How to Manage Social Media in a Digital Age

In today’s digital age, social media has become an essential tool for businesses to reach out to their customers and potential clients.  Social media platforms are constantly evolving, and it can be overwhelming to keep up with the latest trends and best practices. In this blog post, we will explore how to manage social media pages with the current trends to help you create content that reaches your desired audience.

Since I started managing GradePixel’s social media pages, here are some things I have learnt about managing a company’s social media, whether you are the manager, intern or creative.

1. Create a clear strategy

Before you start posting content on your social media pages, you need to have a clear strategy in place. Your strategy should include your goals, target audience, content themes, and posting schedule. Your goals should be clear because it is very likely you will need to refer to the specifics, should you ever make social media promotional ad (eg. Instagram Story Ads/Tiktok Ads)

You should also identify your target audience and create content that resonates with them. For example, many companies nowadays are targeting the Gen-Z audience but fail to use the right strategy. All ads are reposted on Tiktok but these are not what attract audiences or help with the Tiktok algorithm. The next few tips will help organise these thoughts better.

GradePixel’s Social Media Strategy

2. Optimize your social media profiles

Your social media profiles are your online storefront. You want to ensure your profiles are optimized to attract your target audience. You should use high-quality profile pictures and cover photos that represent your brand. You should also include a clear and concise bio that tells people who you are and what you do.

Though you may think to simply make your Instagram and Tiktok profiles the exact same, these platforms serve different “purposes” in a way. Your Instagram should feel like portfolio, when people go to your Instagram page, the first thing they see is the layout of the photos and how much something can catch their eye. Reels are currently so popular with the rise of Tiktok and something the Instagram algorithm is pushing out more.

For Tiktok, it is a page to show your truest personality. Many of the most popular Tiktok accounts (Duolingo, Bose, RyanAir) don’t use the typical method of marketing to promote the brand online. Most of their videos are very sarcastic and they build off current trends. To some people, their videos may come off as cheap or weird with the audio they use sometimes as well. But most people fail to understand that marketing on Tiktok comes from a place of relatability to the viewers, if people find you funny they will keep watching and look forward to your content.

Visual content is more engaging and memorable than text-only content. You should use high-quality visuals such as photos, videos, and graphics in your social media posts. Both Instagram and Tiktok enjoy high-quality content but the number of clicks will be determined by the target audience and how your content appeals to them.

GradePixel’s Instagram and Tiktok

3. Post Consistently

Posting consistently is crucial to building an engaged audience on social media. For 2 main social platforms, posting at least 2-3 times a week is important for your content to show up on your followers’ feeds more frequently. However, don’t expect to be able to get a viral video from posting consistently, managing a social media page is a long game and might take a while before getting a viral video or getting a viral video and then having a dry period.

GradePixel’s Content Calendar

4. Engage with your audience

Engagement is the key to building a loyal following on social media. You should reply to comments and messages promptly and encourage discussions on your posts. Besides on your own page, engage with other brand pages! Compliment their photos or if posted any relatable content, comment that ‘you relate’. This helps build a relationship with other brand accounts who will in turn interact with your content as well.
For Instagram, you can also ask questions, run polls, and conduct giveaways to encourage engagement.

5. Use Hashtags

Hashtags are a powerful tool for reaching a broader audience on social media. You should research relevant hashtags and use them in your posts. You can also create branded hashtags to increase brand awareness and encourage user-generated content. Although it may seem that hashtags are a powerful tool for Search-Engine Optimization, it is not always advisable to use that many for a singular post. Depending on the algorithm, the higher number of hashtags could mean not having a specific target audience and that would not help with reaching more people, aim for 5-10 hashtags per post.

6. Monitor Analytics

You should regularly monitor your social media analytics to track your performance and adjust your strategy accordingly. You should track metrics such as engagement rate, reach, and follower growth. Taking note of these will help you to understand what content your audience enjoys better. If you did anything different to your social media strategy also remember to take it down to understand if it affected growth in any way.

GradePixel’s Social Media Report Analytics

7. Stay up to date with trends

You should stay up-to-date with the latest trends and best practices in social media marketing. Besides this, gain inspiration from different pages and introduce new changes every so often. Social media trends are constantly changing and it sometimes helps to be addicted to the internet.

Some Tiktok Accounts that we use for inspiration

8. Be Authentic

As I’ve mentioned before, users appreciate seeing the personality of a company on their social media, especially Tiktok. Authenticity is the key to building a strong and loyal following on social media. You should be true to your brand and values and avoid using fake engagement tactics. You should also respond to negative feedback in a constructive manner and take steps to address any issues.