How To Develop A Brand-Building Strategy On Social Media? 

Over the years, social media has emerged as an innovative platform, not just for communication but also for setting up the brand identity. Whether you are just a small business trying to make a mark or an already established image trying to refresh your brand image – a well-crafted social media strategy can set you apart from the competition.

What is a brand-building strategy?

A brand-building strategy is a documented plan prepared to achieve certain business goals based on the metrics that are unique to your brand only. It consists of everything, starting with your unique business goals to the tactics you are going to use and even the metrics you are going to measure.

How to create a brand-building strategy for social media? 

Here’s how you can build an ideal brand-building strategy for your brand’s social media profile:

Step 1: Optimize your brand profiles on different channels

Before you even start with your brainstorming session, start by optimizing all your brand’s social profiles across channels. Having a consistent brand image is essential; otherwise, you might confuse your audience.

Here’s a checklist for you to follow:

• Use the same profile pictures and banner images for all your profiles 

Most of your audience can hardly remember you by your brand name (if you are new!) Then, how will your audience spot you from the crowd of brand profiles on social media? By your profile picture or the color codes you use – that’s why it’s important to use the same assets across platforms. 

• Keep consistent details across all social media channels

Just like your brand name, your social media username is also a major part of your brand’s identity. Make sure the username you are using is consistent across all social media channels. Otherwise, your audience might get confused and can also end up questioning your brand’s authenticity. 

• Provide the same contact information for all the social media channels

This is where most brands go wrong when they do maintain consistency in contact information. Maybe you updated your Instagram contact information but forgot to do that for LinkedIn. If an audience ends up spotting the discrepancy, it won’t just cost you a customer but can also affect your brand image. 

Step 2: Set the goals you want to achieve 

Goals are unique to every brand. While you probably have a goal to increase brand awareness, a similar brand might have a different goal of increasing customer satisfaction scores. 

Here’s how you can set the right goals for your brand:

• Identify your brand’s unique selling proposition

The USP or unique selling point is what differentiates your brand from the competition, and it’s practically not possible to set the goals right if you aren’t aware of it. 

• Segment your audience based on demographics and behavior

Once you know the USP, start segmenting your audience because the same strategy and the brand message might only resonate with audiences of some groups. 

• Run a SWOT analysis

Before you set the goals, do a SWOT analysis where you analyze the probable Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats of your brand. 

• Set SMART goals

Based on the results from the SWOT analysis, decide and set up SMART goals where “SMART” stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound goals. If the goals you are setting tick all the five parameters, you are good to go! 

Step 3: Do a thorough competitor analysis

No matter how great your plan is, somehow, the competition always ends up doing better – does this sound familiar to you? If yes, you haven’t done a full-proof competition analysis.

Here’s how you should do competition analyses right:

• Make a list of your key competitors

List down the names of all your competitors – be it one or hundreds in number. 

• Analyze profiles and branding and compare the branding elements

Now, analyze and compare your and your competitors’ profiles and branding styles and elements. It will help you figure out what you can do better and what you are already doing best! 

• Check the content types and styles they are experimenting with

There are thousands of content types and styles out there – and maybe your competitors have put up their A-game there. While analyzing, you can not only understand their content types and hashtag types better but can also get some fresh ideas to incorporate into your brand. Also, do not take note of their posting frequency and posting times.

• Leverage social media listening tools

What’s a better way to stalk your audience effortlessly than by leveraging some of the best social media listening tools like Sprout Social, Hootsuite, and more? There are also many Sprout Social alternatives out there that can help you keep an eye on what everyone is saying about your competitors on social media 24/7. 

Step 4: Audit your social media channels 

If your brand has been on social media for a while now, it is fair to run an audit on your social channels to understand the outcome of your and your team’s efforts. 

Ask yourself the following questions:

• What worked till now?
• What didn’t work till now?
• Which social channel got the maximum engagement
• What types of content got the highest engagement 
• What types of content got the lowest engagement

The list hardly ever ends – but these are some of the primary questions you can start with. 

Step 5: Create a social media content calendar

Once you have answered all the questions during the social media audit, start with your social media content calendar. Most branding falls apart because of the lack of planning – but when you have a content calendar, you already know what to post, when to post, and more. 

• Categorize types of content into different buckets
• Based on the buckets, brainstorm content ideas
• Go for a social media calendar tool to automate posting
• Schedule time-sensitive posts
• Chalk out the right times to post

Step 6: Decide which metrics to track

Without tracking the metrics, you will hardly ever know what’s working for your brand and what isn’t. However, manually monitoring the metrics can get really hectic, and that’s where social media analytics tools come in handy. 

• Reach: The number of unique users who saw your content.
• Impressions: The total number of times your content was displayed on someone’s screen.
• Follower Count: Growth in your number of followers over time.
• Mentions: How often your brand is mentioned across social platforms?
• Share of Voice: Your brand’s mentions compared to competitors.

Takeaway 

When you understand your brand’s unique requirements and selling points and know how to segment your audiences right – you lay a firm foundation for your brand’s success. A profile that has been optimized right and is combined with a well-thought-out strategy can significantly elevate your brand’s presence.