’ and that’s the beauty of social media. It is 'instant' and can convey information faster and to a larger, more targeted, audience than was ever possible before. 

The days of the printed and mailed newsletters are behind us, and those now dusty old manual typewriters can be found in our local museums (or op shops if you’re lucky!). 

It goes without saying, social media platforms are extremely valuable communication tools for organisations to use. The use of social media is crucial to connecting to communities, keeping them informed, and also gauging audience sentiment. 

There are so many things an organisation can post about: what’s happening in your business/town/community today, where to find local roads information, venue opening hours, profiling staff, community events, showcasing customers (with their permission of course), grants information, articles and blogs on your website, and even ‘how to’s’ like paying your pet registration. 

The first search result on Google2 by Digital Marketing Light will tell us that the ten benefits of using social media are:
1.    increasing brand awareness
2.    build relationships 
3.    Increase your (brand) visibility 
4.    Boost organic visibility 
5.    Increase website traffic
6.    Improve customer experience
7.    Track your competition 
8.    Social media ads target high quality leads
9.    Helps to build a global brand/business
10.    Helps your brand grow, scale and improve

And this is why the digital boom is upon us. Social media has not only provided us with the benefits of ‘instant’ sharing of information with our communities, but it has also created jobs that were non-existent 20 years ago. Today, we seek employees with digital skills and employ teams of digital experts to maintain our social media business platforms. 

Developing a social media plan

Social media works best for organisations when there is a strategy behind the process. This strategy can help shape your key messages to align with your business goals, and help plan content that coincides with your business activities.

Developing a plan doesn’t need to be complicated, but it does need to include some key elements to increase reach and measure success.

Consider breaking down your plan into timed segments (e.g. based on an upcoming event, public education campaign, specific service offering, or increasing reach over a certain period) and include:
•    Goals – what are the overarching goals you want to achieve (i.e. to have X number of people respond to a survey)
•    Activities – how are you going to achieve these goals (i.e. using eye catching photos, using real people as brand ambassadors to endorse your activities like staff members, how-to videos etc).
•    Results – keep it simple and relevant, you can use analytics data on social media platforms to determine your impressions and reach and use that to measure success.

Stay up to date

Don’t forget, social media is always changing. Instagram is forever changing its algorithm – the latest is using ‘trending’ songs for reels. Facebook is constantly improving its platform offering and developing new options for planning and scheduling posts. Check out the latest version of the Planner in the newly developed Meta Business Suite by Facebook. Save time when posting by connecting your Instagram account to your Facebook page and start scheduling posts across the two platforms from one central location.

Stay informed and current

To hashtag, to post, to share and create handles means we need to increase our knowledge and skills around social media, also keeping in mind, that the digital world is constantly changing. As they say, if we don’t embrace it, we will be left behind.

Peak’s Social Media expert trainer and Digital Sociologist Lisa Harrison said “My role in delivering Peak’s social media workshops is to help council officers and elected members increase their confidence and skills in managing their digital footprint; to find out what works for them; who their audience is; how best to express their message and for elected members, growing their profile and how they would like to be perceived. In class, we talk about the ‘do’s and don’ts’ of sharing and posting, language, and how to grab the audience’s attention.  The vastness of Queensland and the varying digital needs of our councils, makes my work very interesting and fun every day and the language of social media will continue to increase and change. There are new words coming, so I can wait to share them with our clients in 2022.”

This social media course includes
Social media strategy: Setting measurable goals and aligning them with key council communication and business priorities
Community engagement: Community guidelines, best practice and creating engaging channel ready social content
Social media marketing: Utilising social media tools to boost and sponsor posts to reach target audiences 
Staff, your community and social media: Nurturing a network of advocates to help you reach your social media goals

To find out more about Peak’s Social Media workshops, please contact Patricia Paolini, Peak Services at ppaolini@wearepeak.com.au or call 0407 966 716

1     Smart Insights https://www.smartinsights.com/social-media-marketing/social-media-strategy/new-global-social-media-research/ 
2.    Digital Marketing Light https://digitalmarketinglight.com/social-media-advantages/