5 W’S OF SOCIAL MEDIABY TESS ZEVENBERGEN

COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER

5 W’S OF SOCIAL MEDIA: OUTLINE• What is social media? • Why use social media? • Who is using social media? • What social media should I use? • Where to start – choosing a platform and setting goals. • When to use – best times to post • Best Practices – Facebook & LinkedIn

WHAT IS SOCIAL MEDIA?

SOCIAL MEDIA DEFINITION Social media is a category of online media where people are talking, participating, sharing, networking, and bookmarking online. Most social media services encourage discussion, feedback, voting, comments, and sharing information from all parties.

- Ron Jones – Search Engine Watch

SOCIAL MEDIA IS NOT….

• Pushing content • Talking to the consumer/client non-stop • Interruptive • Strictly promotional • One-way conversation

SOCIAL MEDIA IS….• Listening • Engaging • Interacting • Collaboration • Two-way conversation – creating & fostering community • Bringing value-added content to clients…how can you help them in the

search for what they need (products and services) • A tool you can leverage to recruit prospects and move along the client

relationship

80/20: THE RULE OF SOCIAL MEDIA

WHY USE SOCIAL MEDIA?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcskckuosxQ

WHY USE SOCIAL MEDIA? • Word of mouth promotion is your best marketing tool (client referral is key).

…SO HOW CAN SOCIAL MEDIA HELP?

• It’s a small world – 3.25 degrees of separation. How many people you need to go through on social media to be connected to someone you BOTH actually know.

WHY USE SOCIAL MEDIA?

WHY USE SOCIAL MEDIA?

WHY USE SOCIAL MEDIA?

CLIENT ADVOCACY • Customer care has become a strategic priority for businesses; the

new focus of social engagement is to target a small percentage of “social advocates” who are most enthusiastic and vocal about the product or service instead of attempting to reach a broader general audience. • Clients can be great brand ambassadors • Consumers are 71% more likely to make a purchase based on social

media referrals (Source: Hubspot).

WHY USE SOCIAL MEDIA? Fastest growing demographic for Facebook and LinkedIn is 30- 49

years old 79% of internet users are on Facebook32% of internet users are on LinkedInHigh network worth individuals use social media daily

* Statistics provided by PewResearch Centre

WHY USE SOCIAL MEDIA? HNWI • 5M High Net Worth Investors in U.S. and Canada actively use social

media to help them with their financial decisions. • Two-thirds of HNWI visit LinkedIn monthly • LinkedIn is the most trusted platform for financial service companies • Social media users are more active with their investing (regardless if

they use an advisor or not). * Source: Cogent Research: Social Media’s Growing Influence Among High Net Worth Investors

WHAT SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS SHOULD I USE?

WHAT SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS SHOULD I USE?

• LinkedIn and Facebook are the best two platforms to start with • Facebook is the leading platform for “driving conversion” – key

channel for reaching and converting customers (targeted marketing) & building personal connections • LinkedIn is a great content platform for social selling, peer-to-

peer influence, building networks (new prospects = new clients) & leveraging expertise (professional blogs and status updates).

WHERE DO I TO START? • Identify your target audience – create buyer personas• Set some goals & measurable outcomes – Brand differentiation,

increase client referrals, increased traffic to website, decrease marketing expenses, increase leads• Start connecting with various stakeholders – insurance carriers,

Influencers (bloggers), agents, consumers, associations, trade publications, media, competitors • Start a conversation – realize you have something to say.

WHAT SHOULD I SAY: CONTENT IDEAS • Blogs – don’t have a blog…use

LinkedIn’s Write a Article feature• Your publications on other news

outlets • Whitepapers• E-books or books • Company

announcements/updates

• Showcase services and team members • Social media PR – press release• Events (trade shows)• Informative tips • Industry updates (insurance) • Inspiring quotes • Showcase your expertise (BOY)

WHAT SHOULD I SAY: CLIENT TESTIMONIALS

• Client testimonials are invaluable – ask clients if they would be willing to provide a testimonial (word-of-mouth, client referral right?)• Video – invest in getting a professional video made *it gets more

shares on Facebook • Do a live (in real-time) testimonial interview with your client using

Facebook’s new Live feature • Client’s don’t have much time…to boost your credibility ask your client

to provide a professional review on LinkedIn or endorse you for skills.

WHAT SHOULD I SAY: CLIENT TESTIMONIALS

• What problem did you help the client solve? • How did you help them solve it? • What was the outcome? • Why was your client pleased with the results?

WHAT SHOULD I SAY? CONTENT IDEAS

• Be creative – find ways to repurpose content for different social platforms (divide white paper into two blog posts) • Ask a question and look for gaps in client knowledge to fill in • Be transparent and authentic and interact (listen, learn, react).• Tailor the post to each specific platform (less informal Facebook and

business formal LinkedIn)• Post frequently and make sure to monitor comments and keep the

conversation going• Engagement – means different things to different people. It is

getting harder to drive conversation on social media

WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO POST?

Twitter – Monday to Friday at 3 pm (each tweet has a 24 minute shelf life) (Source: Hootsuite) Facebook – Monday, Wednesday, Thurs and Friday 12 pm to 3 pm and Sat/Sun 12 to 1 pm ( a post reaches 75 percent of its engagement within the first 5 hours (Source: Hootsuite)LinkedIn – Tues to Thursday, early in the morning, lunchtime or early evening and 10 – 11 am on Tuesday (Source: LinkedIn)

FACEBOOK: BEST PRACTICES • Be personal • Consistent branding • Make it Easy to contact you • Direct calls to Action (Facebook has this feature). • Use Facebook to promote your content (remember 80/20 rule

though)• Cross-promote content on different social media platforms

(remember to tailor the message)

FACEBOOK: BEST PRACTICES • Linking to website is also good for SEO. Show prominence in

the search engines and the backlink to your website is good for your SEO (ensure your website is plugged in to Google Analytics and SEO optimized). • Facebook – about 40 percent of referral traffic now comes

through Facebook (LinkedIn is good for networking but it is not driving a ton of website traffic).  • Facebook is the #1 social media platform to use to drive

website traffic

LINKEDIN: BEST PRACTICES • Headshot – get a professional headshot • Summary – write in first person and make it personable (provide details

of hobbies and community outreach for example). Add professional video for greater impact. • Status updates/Write an article – do both for greater reach and to

establish yourself as a thought leader. LinkedIn uses a certain algorithm so just because you share an update, doesn’t mean everyone is going to see it. (maybe 15 – 20 % of your network will)• When you write an article they send a notification to your network• Respond to your connections’ posts…ask questions…start that

conversation.

CONCLUSION: MORE ON FACEBOOK & LINKEDIN

Advisor’s Ask Recap: 2017 Social Media Goals for Financial Advisors with Hootsuite https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BqGKRcWLv8&t=941sFor Financial Advisors: Social Media Best Practices – Facebook and LinkedIn https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Fd-ROmg6Ro&t=1514s

SO WHY SHOULD YOU USE SOCIAL MEDIA…AGAIN?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lnrb8HnQvfU

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING….•Connect with me on LinkedIn •Have a social media question or need support…email me at tess@macdevfinancial.com