Social media - can you imagine life without it? Instagram, Facebook and Twitter have all changed so many different parts of our lives, including:

The way we communicate with friends and stay in touch with family
How we promote ourselves and sell products
How we decide what we’re going to buy
And so much more.

I don’t know about you, but it’s now such a big part of my life that I wouldn’t know what to do without it!

We might have thought that social media was just a way to chat with our friends and document our lives. But it’s safe to say it’s become much more than that. Having a social media presence is more important than ever for bloggers to get noticed and become recognised online.

When it comes to social media, though there are no set rules, it can definitely become overwhelming when you do it without a plan. That’s where a social media strategy is going to help you.

What is a social media strategy?

So I know a lot of you might just want to jump in and start creating your social strategy. But first, let’s just go over what a social media strategy actually is.

At a basic level, the purpose of a social media strategy is to help you define how your brand/business is going to use social media to achieve its communication goals, along with the supporting platforms and tools it will use to achieve this.

The platforms you use, your posting frequencies and types of content you’ll share are all key components of a social media strategy. Along with this, it also involves you outlining your goals and KPIs (key performance indicators) you have, and how social media is going to help you achieve all this.

You might think a social media strategy is just useful for businesses, but that’s exactly why I’m targeting you - bloggers - in this post. Because this is so important for your growth in the online world. Having a social media strategy is going to change the way you promote yourself and it’ll benefit you in more ways than you know.

So, why else should you have a social media strategy?

This is why every blogger needs a social media strategy

It’ll be easier to keep up with new platform updates

The online world is always changing, let alone social media. In the past year alone we’ve seen the introduction of Facebook and Instagram Stories, Snapchat maps, LinkedIn video and so much more.

Having a strategy in place will make it easier for you to take advantage of every new update. For instance, did you know that Instagram Stories is only just over a year old? And now it’s probably the most popular social media feature out there.

This feature allows you to connect with your community on a more personal level. And the brands that use Instagram Stories well all have one thing in common - they have a strategy.

For example, Sarah from Yes and Yes does a great job of mixing up the types of content she shares, making it valuable to users, whilst still promoting herself.

Bloggers and small businesses who have a strong social media presence, aren’t afraid to try out new trends and incorporate them into their strategy. That means they stay relevant.

You’ll have a competitive edge

Posting a few updates to each social platform and not making much of an effort with them is a big mistake. If you want to use a platform, you’ve got to go all in.

A lot of people advise you to just focus on a couple of social platforms and do those really well. But for me? I say go for all of them. Because they’re all going to benefit you in some way. So pick the ones where your audience hangs out and that make sense for your brand and focus on them. For instance, designers might be better focused on Instagram, whereas Twitter will be better for online course creators.

Put your efforts into the right platforms and that’s where you’ll see results.

The biggest mistake I see people make with social media is sharing the same message to each platform. But here’s the thing - social platforms are all designed to support different types of content. LinkedIn is about professional business updates, whereas Pinterest is geared towards vertical visuals. You’ve got to take these factors into account when putting your strategy together.

Finding the platforms that work best for you and support the content you want to publish will give you a strong competitive edge.

A strategy will save you a lot of time and effort

You might think a strategy just sounds like a fancy industry term. But a social media strategy can actually be a big time-saving tool that will make you more effective and efficient.

What would happen without a strategy? Well, you’ll probably waste a lot of time creating social media content that doesn't work for your brand.

For instance, let’s say you’re a food blogger and you want to show off your work online. What platforms would be best for you to focus on? I’m thinking highly visual platforms like Instagram and Pinterest, or even Facebook where you can post a branded video.

You could invest in Facebook advertising to point people towards your free opt-in, promoted pins and maybe even save up for a great camera to capture the best shots of your recipes. These things will all allow you to see results quicker and make you more efficient too.

You’ll be building a strong, well-rounded online presence

Remember - the core of your brand is your blog. Your social media platforms act as your brand extensions, your online portfolio. This is really important when you’re reaching out for potential collaborations and partnerships.

When big brands see that you’ve got a strong, active presence on your key social media platforms and you’re producing high quality content? That’s going to make them want to work with you which will definitely help you work towards your next breakthrough.

It’ll help you get noticed more

I credit a huge part of my success so far online to social media. It’s an amazing place to grow your community and get noticed. If you get more shares, comments, followers and likes, that’s all going to help you get discovered by more readers and fans.

71% of consumers who have had a good social media service experience with a brand are likely to recommend it to others - be active and positive on social media and it’ll pay off!

A few other points to remember

Before we finish, here are just a few other things to remember when it comes to putting together your social media strategy...

Having a social media strategy does not mean promoting your content every single minute of the day. It’s about building relationships with people and nurturing your community.
Follower count is a good indicator of performance, but it shouldn’t be what you focus on the most. Instead, look at engagement metrics, such as likes, replies/comments and if you achieved any partnerships. It’s about community engagement rather than number of followers.
It’s important to understand what you’re using social media for. That’s going to help you determine whether you’re getting the most out of it.

Social media is one of my favourite platforms to help you get breakthrough after breakthrough with your online presence. When you’ve got a solid strategy in place, wonderful things will happen for your online presence.

If you want to learn more about creating a social media strategy for your brand, be sure to download the free workbook below. You'll learn the optimal posting times for each platform and what types of content to post to get the most results!

Have you thought about creating a social media strategy for your online brand? Tell me your thoughts in the comments!