Deciding which social media platforms to use depends on the audience you want to reach and what your goals are.
Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, Snapchat, LinkedIn, Clubhouse, Nextdoor — these only represent a fraction of the dizzying number of social media platforms. The volume can be quite intimidating, especially for those of us who aren’t digital natives. Which platforms are worth your time and how do you use them to connect with customers? Marketing expert Melanie Spilbeler offered advice in a recent issue of Floral Management to find your digital home(s) and best practices, no matter your chosen platform(s) or your experience, to create captivating content.
“Who is your target audience?” This question will guide every decision, explains Spilbeler, managing partner of FreshPath Marketing, a floral-focused marketing consultancy and agency. Depending on your business, this could be a wholesale florist, a retail or studio florist, or the end consumer. From there, determine which platforms this audience uses to interact with your brand or brands like yours. “Just because new and shiny social media platforms continue to pop up doesn’t mean you need to be on every single one of them,” Spilbeler says.
Once you’ve identified who you want to reach and where to find them, consider what makes you stands out from the competition. “Focus on what you want your brand to be known for and what is unique to your business,” Spilbeler says. “Do you work with local suppliers, support your community, have an outstanding customer service team, or have any proprietary or patented technologies or products?”
Additionally, you want to spell out what you hope to achieve with social media. Do you want to attract new customers and leads, generate brand awareness, drive traffic to your website, increase online sales, notify your audience of sales and promotions, or provide your audience education on a certain topic? “Developing specific goals holds you accountable for tracking the success of your social media campaigns,” Spilbeler says.
With these questions answered, it’s time to create a content calendar — an absolute must “to organize ideas and establish a regular cadence of posting,” Spilbeler says. Her recommendations? HubSpot, which offers a free option that’s like a simple Excel file, or ClickUp, a management software with built-in content calendar templates you can edit and customize. “Create a shared document to serve as a ‘parking lot’ of ideas for future posts,” she says. “This helps keep your social media content pipeline full.”
For tips on creating content, read the Digital Strategies column in Floral Management.
Katie Vincent is the senior contributing editor for the Society of American Florists.
