5 Underrated Social Media Strategies You Should Start Using Today

When it comes to social media strategies, most brands know some of the key strategies: post quality content, monitor your brand awareness, interact with your audience.

But have you ever wondered if your social media team has overlooked some strategies?

In this article, we cover some strategies that you may not have considered, with some data to show that they are effective.

1. Use small, nano and micro influencers.

A 2021 health report on user-generated content found that most marketers (93%) believe that consumers trust human-created content much more than brands.

People trust each other much more than brands, and that is why, according to the study, 75% of marketers work with small to micro-influencers with followers between 500 and 25,000.

Why not mega influencers with millions of followers? Cost aside, some brands fear that as influencers gain fame and popularity, ironically enough, they lose some of their influence.

As a result, brands are working more with small, blue-checkless content creators with great commitment and real influencers in their community. In 2018, an eMarketer study found that micro-influencers (between 10,000 and 100,000 followers) were considered the most effective.

User-generated content (UGC) will continue to be a major lead and sales driver in social media. However, shifting towards smaller influencers can be the more effective (and cost-effective) way to increase brand awareness.

2. Stick to platform-specific content.

With so many different platforms to post on, it’s very easy to get overwhelmed.

Brands often try to batch publish their content by publishing the same content on multiple platforms at the same time. For example, the same video can appear on Facebook, Instagram Reels, and TikTok.

While this can save time, it can hurt your brand in the long run. The competition between the individual social media platforms is tougher than ever.

In February 2021, Instagram announced that it would deprioritize reels with the TikTok trademark.

The mark appears when a TikTok user saves a video that has been uploaded to the platform. Since TikTok is a direct competitor of Instagram Reels, the brand wants to promote the use of its own short-form software and keep users in its network.

This speaks in favor of a greater effort by social media platforms to differentiate themselves from one another. With this in mind, brands should have a specific strategy for each platform as consumer behavior differs from website to website.

3. Show the people behind your brand.

When I went on vacation a few weeks ago, my friends and I spent an hour discussing our favorite black owned brands like black women do.

One brand that I highlighted was the luxury wallet brand Anima Iris. I hadn’t even bought from the brand yet, but I was already loyal and was dying to spread it.

A few weeks later, I noticed that one of my friends kept sharing new content from Anima Iris with me. I mentioned how much I loved how much she invested in the brand.

She replied, “It’s because I’m invested in themThe “you” she was referring to is the company’s CEO, Wilglory Tanjong, who was incredibly visible on the brand’s social media.

In fact, most of the brand’s social media posts feature the CEO and their journey. Tanjong shares everything from new leathers she is considering to her struggle to raise capital.

What’s the point of the story? Well, brands often underestimate the power of transparency.

In 2018, a study by Sprout Social found that 70% of consumers feel more connected to a brand when their CEO is on social media. They gave three reasons for this:

• It feels like real people are behind the brand.
• Consumers love to learn about the leadership team.
• Consumers believe that the CEO provides valuable insight into the brand itself.

This transparency has helped Tanjong build a community of loyal followers who are invested in their brand and often engage with their content.

Marketers often think of privacy and social responsibility. But it’s also corporate culture, employees, processes and everything in between.

In a 2020 study by Havas, consumers shared that they (58%) want brands to be more transparent and honest, as well as their company, including their processes and products.

Transparency creates trust and enables you to speak directly to your audience. What’s better than that?

4. Focus on the community, not on advertising.

Social media creates brand awareness, that’s true. Too often, brands focus on output without considering community building.

Annabelle Nyst, Senior Content Strategist on HubSpot’s Social Team, encourages companies to develop a community-centric social media strategy.

“So many brands see social media as a way to promote themselves and their own content without really thinking too much about engaging or growing their community,” said Nyst.

She adds that brands should be proactive in engaging in conversations, finding their facts, monitoring their brand awareness, and celebrating UGC.

Takeaway: Invest your audience in your brand and it will be easier for you to get them excited about your product or service.

5. Go live.

Live streaming enables brands to connect with their audience in real time. In some cases, consumers prefer it to other content channels.

In 2017, Livestream found that 80% of consumers would rather watch a brand’s live video than read a blog post or watch a social media post.

In 2021, according to Wyzowl, 28% of marketers planned to use it in their video marketing strategy.

Other reasons to go live are:

• The ability to reuse the live content in other posts.
• The ideas you get come from the direct connection with your audience.
• The trust you can build by showing the faces behind your brand.

Social media is a beast that is going nowhere anytime soon. Don’t be afraid to experiment, as this will help you better understand your audience and identify effective strategies.