Social Media Advertising

So where to start?

Audience.

Understanding who they are how they use social media will point us in the direction of the platform to advertise on. Similarly to social media content, the concept needs to meet the audience where they’re at- with language they understand and the design cues to their liking and style.

We can distil the style of social media advertising down to a single word- simplicity. Our audience will continue to scroll if they’re not immediately captivated by the content. In this sense the rules for social media content apply equally to social media advertising.

So how do the two differ?

Social media advertising means engagement: To build your community and strengthen relationships that already exist.

Social media advertising means targeting: Reaching an audience who’s yet to engage with you online.

It’s a simple distinction with some really important implications. More than anything, your existing audience doesn’t want to be introduced to your product, yet again, as they’re already engaged. On the other hand, you can only make new connections with an advertising campaign that makes it easy for your target market to get excited and begin to engage.

Different audiences require a different approach. So it’s not only about understanding your target market but about knowing where they sit on the scale of engagement. How familiar are you? Have they heard of you? Do they know your product?

Building dedicated campaigns to meet your audience in the various places they may be found on the scale is the way to build your following.