Clearview National October 2017 - Issue 191 | Page 18

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INDUSTRYNEWS
Why Social Media & Cross
Media Marketing Matter
Thomas Dodds of PrintUK advises on the importance of taking a multi-
action, cross-media approach in order to get your marketing message across
to the widest audience possible - and for it to be fruitful in its efforts.
» » SOCIAL MEDIA HAS
revolutionised businesses, helping
SMEs to directly communicate
with customers more effectively
than ever before. With so many
different platforms and channels
to produce work for, it can feel
overwhelming to know which
will be the most effective for your
business, and help to generate you
the greatest ROI.
If a business doesn’t keep up
to date with Social Media they
risk losing a lot of business and a
whole generation will not engage
with them to the levels that would
be expected. It is, however,
always important to take a multi-
action, cross-media approach
in order to get your marketing
message across to the widest
audience possible and for it to be
fruitful in its efforts.
SME’s need to utilise every
marketing avenue possible, and
with that in mind you have to
be aware that spending so much
time online takes you away from
your local business sphere. Print
marketing (posters, brochures
etc...), exhibitions and local
networking events put you back
on the local map, and gets your
business building a powerful,
local fan club. Typically, you’ll
have a higher rate of conversion
in your local area in comparison
to internet-based traffic. Your
local marketing will act as the
strong foundation allowing you
to drive your profits and grow
your business, especially when
you consider local shoppers tend
to have higher spending habits
than new customers. As a general
rule of thumb people typically
like to spend their money locally.
Printing is the perfect way to
take advantage of your local
connections.
With so many companies
and brands using social media
producing masses of content every
day, it can also be difficult to
have your content seen over your
competition. Below we’ve listed
out our top tips for social media
marketing for SME businesses.
CONSISTENCY IS KEY
Most businesses utilise more
than one social media platform,
creating different forms of
content dependent on the channel
it’s being posted on. Social media
marketing is a fast-paced form
of marketing, requiring regular
content updates across multiple
outlets, and, as a result, can lead
to inconsistencies in terms of
branding. As your marketing
strategy should include both on
and offline communications you
need to ensure your social media
branding coincides with your
offline marketing strategy such
as your printed and published
materials.
18 » OCT 2017 » CL EARVI E W- UK . C O M
It is crucial, therefore, that
every time you post on any of
your social media channels or
produce marketing materials
which will be printed, you
maintain consistency across
your logo, imagery, and tone of
voice. The more effective you are
at doing this, the quicker your
audience will begin to recognise
your brand and associate you
with the product or service you
offer. This means that next time
the person is ready to make a
purchase, they will consider your
brand from which to buy.
MULTI CHANNEL
MATTERS
Perhaps you think that that
because you’re using an online
social media marketing strategy,
you can neglect other channels
such as printing, email marketing,
offline events and PR. Think
again! Social media marketing is
most effective as part of a wider
marketing strategy, and can be
used in several ways.
You can run teaser campaigns
on your social channels,
highlighting upcoming activity
offline, such as an event you are
running. You can run crowd-
sourcing campaigns, asking
your online audience to vote
for preferences from anything
including a new product or
service you are looking to launch,
to the colour of a much-loved
product.
‘you need to
ensure your social
media branding
coincides with
your offline
marketing strategy’
Consider your social media
marketing as one of the most
effective ways to generate quick
responses from your audience,
but be aware that your customers
will need to see your brand
across multiple channels and
in multiple media forms from
brochure printing to e-mailers,
Adwords, Billboards etc… in
order for it to be an effective
campaign.
If you are looking to
streamline your social media
marketing to make it more
consistent, you will need to
ensure your brand, marketing
message and logo look the same
across all platforms, including
your printing and graphic
designs this will help you
develop a brand that is instantly
recognisable!
http://printuk.com/brochure-
printing