So, you’ve got a great logo, a well-crafted vision statement, and your website is looking better than you ever imagined it could! Now what? What steps can you take to elevate your brand to the next level? One strategy, in this regard, is to focus on cultivating greater visibility. And that, as you’ve probably already guessed, means strapping your logo and all it stands for on your back and diving, head-first, into social media!
Don’t worry. It’s not as wild and crazy as it sounds. Social(media)izing your brand is simple—especially if you focus on the following four key components.
Know Your Brand
This one goes without saying, but I’m saying it anyhow: Do not create a single social media handle or post for your new product, book, or blog until you know, better than the back of your own hand, the essence of your brand. What is your purpose? What is your vision? What underlying principles are important to the work you do? Do you have a well-crafted logo or a signature photo? Good. Keep it consistent across all platforms. Do you have a color scheme? Good. Keep it consistent across all platforms, too. Do you have a style guide for written content? Good. Stick to that on social media posts as well.
Know Your Audience
This one should probably be first on the list. In my book, knowing your audience is equally important as knowing your brand. Of course, to figure this out, you could send out polls and study demographics and marketing analytics all day, every day. Or you could just take your curiosity to the digital streets and do a little investigating on your own. Find a few digital channels comparable to your own brand/product/goal and take a look at the type of individuals following those channels. Are they male, female, non-binary? What age range do they tend to fall in? What other social channels do they follow? Are they obsessed with hair and make-up influencers; monster truck vloggers; celebrity channels? Get to know them, like what they like and follow who they follow, and share and love their posts! These people are your audience, too. And they have the power to make or break your brand!
Be Natural
Just as your brand is an extension of you, so too are your digital channels. So be true to yourself! To me, this means keeping your photos un-touched and posting real, authentic content. Carefully crafted graphics work some of the time and they definitely do the trick to catch the eye of scrolling public. But people will like and share your content because it relates to them—and for that, your content has to be authentically you!
Interact
Can you imagine going to a pool party or a cocktail party and not talking to a single soul? Well, that’s how awkward your brand looks on digital channels when you don’t interact with other users. The word social is half of the term social media because it is an interactive space. So, get out there and go for it: like content posted by your friends and colleagues; follow channels whose audience is similar to your own (influencers, brands, organizations, and even strangers—really, anything goes!); and comment on all the posts that speak to you!
Ashley Henyan is a digital marketing consultant, a freelance writer, and the executive director for the American Red Cross of Lowcountry South Carolina. Previously, she held leadership roles in digital communications and media relations with the Red Cross (the 2017 Harris Poll Non-profit Brand of the Year). Ashley has-developed curriculum and trained hundreds of staff and volunteers across the United States in courses like Leveraging Your Story on LinkedIn and Social Media Story Telling. She has been invited to discuss social media marketing and brand visibility on various podcasts and with local and national associations. Ashley has played an integral part in award-winning social media campaigns including honorable mention recognition with the PR Daily Content Marketing Awards and numerous Silver Telly Awards for Branded Content. She holds a B.A. in government and politics from the University of Maryland and an M.A. in English and creative writing with a concentration in screenwriting from Southern New Hampshire University. Ashley’s work as a ghostwriter has appeared in national and international publications including Yahoo News, China Global Television Network, and The CEO Magazine.
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