Ben Franklin got it wrong; three things are certain in life. Death, taxes, and change, and all of them can be justifiably frightening. Change is coming to social media management.
Caledon Virtual can confidently tell you we are on top of those changes. Some of the social media trends in management include:
- Community groups based on interest, such as Discord
- Personalizing experiences for consumers
- Short video utilizing existing social media platforms
- Abandoning social media altogether (yes, it’s happening)
- Livestream shopping events (yes, you can do that)
Get in the Mix on Discord
No longer is it about staying under the radar – Discord is popping out in a huge way. Whether you are a digital marketing agency in Los Angeles, Dallas, New York, or Chicago, chances are there are hundreds of people talking about what you are trying to market on a Discord channel.
Caledon Virtual looks to Discord as part of the most valuable and honest data available. Consider the possibilities of starting a community that discusses your business or product; you can test ideas, campaigns, and product conceptions before allocating resources.
Of course, Discord is not mainline social media, and it cannot be “handled” like social media. This is the unicorn of digital marketing strategy – organic feedback from a community of people who are expert consumers.
It’s Getting Personal
After a couple of years of full disconnect, the public at large is hungry for connection, personal connection. Digital marketing agencies that can do that, figure out how to make a personal connection, not just with one person but with a community of consumers are going to lead their clients head and shoulders above others.
How does a digital marketing agency in Los Angeles connect on a personal level? Using your client’s assets to host events, and gatherings, and get behind a cause that is important to people can truly boost your image and reputation. And while it sounds counterproductive to have a large group gathering in an attempt to have more personal relationships, think about the WHY. Why are they coming together? Would they normally congregate if it wasn’t to raise awareness about a cause?
No, and utilizing your client as a sponsor or perhaps the business taking the lead on a pivotal need or issue in a community is not only feel-good marketing strategy, It is benevolent.
Benevolence is a word that strikes fear in the hearts of modern-digital strategists. The thought process is that we are working hard to make no monetary gain. That is not the case. Caledon Virtual can help your business find a cause – there are plenty out there – and move forward with event planning, whether in person or online that will bring people who support that cause to your business and through your door.
Short and Sweet Returns
Short videos, videos featuring you, your work, your patients, and your clients, will garner more attention on social media than a full month’s worth of scheduled posts. Whether it is spontaneous going live on Facebook, or a short product demonstration or testimonial, people want to see and hear, not read.
You can thank Tik Tok and Snapchat for that, but you cannot discount their effectiveness.
Caledon Virtual can help you do this and do it well. We also provide recommended products, tips on lighting, timing, and even a technique we refer to as “loose scripting” that will help provide you with an easy list of bullet points mixed with ad-libbing.
A Fond Farewell to Social Media
Here’s the thing: social media used to be for socializing. The problem is that all of the platforms have monetized and offered people the chance to make money. So, your Facebook feed used to feature strings of friends’ photos and video logs now is interspersed with advertising.
Social media is slowly becoming a double-edged sword. You have to have a presence, but how much of a presence? Is it working for you and your business? Do you have a strategy in place? Are people muting and scrolling past your product video because they have been burnt out?
So, what will you do when digital media cannot solve the problem? Caledon Virtual’s marketing strategists offer you something you won’t find at other digital marketing agencies: people who lived through the ice age of marketing, before websites, before everything Zoom’d.
Those “vintage” marketers have watched the changes, and some have mourned them, mainly because there was such a loss of understanding of human connection at a deeper level. Marketing was once about connection first, then communication and it was very directive, specific to that person’s business or practice. It was measured in success and personal relationships.
The question you should be asking yourself is if your current agency, as slick and sophisticated as they are, will be able to serve you should you decide to scale back the money they are putting into social media for you.
Shopping: America’s Favorite Pastime
You may skip over this part because you think you have nothing to offer a shopper, which is quite different from a consumer. A shopper is open-minded, a true shopper has an idea of what they want, but they are open to suggestions, looking for a great deal.
A consumer is a shopper in the advanced stages of shopping. What on earth do you offer that people would “shop” for? Services. And live streaming sales of those services is going to be a completely relevant marketing strategy for all businesses.
Caledon Virtual looks at it like an interactive QVC opportunity, and we are specialists in the platform that we have vetted as one of the easiest, most interactive, and fun platforms to do this. Comment/Sold is a service that allows a business to Livestream a sale on Facebook.
People watching can message in questions about products and the host can answer them directly during the Livestream. When something is offered the shopper wants to purchase, all they have to do is comment “Sold” and the product identifier number in the comment feed on Facebook, and it is put into their cart.
The back end of the software allows the seller to set the time when an item can be removed from a cart and during the registration the shopper is required to provide a credit card, so the sale is almost immediate.
It’s a fickle, quickly-changing world when it comes to digital marketing strategies and 2022 is shaping up to bring about even more changes. We could say it is an “out with the old and in with the new” situation. But the fact of the matter is it simply isn’t that simple.
Digital marketing strategists are going to have to learn both new skills and traditional strategies. You can set yourself up to be ready to enter that new phase by contacting Caledon Virtual for a brief chat about where you want to position your practice, brand, or business. Contact us.
