Marketing a business is challenging in today’s economic environment. You’ve built a following in your local community: Portland is your home. But you have bigger dreams. Is hiring a social media company in Portland the answer?
Hiring is always a big step. It takes work to find the right partnership. It takes faith to commit and trust that a resource knows what they’re doing.
And social media is anything but a one-size-fits-all strategy. To get real results, you’ll have to find a company you work well with. One that is the best fit for helping you achieve your goals.
To do that, you’ll need to focus your resources on research and looking at things like:
- Their reputation and track record: Are they capable of getting the job done?
- How flexible they are: Can they customize solutions to ensure they fit well within your culture?
- Their strategic approach: Do they stand behind their work and have the data to support it?
- Clear communication skills: Can they help you achieve tangible results?
- Their creativity and innovation skills: Can they push you beyond what you see in current feeds? Can you blaze your own trail?
Because social media is all about capturing attention and building an audience you can engage with over time, the social media company you decide to work with should do all that and more.
Key Functions of a Social Media Company
Once hired, what will the social media company do? You’ll need to define the critical functions they will handle. That’s the only way to ensure the best results from whichever agency you choose to work with.
Developing Social Media Strategies
As a social media company in Portland, we believe great campaigns start with discovery. If you’re not on the same page with your partner, you’ll never achieve real results.
It starts with a brainstorming session about your goals. This is how you share ideas with the social media company you’ve partnered with. This discovery process is a way to develop your unique value proposition, identify your target audience, and develop your message.
Some of this should be data-driven. Critical research will show you what’s currently out there in the marketplace. The rest should be about your intentions. This is where your personality should shine.
Social Brand Development
You have a brand in place, but how well is it converting on your social media platforms? Are you looking to scale it to the next level, or are you still finding your place on each individual platform?
Social media works differently than other forms of advertising. And you need to learn to use every aspect of it well. Your platform should attract followers. You can build through advertising or creating partnerships with other like-minded businesses. Use influencer collaborations to scale your presence as well as build your reputation.
There isn’t a right way to use this technology, but there are nuances to it that make some ways more successful than others. Why not set it up the right way now to get the most out of it in the future?
Creating Content
Here’s something to consider: 56 percent of consumers think brands need to be more relatable. That means providing the content viewers can sink their teeth into, stand behind, and choose to follow.
Content is never about you. It’s about capturing what people are most interested in and giving them more of what they want. Yes, there’s an art to it. Of course, you also have to abide by the community’s guidelines. That means watching user-generated content and taking action, as needed. This is about engagement. It’s about paying attention to what people want and utilizing it to put your brand in the spotlight.
There’s a careful balance between creating what you need for your business and giving users what they want to see. Master that, and you’ll see growth.
Executing Targeted Advertising Campaigns
Have you ever been drawn in by a photo or video ad on your favorite social media platform? Why? Was it the quality of the image? The message behind the video? Or the way content speaks your language?
Sponsored content starts with a strong message. The best campaigns spend time clearly defining their target audience and then creating a message that resonates with the intended audience.
Make no mistake: Social media companies have the knowledge and experience behind them to make sure every ad campaign they produce will get results. They use teams of designers and copywriters to create visually appealing and engaging ads and run A/B tests to compare ad versions, headlines, images, and calls to action. They have experience with bidding strategies and can help allocate budgets efficiently across campaigns. In short, they help you get results.
Analyzing Data for Engagement and Performance
You’ll never know how well a campaign does unless you track it. You won’t be able to improve your campaigns if you don’t understand the numbers behind them. Luckily, social media companies use advanced analytics tools to track key performance indicators (KPIs) like click-through rates (CTR), conversion rates, and return on ad spend (ROAS). This helps measure current success and gives you guidance for improvement.
Social media companies bring something else to the table: a history of understanding the latest algorithm changes and trends across social media platforms. This allows them to adapt strategies to ensure ads maintain visibility and effectiveness throughout your campaigns.
Working with a Social Media Company – Is It Right for Your Portland Business?
Deciding to partner with a social media company from Portland ultimately comes down to your business goals, resources, and expertise. But if you’re looking to enhance your online presence and reach a more targeted audience, social media can be a viable strategy.
Hiring a social media company gives you the boost to make using social media more successful. If you’re a Portland-based company, that means gaining more traction here in the local environment or growing and taking your products or services to a larger audience.
It’s essential to choose a partner that understands your brand, aligns with your values, and can deliver on its promises. The right social media company can pave the way for increased engagement, greater brand visibility, and ultimately, business success.
