Social Networking Marketing
It’s at this stage of the social cycle that you connect with other influencers and
authorities and begin to move the needle.
Social networking is important for all businesses, whether you’re just getting
started, scaling, or expanding into new markets.
It may help to think of social networking as a live event—except your
interactions are online rather than face-to-face. After all, networking is
networking, no matter where (or how) it happens. And it can lead to deep and
lasting relationships, both with your followers and potential partners.
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The Process of Social Networking
Each time you publish an article on your blog, produce a new piece of
content, or have a new offer, you’ll create social media posts designed for the
channels you’re posting to (think “native” content) that get the word out.
You’ll share valuable content from peers and, yes, even your competitors.
If it relates to your brand’s primary topic and helps your followers, it’s worth
sharing. You’ll also engage with people one-on-one, both asking and
answering questions.
That’s it.
Now let’s look at this process in action.
Here’s one of our own articles, which we shared in Facebook and Twitter.
Notice that each post is appropriate for the channel.
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We also post conversational posts, like this one from our Twitter stream:
Conversational Twitter posts
But we also want to share content that would help beginning digital
marketers. After all, they may someday become our customers. So we share
back-to-basics content and useful information from other brands.
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Take these, for example:
This post from ThinkwithGoogle aligns with our values.
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Email marketing is one of the core competencies we teach, so this post from
MailChimp is a good fit.
By adopting a similar approach, you won’t just attract happy followers, though
you’ll have plenty of those. By sharing useful content from other brands, you’ll
build good will and strong alliances with the brands you share.
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For example, we’ve consistently shared content from Content Marketing
Institute, Buffer, and MarketingProfs. Initially, that led to a robust network. But
some of those relationships have turned into strong partnerships, as well.
Your Goals for Social Networking
During this stage of the social success cycle, your aim is to:
• Share content that fills gaps left from your own content. This content may
relate topically or target people at different skill levels.
• Create good will with brands that are similar to yours.
• Over time, transform that good will into profitable partnerships.
Metrics to Watch
To measure the strength of your social network, watch these metric:
• Number of inbound links. A strong network will result in more backlinks to
your content.
• Number and description of earned media mentions. Consider the
relevance and value of the mentions, who they come from, and the value
of those mentions.
• Number and description of earned strategic partnerships. Are you
reaching out to partnership prospects, or are they reaching out to you?
How relevant are those brands to your business, and what is the value of
those relationships?