Maybe things are going fairly well with your social media marketing, but a question has been on your mind: should you be more deliberate about balancing organic and paid social media efforts?
The answer, of course, is yes, always! Here’s your guide to when each one is most advantageous to your business:
Organic Social Media Marketing
This is the crock pot version of building your social strategy. It’s not quick, but it’s stable and delivers reliable results. It’s best when…
- You’re looking for authentic connections with your audience. Organic is the way to go, because you will build relationships in a way that doesn’t feel artificial or forced. You’re simply engaging your audience with posts.
- You have a limited budget. Organic social media requires time and creativity, but there is not a cost to use the platform.
- You have valuable content. Posting information through blogs or videos that are helpful to your audience can be an effective way to grow a social presence.
Paid Social
Compared to organic social media marketing, paid social is the microwave. You need quick results and you’re willing to invest a few dollars in making it happen. It’s an ideal fit for…
- A new product line or promotion is rolling out. You want to get the word out and you know who you want to hear it. Paid social allows for granular segmentation and targeting, so you have a lot of say over who receives your posts.
- You’ve got a budget set aside for social media. That said, paid social accommodates any size investment. Even if you have a small amount set aside, you can get some good mileage from a small campaign.
- You need to MOVE. If you want quick results, paid social is the way to go.
Now that you know when you might use each of these, let’s talk about some other things to keep in mind.
Algorithms Change Quickly. If you’ve been excited about paid social, just remember that things are always on the move and you will only get short-term use out of any paid posts you create.
Content Appetites Do, Too. Content is only limited by your time and creative juices, but keep in mind that content preferences change and the demand for quality content may limit how much you can produce for organic social media efforts.
Think About Metrics. How important is it to you that you can tell exactly how effective your efforts have been on any given campaign? If you need to see results, paid search is going to be more effective at providing them.
Taking all of these thoughts into consideration, the short answer is that you likely need to be engaging in a mix of organic social media marketing and paid social. Just how much of each depends on what you are trying to accomplish. To find out the ideal combination for your business, contact us at SJC Marketing. We can help you determine your goals and then use social media to reach them!