The Business Exchange Swindon & Wiltshire Edition 24: April/May 2016 | Page 16

CREATIVE THINKING

ARE YOU GENERATING QUANTIFIABLE
LEADS FROM SOCIAL MEDIA?
There are thousands of companies leveraging platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and
Instagram. Most spend the majority of their time creating and posting content on a daily
basis. Others may place a large focus on increasing followers but how many are creating
quantifiable leads from social media?

Why you need a
marketing plan
It is an essential guide to
promoting and growing your
business. The effectiveness of
your marketing activities has a
direct impact on your bottom
line. It is the engine that drives
your sales, so in order to make
the most of your opportunities
you need a solid plan of
action. But what’s included in a
marketing plan?

Know who you're targeting
Before you can understand how to sell,
you need to identify your target market.
You need to know the age, gender,
background, lifestyle, location, spending
patterns and so much more about your
customers. Understanding these factors will
help you focus your marketing approach to
suit your customers.

What should be in a
marketing plan?
Performing an audit of any marketing
activities you have already undertaken is a
good place to start. Mapping their success,
total spend and ROI is crucial. At this stage a
review of current marketing communications
is also important to determine if they are still
relevant or if they need refreshing. Ensure you
identify any limitations or barriers to success
within your business model. You should
also undertake critical competitor analysis
to better understand areas in which you can
compete and include a segment detailing
your target demographic and their needs.
Once you have undertaken this research,
write a positioning statement to explain how
you relate to the market. Outline any plans
for improvement of your products or services
based on your research. Lay out an overall
strategic and tactical plan for moving forward
and set out achievable and realistic goals for
the coming year.
If you need some help constructing
your marketing plan, or don’t know
where to start, get in touch with Smart
Thinking Consulting today and see how
we can help you. Call Maggie Robinson
on 07920143172 email: Maggie@
SmartThinkingConsultancy.co.uk or visit:
www.smartthinkingconsultancy.co.uk

16

THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2016

David Bolton at Corsham based Tain Brae
Digital provides some actionable ways to
take people from social media and convert
them into leads.
Get your brand in front of
people who need it
The most direct way to generate leads on
social media is to promote your product
directly to people who need it. If you
connect a good product or service to the
right audience, it will convert. Here are some
easy ways to connect with potential buyers
immediately on various platforms:
Facebook: Leverage advertising to
laser target people who have expressed
“interest” in what you offer.
Twitter: Use advanced twitter search to find
people talking about their need for a specific

product or service related to what you offer
and start conversations with them.
Instagram: Find strong competitors, similar
brands, or general social media pages that
your target audience may follow and follow
their followers.
LinkedIn: Join several groups on LinkedIn
and be active. But the trick here isn’t just
joining the obvious groups in your industry, it’s
joining groups that are outside your industry
that might help you grow your business.
Create downloadable content to
educate your target audience
Depending on your business, heavy
promotions of your product or service will
not always be effective if people cannot
understand the benefits of using it. For
example, you can’t sell software to people

who are unable to understand how the
software will help them. By creating
downloadable content in exchange for
contact information, you can educate your
target audience while fueling your email
marketing and sales pipeline.
Ensure you continue to nurture your
leads from Social Media
However, remember once a social media
visitor becomes a lead, don’t let that lead
just sit in your database without additional
contact. Social media leads are more likely
to open your emails and visit your site in the
future, anyway, so stay in touch by setting
up lead nurturing campaigns before they
convert.
For more info:
www.tainbraedigital.co.uk

MARKETING BIZ SCOOPS TWO AWARDS
Swindon-based The Local
Mar