What Is Social Media Marketing? 9 Ways to Ace Your Strategy

Content Goodies

Social media has well and truly taken over our lives. Whether you want to admit it or not, we as a society are more chronically online than ever.

Gone are the days when simply having a good product was enough to succeed. Now, not only do you need to have a great product or service, but you also need to be able to sell yourself and your brand – and social media is a great place to do just that.

If you’re brand new to the wonderful world of social media marketing, we’ll show you around!

This blog will show you 9 ways to create an effective social media marketing plan, increase your brand awareness, and boost those conversion rates.

What are social media campaigns?

Social media marketing campaigns are a powerhouse tool for businesses to promote themselves online.

It’s estimated that in 2025 there will be around 5.42 billion social media users worldwide. Yikes. …but also 👀

In another report by Sprout Social, nearly half (48%) of consumers said they were interacting with brands more often on social media platforms compared to 6 months ago.

With those stats, it’s easy to see why having your own social media strategy is so important. And with the help of this nifty little guide, you’ll see just how easy it is to master your social media strategy.

But, before you jump in head-first, we’ve gotta do some background work. I know, I know – the boring stuff. But, it’s important! There are a ton of ways you can improve your social media strategy, but people often overlook the importance of nailing the basics.

Research your target audience

To create a winning formula for your social media marketing strategy, you’ll first need to know your target audience inside and out (and which social media channels they use). If you want to target them effectively, you should be able to answer these questions:

What kind of person are they? Identify their jobs, incomes, location, and hobbies.
Which social media apps do they spend most of their time doomscrolling on? Remember that different social media platforms attract different audiences.
What kinds of content do they consume and engage with the most? Video? Long form text? Quizzes?

Once you’ve got those answers in the bag, you’ll know exactly what to say, in which format, and on which platform.

Conduct a competitive analysis

Ah, spying on your competitors. The ol’ ‘keep your enemies closer’ approach. You can learn some super useful information by lurking on your rivals’ social media pages.

Do a little competitor analysis and take note of things they’re doing well, and things they’re doing…not so well. See if you can identify gaps in their content that you could fill with your social media presence. Industry insights like these will help you stay competitive and make the most of your social media marketing strategy.

Set goals for your social media strategy

Now that you know a bit more about your audience and your competitors, it’s time to decide what you want your social media marketing to achieve.

Set SMART goals – Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. If you’re looking to get more leads, for example, something like “Double my monthly leads through Instagram by the end of the quarter” is a much smarter goal than “Get more followers.”

Once you’ve got your goals laid out, you’re ready to curate your social media marketing strategy to help you reach them!

9 tactics to include in the ultimate social media strategy

1. Create a content calendar

All successful journeys start with a good map, and creating a content calendar is the perfect way to chart out your social media marketing strategy.

It’s a visual tool that allows you to plan, strategise, and organise your content, helping you stay on track.

Your content calendar should include things like the scheduled time and date of posting, the social media network you plan to use, as well as any captions, hashtags and images that will be needed for the post.

Benefits of a well-thought-out content calendar include:

Improved organisation: Having a plan laid out in advance will keep you on track and avoid any last minute kerfuffles, allowing for a smooth workflow. Planning a content calendar each month (or even a few months in advance) will save you time searching for topics or stories every day or week.
Consistency: Establishing a solid routine for posting will create a consistent social media presence, establishing trust with your audience and keeping them engaged.

Just keep a little room for flexibility in your calendar – if an unexpected opportunity arises, you’ll be ready to jump on it without skipping a beat.

2. Keep it authentic

While it’s tempting to hop on the latest trend in the hope of gaining some virality, the truth is, if it’s not consistent with your brand personality, it’s probably not worth it.

Consumers value brands and content that are relatable and transparent, and they can spot inauthenticity a mile away. So focus on sharing content that reflects your brand’s true values and voice. That way, you can foster a community built on trust and turn those followers into customers!

3. User-generated content

User-generated content (or UGC) is content that other users create that your business has been tagged in, or content you’ve been given permission to use on your social media accounts.

Whether they’re videos of people using your product in their day-to-day lives or genuine testimonials about how much they love your brand, UGC is a powerful tool to include in your strategy. Why? Because it raises brand awareness and strengthens trust in your brand.

In 2025, statistics are predicted to show that 80% of consumers trust UGC over traditional advertisements when it comes to making purchasing decisions. It makes sense, right? It’s usually easier to trust a real person’s recommendation than a paid ad.

So, how do you get your followers to create and share content? Try offering incentives like discounts or free products to those who create content using an associated hashtag of your choice. They get a freebie, and you get more eyes on your brand. Everybody wins!

4. Referral codes and giveaways

Speaking of discounts – here’s another way to get more buzz around your brand on social media! Offer your audience discounts on their first order when signing up to a newsletter or discounts when referring a friend.

And to generate more engagement on your social media platforms, consider running a contest or giveaway for followers who share your content, create their own, or tag their friends in your posts. It’s like UGC, but more fun!

5. Short-form video content

Short-form content is extremely popular at the minute (hello, TikTok) – and they’re not just for entertainment anymore. Reportedly, a whopping 78% of people prefer to learn about new products through short videos.

Attention spans are at an all-time low, and people want to get their information fast. If they make sense for your brand, short, snappy content is a great solution.

Not into “Baby Shark” (or whatever the latest TikTok trend is these days)? No problem! You can share behind-the-scenes glimpses of your products or processes, introduce yourself or your team, do a quick demo, or answer a common question.

Lean into Instagram Reels, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts to create short-form content that grabs your audience’s attention and gets your message across.

6. Repurpose blog content

Already have an active blog on your website? Great news – it’s a treasure trove of material you can use to add value to your social media marketing strategy.

Think about it: you’ve already poured a lot of time, energy, and resources into keyword research, market analysis, writing, and publishing your blog posts. Why not pull a powerful stat to make a shareable image on Instagram?

Or share a list of tips as a series of slides in your Facebook Story? And if you’re looking for short-form video ideas like we talked about above, you could take a blog that your readers love and boil it down for TikTok.

Repurposing content is great strategy because:

You don’t have to come up with all your ideas from scratch! Instead, with a little reformatting, you can use what you’ve already got.
It gets your high-quality content in front of a wider audience (like those who prefer a quick video to reading a thousand-word blog).
You can link to the social post on the original blog to encourage your readers to find you on your social platforms.
And when people find you on social media, you can point them toward your website or blog, driving more traffic (and ideally, more conversions!).

The key is to pinpoint the blog content that delivers the most value to your audience. Which blog posts already get the most traffic? These are the ones that might drive the best results on social media, too.

Pro tip: Don’t just copy your blog post and paste the whole thing in your Facebook feed. Keep it consistent, but tailor your content to match the length, format, and vibe that performs well on each of your platforms, using eye-catching visuals whenever you can.

7. Stay engaged

One of the most important aspects of running a successful social media strategy is customer engagement. Build your social presence by replying to comments, responding to messages, and gathering feedback. This is how you go from shouting into the void to fostering a real sense of community around your brand. It’s the ‘social’ part of social media!

8. Influencer marketing

Once you’ve built up a steady social media presence – creating new content, repurposing old content, and sharing UGC – it’s time to tap into the power of influencer content!

Collaborating with influencers to promote your product or service is an incredible opportunity to stand out, get seen, generate leads, and drive more conversions. In fact, nearly half of all consumers (49%) make purchases at least once a month because of influencer partnerships.

But here’s the thing: it needs to be a genuine match – someone who aligns with your brand values and actually uses your product or service. Otherwise, your audience will see right through it.

9. Track key performance indicators (KPIs)

Tracking KPIs is important for measuring the success of your social marketing strategy. Remember those SMART goals we talked about? Key performance indicators are how you’ll know if you’re achieving them or not. Performance metrics like engagement rates, follower growth, website traffic, and conversions are your best friends here.

By keeping tabs on these key metrics, you’ll get a clear picture of what’s working and what’s not. And with a data-driven approach, you can make informed decisions and fine-tune your strategy for better results.

Perfecting the recipe

Every company’s social media marketing strategy will look different, and you don’t have to apply all of these tips at once. Start by implementing one at a time – post regularly, stay consistent, and adjust your strategy as needed.

Need a little helping hand?

If you’ve made it this far, hopefully you’ve seen how powerful social media marketing can be, and learned a few tips and tricks to make your social media strategy more efficient and more effective.

If it still all sounds a bit much, fret not. We’re here to help! If you need someone to take the reins and create amazing content for you – from website copy to social media posts – we’ve got you covered.

Email abby@thecontentlab.ie or get in touch today.