Just like search engine optimization (SEO) is oxygen for a website, social media optimization (SMO) is the lifeblood of social media; without it, social media will run out of business, traffic, content, and conversion.
Social media optimization is very important for websites, reaching new heights in social media outreach and even organic traffic to prove that Statista has done a survey on social media.
In January 2024, there were 5.35 billion internet users globally, representing 66.2 percent of the global population.
Of this total, 5.04 billion people, or 62.3% of the global population, used social media. It’s in billions!
We can’t ignore that number; if somehow you are not on social media or not doing its optimization, then you’re missing out on the 75% of internet users who found out about the brand on social media.
If you’re worried about optimizing your social media posts and accounts, we’ve created a list of simple tips that don’t need technical skills to apply. So, let’s get right into it.
A. What is Social Media Optimization (SMO)?
Social Media Optimization (SMO) is a strategy to improve a company’s online presence and messaging on social media platforms.
It’s a type of digital marketing aimed at increasing awareness of products and services, building relationships with customers, and managing brand reputation.
Key Points:
- SMO involves using social media platforms to strengthen a company’s brand and online visibility.
- It’s used to promote new products, engage with customers, and address any negative publicity.
- Popular platforms for SMO include Facebook, X platform (formerly Twitter), Instagram, YouTube, Snapchat, TikTok, and Pinterest.
B. Tips for Social Media Optimization
1. Identify Your Social Media Goals
To effectively build and optimize social media accounts, start by setting clear goals. Knowing your ultimate objective will help you map out the steps to achieve it.
For example, if your goal is to use social media to boost sales, consider these steps:
- Improve Audience Reach: Find ways to attract more followers and broaden your exposure.
- Increase Engagement: Create content that encourages interaction, such as likes, comments, and shares.
- Generate Leads: Use campaigns, promotions, and other strategies to capture potential customers’ information.
- Convert Leads to Customers: Implement tactics to turn interested prospects into actual buyers.
Setting specific, measurable goals is crucial. Instead of vague targets, give them numerical values. For instance, aim to increase online sales to $10,000 per month. This method allows you to track progress and make adjustments as needed.
2. Plan and Optimize Your Social Strategy
Social media should be viewed as an additional marketing avenue.
Specified targets are created, and results are measured while marketing campaigns are being created.
The same strategy applies to social media as well. Your social media initiatives must be guided by specific goals from the outset.
A successful social strategy involves posting relevant content on media where your target audience is most active. Here are the main steps to help you plan and optimize your social media strategy:
- Set SMART Goals: Define Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound goals for your social media strategy. Consider setting yearly targets to give you a clear direction.
- Research Your Target Audience: Understand how your audience uses social media. For example, fashion-focused audiences often prefer Instagram and Pinterest, while financial industry audiences are more active on Twitter and LinkedIn.
- Identify Key Metrics: Determine the social media metrics that are most relevant to your business. These metrics will help you track your advancement toward your goals.
- Analyze Your Competitors: Look at what your competitors are doing on social media. Identify which of their strategies are successful and which ones are not, then use that information to inform your own strategy.
- Choose Content Types: Decide on the kinds of content that will engage your target audience. This could include images, videos, articles, or interactive content like polls and quizzes.
- Focus on Social Interaction: Social media is about building connections. Find the best ways to engage with your audience and foster meaningful communication.
3. Expand Your Social Circle
The saying, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket,” is probably familiar to you. This carries across to your online persona on social media.
Recognize the extent of your online presence on various social media sites. Being active on numerous social media sites in a way that enhances the overall experience is more important than just being present on them all.
Ask yourself: do you think that your efforts are distributed fairly, or are some networks being overlooked? Are you a pro on Twitter but a newbie on Instagram?
Whereas a fashion firm would gain more from a vivid Instagram or Pinterest page, a B2B company might need to prioritize its LinkedIn presence above Instagram.
You may more successfully refocus your energies if you know where your target audience congregates.
To assess each network’s performance, undertake a social media audit.
In this manner, you are able to order your work according to the social media platforms on which you are most effective.
4. Give Engagement First Priority
Although advanced social media analytics and complex algorithms may look great, engagement is still the most important factor in social media optimization.
That’s when social networking platforms like Sprout Social and others come in useful. Likes, shares, comments, and replies are going to be your new best buddies. More is definitely better.
So, make some noise, pose thought-provoking queries, and produce social media material that may be shared widely.
You may, for example, share a behind-the-scenes picture of your business and invite followers to guess what’s going on. Make your postings on social media engaging to read and engage with others.
What is the advantage?
With every interaction, your post becomes more visible and is seen by more prospective buyers and followers.
5. Make Use of Hashtags
In essence, hashtags help search engines like Twitter and Instagram.
Your chances of being seen are increased when you use hashtags in your captions. But please be aware that they don’t work as well on Facebook.
When using hashtags, one thing to keep in mind is to make sure they are appropriate for the social media platform you are posting the information to.
Instagram hashtags differ from Twitter hashtags in appearance. Succeeding will come from knowing how to use them properly.
6. Include Social Media on Your Page
You want to make sharing your material on the internet as simple as possible.
This is especially true if you run a blog or website that you frequently update with interesting, pertinent content.
Including the social media sharing buttons on your website is the simplest approach to accomplish this. In this manner, visitors may easily share anything on your website that piques their attention by just clicking a button.
7. Make Your Content More Effective
The core function of social media is content sharing. Some businesses overlook this.
They create social media profiles, then do nothing except posting promotional content of their product (which nobody wants to see).
Here is an example of how Apple creates content (mostly shared content that is taken by users). You will not see a single promotional content on Instagram page or even Nike.
Here is Nike:
Think about it. “People are not buying your product for their own use; they’re buying it for social validation.”
That’s what big companies do; they do not share their product image; they share “what it feels like to use it.”.
They’re not in the business of selling products; they’re in the business of selling dreams.
That’s how they are making content, and you should figure it out too, in your own niche to make content that inspires people to buy.
8. Carry out Keyword Analysis
Just like with SEO, keywords are crucial to any social media plan. You need to be mindful of the subjects, terms, and hashtags that people in your audience use to research your business.
By comprehending how your target audience searches on social media, you can improve your strategy and increase page visits.
Use keyword tools tailored to social media when choosing terms for your campaign. When looking online, people use different keywords than when using social media.
You may rely on a social media optimization business to assist you in selecting the appropriate keywords for your campaign if you are unsure of where to begin.
9. Post at the Right Times
You must continuously share excellent material that your audience enjoys on social media if you want to succeed.
The optimal time to post on Instagram
- Mondays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- Tuesdays, 10 a.m.–4 p.m.
- Wednesdays, 9 a.m.–4 p.m.
- Thursdays, 9 a.m.–1 p.m. and 2 p.m.
- Fridays, 11 a.m.
The best days to post on Instagram are Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.
Sundays are the worst day for posting on Instagram.
Did you know, though, that posting it at a time when your audience is most likely to interact with it is also necessary?
Yes, it is correct.
Your audience is more likely to be online during specific times of the day and week, which increases the likelihood that they would like or comment on your social media posts.
It takes effort to choose the ideal moments to publish on social media, particularly when audience preferences differ between industries.
10. Ask Questions in Your Posts
There is no easier engagement trick than asking your followers questions and having them respond in the comments.
The trick is to ask only engaging queries that your audience will want to respond to.
Consider utilizing a question sticker in an Instagram story, conducting an informal poll, or simply posing some thought-provoking questions in your caption.
11. Turn Your Post Into a Carousel
Carousel posts are among the most engaging formats that companies may use on the site.
Hootsuite’s social media team discovered that its carousel posts receive 1.4x more reach and 3.1x more engagement than ordinary Instagram posts.
Results are comparable to those of other networks that support carousels, such as LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.
Example: Instagram
The temptation to swipe left appears to be difficult to resist—especially when there is a compelling cover slide.
12. Post the correct amount
Bombarding your fans with too much stuff is a certain way to reduce engagement. On the other side, determining your ideal social media posting schedule is critical for increasing engagement and interactions with your company.
Here’s how frequently you should post to the largest social media networks, according to experts:
- On Instagram, post 3-7 times per week.
- On Facebook, post one to two times every day.
- On Twitter, post 1 to 5 tweets every day.
- On LinkedIn, post between one and five times every day.
Remember that selecting the ideal posting site may take some time. Experiment to discover the cadence that works best for you.
C. Summarizing 12 Easy Social Media Optimization Tips To Boost Your Conversion
Social media optimization is critical for increasing conversion rates and attaining business success.
Implementing the 12 simple tactics suggested in this post can help you improve your social media presence, engage your audience effectively, and drive more conversions.
From optimizing your profiles to developing interesting content and assessing your outcomes, each step is critical to increasing your social media effect.
Remember that social media optimization is a continuous activity that takes devotion and adaptability.
To preserve a competitive advantage, review your performance data on a regular basis, experiment with alternative techniques, and stay up to date on trends.
Prioritizing social media optimization allows you to open new growth prospects and propel your organization to the next level.
Suggested read: Managing Multiple Social Media Accounts: Mastering the Art of Juggling
D. Common FAQs on Social Media Optimization Tips
Does social media optimization need me to spend money on paid advertising?
While it’s not always necessary, paid advertising may help your social media optimization efforts by expanding your reach and focusing on certain demographics. A lot of the recommendations focus on natural treatments that might yield significant results without needing a substantial outlay of cash.
To make the most of my presence on social media, how often should I post?
The type of content you publish on social media, platform algorithms, and the tastes of your audience should all be taken into consideration when determining how frequently you post. Achieving a balance between being active and not overburdening your audience with content is crucial. Try out various posting schedules and interaction metrics to find the most effective publication strategy for your company.
How can I determine the efficacy of my social media optimization efforts?
Tracking key performance indicators (KPIs) like engagement rate, reach, clicks, conversions, and ROI can help you analyze the effectiveness of your social media optimization strategy. Use analytics tools supplied by social media platforms and third-party analytics solutions to acquire insights into your performance and make informed decisions regarding future adjustments.
