Why Social Media Should Have a Seat at the Strategy Table

In the past five years alone, social media has become a crucial part of every department. Companies may involve their social media agencies in marketing efforts, but many fail to see the value in giving them a voice in the larger strategy conversations.

Let’s say your brand is conducting customer research. You plan to distribute a survey via social media to find out more about your user base. Your social agency’s involvement can’t begin at distribution, though. For an effective campaign, they need to help strategize where your survey will live, what its link will be, mobile optimization, and other critical details.

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The Influence of Social

If your brand is a popular city hotel, your social agency can touch customer service, branding, sales, and public relations–its reach extends to every strategic aspect of your business

Through social, you can reach out to guests who are celebrating their anniversary. Learn more about these customers and analyze who they are. Enhance their expectations with interactive content, then arm your front desk with the information they need to improve customer service. Once you understand consumer tendencies–whether it’s through a survey or direct engagement–you can drive people to book straight through your website rather than through online travel agencies (OTAs) like Expedia and Travelocity.

In this example, social has dug deep into the consumer psyche, shaped expectations, boosted customer service, and increased your profits by cutting out the middle man. In terms of PR, tools like targeted ads and influencer marketing can also help empower guests to leave positive reviews about their experience.

The Power of Social

Any artist can design a logo. Real branding is in your messaging.

Social isn’t just a part of branding–it is branding. Outlets like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat help establish your identity and tone. Your social agency helps locate consumers, identify their preferences, and target them effectively.

Social also generates leads and pours those consumers directly into your sales funnel. Not only can your social agency reach end consumers–social is B2B, too. If you’re an all-natural brand, we help position your products to large supermarkets, in addition to the people who purchase from them.

How do we locate these consumers?

Analytics play a huge role in determining strategy. Once you identify your goals and key performance indicators, you need to learn as much as possible about the consumers you’ll be targeting. We pay a lot of money for analytics software, which allows us to track demographics, habits, and much more.

We can tell you who your audience is and how to reach them–plus, where they’re most engaged and when you’ll have their full attention. Social agencies can also test ad campaigns before you commit to a specific design or headline. This process is especially effective through Facebook ads.

Read More: Why Your Social Media Agency Should Help Design Your Website

Let Social’s Voice Be Heard

Social ties into your strategy for everything–including website design, copywriting, SEO, advertising, and public relations.

Social media is already acknowledged as a part of marketing. But it’s so much more than that. When you look at your brand’s social analytics, you find information that affects sales, operations, and every facet of your company. In a rapidly changing business environment, you need to recognize social as a major part of your overall strategy.