Sprout Social

7 X/Twitter analytics tools to amplify your strategy

Kiran Shahid — Thu, 24 Oct 2024 14:07:38 +0000

You’re putting in the hours on X (formerly Twitter)—creating posts, engaging with followers and pushing your brand’s message. But without the right tools, it’s hard to know if all that effort is moving the needle.

Twitter’s built-in analytics provide basic metrics such as follower counts and impressions. Third-party analytics tools give you deeper data—the kind that reveals what’s really working, where you can optimize and, most importantly, how your Twitter strategy impacts your overall business goals.

In this article, we’ll explore why you need a Twitter analytics tool and list seven third-party X/Twitter analytics tools designed to help you track and improve performance.

Why do you need an X/Twitter analytics tool?

An X/Twitter analytics tool optimizes your social media strategy by providing detailed insights into content performance, audience behavior and competitive positioning. It enables you to understand what’s working and what’s not, adapt your messaging and stay ahead of competitors.

Here’s exactly how it helps.

Identify top-performing content

Knowing which posts in your Twitter marketing strategy resonate most with your audience helps refine your strategy and allows you to continually build on what works. With an X/Twitter analytics tool, you can easily pinpoint posts with high engagement metrics like reshares and build on those insights to replicate success.

Understand audience demographics

Insight into your audience’s age, location and interests helps you tailor your messaging. This deeper understanding of who’s engaging with your content lets you create campaigns that directly address their interests and boost conversion rates. This could be through more targeted ads or curated content that speaks to their needs.

Track brand sentiment

Customer sentiment analysis helps you gauge how people feel about your brand in real time. Tracking brand sentiment allows you to amplify positive feedback or address complaints swiftly, preventing them from escalating and maintaining your brand’s reputation.

Measure campaign performance

Analytics tools help you analyze your own strategies—whether it’s engagement rates, content themes or audience interaction patterns. These tools also give you a clear picture of social media ROI and the insights needed to optimize future campaigns.

Monitor competitors

Stay ahead of your top competitors by analyzing their strategies with X/Twitter analytics tools. Competitive monitoring tracks competitor X/Twitter post performance in terms of engagement rates, follower growth and hashtag use. And you understand your competitors’ overall share of voice, compared to your organization’s, on the topics that matter to your brand.

7 best X/Twitter analytics tools

We’ve evaluated several tools based on features, usability and the depth of insights they provide. Here are some of the best X/Twitter analytics tools.

1. Sprout Social

Sprout Social delivers in-depth insights into account performance, audience engagement and content effectiveness across multiple X/Twitter profiles.

Analyze key metrics such as impressions, engagements and follower demographics to refine audience targeting and optimize your X/Twitter content strategy alongside other networks. Plus, identify your best-performing posts and conduct a competitive analysis to see how you stack up against industry leaders. These X/Twitter insights give you a detailed look at what your audience likes, how they engage and when they’re most active—so you can tweak your strategy for maximum punch.

Sprout’s Premium Analytics further enables you to select metrics that align with your X/Twitter goals. Create presentation-ready reports to showcase the impact of your strategies and share insights easily with key stakeholders through shareable links. You can also compare performance across multiple profiles with Sprout’s cross-channel capabilities to get a holistic view of your brand’s X/Twitter presence.

In addition to these X/Twitter-specific functions, you get access to a full suite of social media management tools—from publishing and analytics to engagement—to streamline your X/Twitter strategy.

Features:

An easy-to-use dashboard that offers a unified overview of your platform, including demographics and profile insights
Hashtag tracking to learn what hashtags your audience is already using to reach and grow your audience
Summarize by AI that distills complex data into actionable insights, making it easier to understand your X/Twitter performance at a glance
X/Twitter Listening capabilities to understand audience sentiment and identify advocates and influencers
Device demographics to inform your content strategy based on how your audience accesses X/Twitter
Customizable reports on audience growth during your selected reporting period
Analyze by AI Assist to track metrics, hashtags, keywords, Smart Categories and emojis to uncover major insights
Several report options to guide your X/Twitter strategy, including:
- Post Performance Report to identify your best-performing content and analyze engagement metrics
- X/Twitter Profiles Report for tracking changes in performance over time, including engagements, replies, likes, reposts and audience growth
- Competitors Report to see how you compare to rivals
- Paid Performance Report to track ROI from Twitter ads

2. Twitter Analytics

Twitter Analytics is a built-in analytics tool only available to Twitter Premium users.

It’s a useful tool for getting started and providing a snapshot of what’s working on your account—helping you identify quick wins.

To access, head to analytics.twitter.com, or from your regular Twitter feed, click More in the left sidebar, then click Analytics. Here, you get basic insights into your best-performing X/Twitter posts, how your last 28 days compared to the previous period and how much engagement your individual posts get.

Features:

Monthly highlights that show your top X/Twitter post, mention, followers and other key updates
Detailed breakdowns of engagement metrics, showing likes, profile clicks, reposts, replies and detail expands
Average monthly engagement rates, number of replies and reposts

3. SocialPilot

SocialPilot offers social media scheduling, content curation, its own browser extension, help with ads as well as analytics.

Features:

Automated reporting that generates and delivers daily, weekly or monthly reports
Custom filters to perform tailored analysis, track performance over time, make historical comparisons and assess goal achievement
Top Mentions Posts that highlight the number of times your brand gets mentioned
Most Engaged Followers metric shows you who interacts with your posts, so you can reciprocate or give free products as a thank-you

4. Keyhole

Keyhole is a social media monitoring and analytics tool that helps you track your online presence. In fact, it differs from some of the other tools we’ve already covered because their entire focus is on social listening.

Monitor hashtags, keywords and trends across various platforms in real time to get insights into engagement and sentiment analysis. It also offers cross-platform publishing so you can schedule all your upcoming posts for all your channels (including X/Twitter) from one dashboard.

Features:

Automated, comprehensive reports that eliminate human error in spreadsheets
Campaign-specific reporting so you can see how individual social media promotions are performing
Hashtag reporting to track user-generated content and relevant hashtags your brand is promoting
Analysis of post types and times that will generate the highest levels of engagement, such as likes, clicks and shares

5. Meltwater

Meltwater provides tools for social media monitoring, media analysis and audience segmentation that help you understand market trends and customer sentiments.

Meltwater is ideal for global brands who want to track multilingual conversations and stay culturally relevant while addressing market-specific trends.

Features:

Multi-brand search functionality for various research purposes
Data sources include social media platforms as well as traditional media like radio and TV
Assisted search feature as an alternative to manual boolean searches
Data storage covering a 15-month period

6. Fedica & Followerwonk

Fedica and Followerwonk provide powerful tools for detailed social media analysis, especially on X/Twitter.

Fedica brings together publishing, analytics and engagement tools that help you improve your social media strategies across platforms. With the Follower Segmentation tool, you can group followers by different traits to target specific audience segments.

Now part of Fedica, Followerwonk adds features like bio search, user comparison and follower tracking, which helps with competitor analysis and audience insights. Together, these tools help you check the quality of your followers and track engagement.

Features:

X/Twitter account analysis to find the accounts influencers follow—a way to pinpoint potential customers to interact with
X/Twitter user comparison to find gaps or overlaps in how your followers line up with your competitors
Follower growth analysis over a specified period to monitor how your account is expanding
Audience interest and sentiment analysis to reveal trending topics, concerns or praise among your followers
X/Twitter engagement dashboard to keep an eye on how your followers are receiving your X posts

7. Brand24

Brand24 helps you monitor and analyze brand mentions across various online platforms, including social media, blogs, news sites and forums.

It uses sentiment analysis to label mentions as positive, negative or neutral to help you understand public perception in real time. The platform’s Brand Reports pinpoint emerging trends and correlations, highlight key mentions and identify key events.

Features:

Automated sentiment analysis gives you a quick view of public opinion about your brand, helping you react faster to changes in sentiment
Mentions feed for easy tracking and response to all X/Twitter brand mentions
Marketing analytics to monitor positive and negative mentions over time
GPT-powered recommendations to identify growth opportunities and fine-tune your strategy

Evaluate your current X/Twitter marketing strategy and build from there

Ramp up your X/Twitter marketing with the best Twitter analytics tools for auditing your performance. An audit uncovers gaps, optimizes underperforming posts and aligns your content with audience expectations—ensuring your efforts on the platform actually pay off. Select the right platform for your brand and perform an X/Twitter audit so your content connects with your audience and drives meaningful engagement.

The post 7 X/Twitter analytics tools to amplify your strategy appeared first on Sprout Social.

How to get more followers on Instagram: 5 strategies to grow your audience

Mahnoor Sheikh — Wed, 23 Oct 2024 20:38:52 +0000

Instagram is the foundation of so many brands’ social presence. Instagram marketing has proven to drive traffic, support sales and engage customers.

But if you’re not thrilled with your Instagram growth and engagement, you’re not alone.

Competition on the platform is fierce. And cracking the code of Instagram’s algorithm can be tricky.

However, taking steps to grow your audience is absolutely worth it. That’s because the bigger your audience, the more opportunities to delight your customers.

In this post, you’ll learn about five powerful strategies to tweak your presence and get more followers on Instagram. Let’s break them down.

5 key strategies to get followers on Instagram (for free)

Before we get into the nitty-gritty, this post is about building an organic following.

And yes, the distinction matters!

Some brands want to take shortcuts when it comes to trying to get more Instagram followers. We don’t pretend these pay-for-play sites don’t exist.

But these services aren’t worth it for brands long-term. The Instagram algorithm weeds out low-quality accounts and faux engagement from paid bots.

Growing your audience authentically gets you results that actually matter to your business: brand awareness, revenue and loyal customers.

Read or watch the video below for our best tips on getting more Instagram followers (the right way).

1. Optimize your Instagram account

Before you worry about how to get followers, consider how your Instagram business profile is set up first. Ask yourself:

Does your profile “look the part?”
Can your audience easily find it?
Does it encourage them to take action?

Here’s how you can optimize your Instagram profile for maximum impact.

Choose a professional profile photo

Your profile photo is part of your brand identity on Instagram.

For businesses, a high-quality and appropriately-sized logo is ideal. Any text in your profile picture should be legible on a smartphone screen.

Place keywords in your name, handle and bio

If you want more followers, your profile needs to be discoverable by your target audience.

For starters, add the right keywords to your account. There are three places to focus on here:

Your username (or handle)
Your profile name
Your bio (description)

To have a search-friendly username, stick to either your brand name or whatever’s closest to your existing social handles.

If your name is too long, shorten it to a variation your audience would recognize (ex: Cold Stone Creamery’s account is @coldstone). You can always write the full version in your profile name.

Next is your bio. You can use this space to add keywords related to your niche, industry, products or services. Check out Peach Slices’ Instagram bio as an example.

With these keywords naturally weaved into the description, their account is more likely to pop up for search terms like “k beauty”, “skincare” and “acne”.

Organize stories as highlights

Ever created a killer story that you wish could live on your profile forever? With story highlights, it can.

Highlights are groups of select old (expired) stories. You can organize them by theme or topic, such as Q&As, tips or events — making it easier for people to find relevant stories.

Story highlights are also located at the top of your profile, which makes users more likely to check them first before scrolling down to your posts. Think of them as a curated portfolio that showcases the best of your brand.

Add your location and relevant links

Adding location info pushes your profile higher up in search results for local audiences.

This is especially important for businesses targeting nearby audiences or those wanting to drive more foot traffic to their physical store (e.g. restaurants).

Business accounts can also add multiple links in their bio. This is crucial for turning your followers into meaningful traffic or customers. On Instagram, bio links are your only way to funnel social traffic to your site and promotions.

Linking to your homepage is fine but not always ideal. To encourage more meaningful interactions, add links to specific product pages or even a social landing page that points to multiple links.

This gives your audience total control of how they engage your business next. That means a better experience for your followers.

Showcase your Instagram wherever you can

Don’t be shy about promoting your Instagram if more followers are your goal.

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to promoting your ‘gram, either. Here are a few ideas:

Add social media icons to your website and emails. Social media icons make it easier for people to find your business and help you connect with customers.
Feature an Instagram feed on your homepage or product pages. Many e-commerce and consumer brands have dedicated UGC feeds on-site (see Sony’s example below).
Re-share Instagram-specific content or announcements on other social channels. For example, you could talk about an upcoming IG Live via TikTok or Facebook.

Pro tip: Use Sprout Social’s social media scheduling and publishing features to easily plan posts across multiple social media platforms from one dashboard.

2. Develop a solid content strategy

Instagram success doesn’t happen by accident. It takes a clear strategy — one that shows off your brand’s unique side and helps you create content that clicks. When you nail that, engagement goes up, your community gets stronger and new followers roll in.

Let’s dive into the tactics that make this strategy work.

Schedule Instagram posts in advance

There’s no denying that brands are at the mercy of the Instagram algorithm for reach. Still, posting at the right times can still give your posts more visibility. Anything you can do to maximize engagement is a plus.

This speaks to the value of scheduling Instagram content. With Sprout’s newest tools, brands can schedule Stories, Carousels, Reels and Posts.

Scheduling content in advance ensures control and organization. Instagram scheduling tools ultimately help you hit that cadence we mentioned earlier. The ability to crosspost content from other networks helps here, too.

You can also use Sprout’s ViralPost feature to nail down your timing, too. Our platform analyzes your engagement history and identifies the best times to post.

Keep a consistent content calendar

Momentum matters on Instagram. In other words, you likely won’t get followers on Instagram if you post at random.

Creating content and providing value is what builds your audience. Doing so consistently is what helps you keep them.

That’s why sticking to a regular posting schedule is crucial. In terms of when and how much to post, you don’t have to stick to a set-in-stone number. Most brands post daily or near daily. This tracks our own research on how often to post as well.

For reference, below is a breakdown of the best times to post to Instagram. “Optimal” engagement is during the mid-to-late morning and early afternoons during the week.

If you’re worried about your posts not getting seen enough, we get it. Consider how features like Stories can get more eyes on your content if it wasn’t seen the first time.

Have a strong brand and Instagram aesthetic

Instagram is home to over 200 million businesses. That’s a lot of competition. To stand out, you need to have a strong, distinguishable brand on the platform.

Maintaining consistency in things like colors, aesthetics and post style can help users remember your brand and recognize your content at a glance. Here’s how Canva does it.

Notice how their story highlights and posts follow a similar, consistent style.

Why does strong branding matter? Because it directly impacts your bottom line. Research from Marq (formerly Lucidchart) shows brand consistency can increase revenue by 10-20%.

Leverage short-form video content

Sprout’s data shows that 66% of consumers want to see more short-form videos from brands. This means Reels should be on your radar.

Reels are fun, snappy and they’re algorithm gold. Think tutorials, product highlights or even quick behind-the-scenes peeks.

And since you only have a few seconds to grab attention, get creative. Use the built-in tools like stickers, cuts, filters, music, voice-overs and transitions to craft trendy, eye-catching Reels.

Cherry on top? These bite-sized videos can easily be cross-promoted on platforms like TikTok, helping you reach new audiences and attract more followers.

Post content that followers actually want to see

Easier said than done, we know.

Filters. Captions. Content types. Post times. That doesn’t even scratch the surface.

There are so many variables to consider, right? It doesn’t help that Instagram’s algorithm is fickle. What works for one brand might not work for the next in terms of format and timing.

For example, some brands swear by Carousels. Others are all-in on Reels. Both approaches can work. You’ll quickly find on Instagram that some content gets more likes than others. This is why testing is so important.

Instagram’s native analytics are surprisingly powerful. That said, investing in Instagram analytics tools will take things to the next level.

For example, Sprout makes it easy to benchmark and analyze Instagram content across accounts. Rather than second-guess what’s working and what’s not, our reporting spells it out for you.

Be confident in your content strategy by analyzing those variables we mentioned earlier.

And if you’re unsure where to start, try analyzing your competitors. A staggering 90% of brands say that social media data helps them keep up with competing social accounts.

You obviously shouldn’t copycat your competitors. That said, you can take notes on what they’re doing or posting that drives engagement. Sprout’s Instagram Competitors report can provide a breakdown of what’s working in your industry. A little competitive research can go a long way.

Oh, and keep your ear to the ground with new Instagram trends. That way you won’t miss out on platform-wide opportunities to hop on trending content formats.

Go live on Instagram

Host Instagram Live sessions to interact with your audience directly. This helps foster real-time engagement and build a sense of community.

For example, you could host virtual events like product launches, show quick tutorials or simply have candid chats and Q&A sessions. If you’re an e-commerce store, users can even shop your products in real-time.

Plus, you can share these Live streams as stories that last for 24 hours, allowing followers who missed out to catch up later.

3. Engage with your audience and build relationships

When you make your Instagram followers happy, you’ll see the payoff in audience growth. The best Instagram accounts have fans and communities (hint: not just followers).

For many accounts, this means building customer relationships.

Here are some ways to engage with your audience and build relationships.

Create content that highlights your brand’s personality

Content that highlights your personality and the humans behind your brand can help you connect with your audience on a deeper level. This includes:

Inspirational content
Humorous content
Re-sharing UGC with unique captions
Storytelling posts
Behind-the-scenes photos and videos
Posts that raise awareness for social causes

Also, make sure your content aligns with your brand voice and values. Avoid coming across as needy, solely sales-driven or robotic at all costs.

Make meaningful conversation with your audience

Food for thought: 60% of marketers use Instagram as a service channel.

The platform is perfect for going back and forth with followers. Likewise, many popular Instagram post ideas center around asking questions and engaging in a dialogue for a reason.

Off-the-cuff questions, shipping concerns or praise for products are all fair game from followers. Check out how Cometeer responds to all of the above on their Instagram posts:

Being supportive and responding promptly shows people that you care. This also applies to any brand mentions or direct messages (DMs) you get.

You’d be surprised at how your Instagram followers increase once you start acting more personable. Our Index research shows that 89% of consumers will buy from a brand after following them on social media. Every interaction counts.

Again, try to respond to as many questions, messages, mentions or comments as possible. Doing so could make or break someone becoming a long-term follower or a customer.

Engage with customers and brand advocates

Figuring out how to get more Instagram followers means engaging your audience.

And one of the best ways to do that is through responding to and republishing their posts.

Enter the power of user-generated content. UGC campaigns build social proof by showing followers you’re invested in them. For example, Drunk Elephant regularly regrams their followers’ posts. They gather content with their #BareWithUs and #DrunkBreak hashtags.

But don’t just wait for UGC to happen — spark it yourself! Encourage your customers to create content by giving them a reason to share.

For example, you could run a Reels contest where followers show off your product in action. Winners could get free merch and a feature on your page.

4. Utilize tags and hashtags

Location tags and hashtags are powerful tools on Instagram. They can help your target audience discover your posts (and profile) faster.

Here’s how to utilize tags to grow your following.

Find hashtags where your followers hang out

Instagram hashtags have been a staple of the platform, like, forever.

That said, they don’t hold as much weight as they used to.

Dumping hashtags into your posts isn’t going to get you any new followers. Especially when there’s so much noise on the platform.

Be proactive by focusing on industry-specific hashtags relevant to your customers. For example, Lashify regularly posts content to the #LashEducation hashtag. Tags are less general and competitive than #beauty. Becoming more visible within these types of tags is meaningful for brands in the right niche.

Understanding how your hashtags perform on Instagram is critical. With Sprout Social’s hashtag analytics tools, you have direct access to in-depth performance and usage data. Figuring out which hashtags to use is just a few taps away.

Use geo-tagging to attract local followers

Instagram brought back location stories last year. But now, users can find them on a map. This feature helps people search for top posts and stories in specific locations, such as a coffee shop or a shopping mall.

And how do you get your content to show up on the map? By tagging the location, of course. Geo-tagging your posts and stories makes your content visible to people in the vicinity or users checking out the place where your photo or video was taken.

Wondering how to tag the location in your Instagram story? Simply use the location sticker and type in the location you want to tag.

5. Collaborate with influencers and other brands

If you want more Instagram followers, consider teaming up with others. Collaborations open doors to new audiences and help you build trust quickly.

Below are two ways to expand your reach with partnerships.

Find and work with influencers in your niche

Influencers have a loyal network of followers who trust their word.

Collaborating with influencers in your niche, especially those with small but highly engaged followings, can amplify your brand’s reach and build credibility.

That said, finding the right influencers to work with can be challenging. There are millions of creators on Instagram, and not everyone aligns with your brand or has an authentic following (hint: they might be bots).

Good news: Tagger by Sprout Social makes this task easy for you. Use smart filters to sort through vetted influencers that match your brand.

You can also check out our free influencer database by industry full of insights to help you plan your next influencer marketing campaign.

Partner with brands that are similar to yours

Strategic brand partnerships can significantly boost your Instagram reach and engagement.

It also gives your content a fresh perspective, making the entire experience fun for everyone involved, including your audience.

Think about what your customers like beyond your products to guide your partnerships. Look for brands that fit those interests but don’t compete directly with you.

Ubereats, for example, partnered up with Blueland (a sustainable home essentials brand) to let people buy the eco-friendly company’s products directly from the Ubereats app.

They created this Instagram Reel as part of their campaign.

When you reach out to potential partners, focus on mutual benefits. Suggest ideas that would help both brands grow.

Ideally, you should start small, like co-hosting an Instagram Live or sharing each other’s content. As you see results, you can build bigger campaigns together (like Ubereats did above).

How to get more Instagram followers (the wrong way!)

Disclaimer: Sprout Social does not endorse purchasing Instagram followers. We don’t recommend services that sell followings or “Likes.”

As the social space becomes more crowded and competitive, brands are willing to take risks for the sake of instant results.

We’ll say it again: brands shouldn’t buy Instagram followers. Nobody should!

Why you shouldn’t buy followers on Instagram

Here are some reasons why buying followers to grow your account is a serious mistake.

Your real followers know what fake followers look like

Social consumers are getting savvier. Privacy concerns and social scammers have made people hyper-aware of weird activity. In short, people today are spam-detectors.

A sudden follower spike is a red flag. Not to mention having bots stink up your account with endless spam followers. This all damages your reputation and keeps you from growing an authentic Instagram following.

Fake followers bring nothing to the table

You’re probably worried about your Instagram metrics and understandably so.

That said, your follower count doesn’t mean much if your “followers” don’t drive engagement. You might look “bigger” at a glance but who cares? Consider how your engagement rate on the platform will suffer if your follower count is inflated.

If nothing else, buying Instagram followers violates TOS

No surprises here.

Consider how Meta has taken direct action against buying engagement in the past. They’ve gone as far as to shut down companies that sell likes. That’s because this practice violates the platform’s terms of service.

How are you growing your Instagram following?

Listen: getting more followers on Instagram isn’t going to happen by accident.

And despite what you might have heard, there’s no silver bullet solution for making it happen.

The strategies above can help you build the foundation for an organic following that actually engages with you. Putting these tips into action is so much easier with a powerful publishing and analytics tool like Sprout.

Want to see our suite of tools in action? Start a free trial today and see for yourself!

The post How to get more followers on Instagram: 5 strategies to grow your audience appeared first on Sprout Social.

Post Performance Report: Brands making the most of the the holiday season

Aubree Smith — Wed, 23 Oct 2024 14:00:28 +0000

It’s time for another edition of the Post Performance Report (PPR), a series where we showcase social media posts and campaigns inspiring us, and explore what makes them so genius. We unpack how your brand can use these examples to spark your own scroll-stopping ideas—while maximizing your budget and doing more with less.

We’ve officially entered the ‘ber months—the four-month stretch at the end of the year that has morphed into one elongated holiday season, unclear where one celebration stops and another begins. While some of us (like this author) cling to our pumpkin spice, others are already buying holiday gifts and Christmas trees. According to the Q4 2024 Sprout Social Pulse Survey, 89% of consumers anticipate brand content will impact their purchase decisions this holiday season. For brands, that means the fight to hold consumer attention on social is a long-game, and their holiday season campaigns will start soon (if they aren’t already underway).

Let’s dive into our lineup of brands already delivering holiday cheer this year, and tips to help you get in the spirit.

Lowe’s: Making the ‘ber months count

Lowe’s, the home improvement company, has become a destination for end-of-year holiday decor for every kind of celebrant.

Like their viral giant mummy in 2022 proved, the brand understands what makes Halloween fanatics tick. In a campaign that received over 725,000 views on TikTok alone, the brand debuted their new “Wednesday” collection. The videos featured dancing and slashing animatronic characters set in a spooky scene, while a song from the show played. The content feels lo-fi and social-first, with quick cuts and text overlays.

Every subsequent video Lowe’s published about their Halloween decor used the same spooky background and text style. The end result was cohesive, recognizable content that delighted Halloween superfans awaiting Lowe’s next decor reveal.

The brand also shared creator-inspired DIY content throughout spooky season. Like this video of a ceramic Lowe’s pumpkin being turned into a unique and whimsical house number.

But Lowe’s isn’t just a Halloween haven. The brand is already beginning to debut their winter holiday decor, including a giant yeti, a forest of Christmas trees and snow-covered model villages. In a recent TikTok video, the brand directly spoke to fans who come into their store expecting Halloween decor and are delighted to see winter holiday staples already in the showroom.

The consistent enthusiasm in the comments section proves that when it comes to holiday flair, more is more, and fans live for new product reveals (from September to December). According to Sprout Social Listening data on X from September 9 to October 18, 2024, Lowe’s social sentiment is almost 25% more positive than their leading competitor.

The play: The old rules about holiday marketing can (mostly) be thrown out. Once we reach September, all bets are off, and it’s fair game to start promoting every end-of-year holiday—even simultaneously. As Lowe’s demonstrates, this works best when you acknowledge the surprise of holiday products being in the store before the “appropriate” time and slowly drop new items throughout the ‘ber months.

Four Seasons: #FourTheSeason of magic

Four Seasons, the global luxury hotel company, is reminding everyone that the best present to give is presence—especially poolside or beach-side at one of their resorts. In the first video for their #FourTheSeason campaign, the brand features a stack of presents lounging at the pool, enjoying a steam and surfing on the beach of a coastal destination.

The rest of their campaign content so far has highlighted warm weather hotels and destinations that will tempt consumers to book an end-of-the-year getaway or give the gift of travel for the holidays, like this clever video of a guest cannonballing into a spicy marg. Or this heavenly Carousel about their future resort on the dreamy island of Mykonos.

But their holiday content isn’t just about getting away, it’s also about celebrating the magic of the season. Like this Reel from The Ocean Club, a Four Seasons Resort. A part of the same #FourTheSeason campaign, the video encourages guests to celebrate their holidays with the hotelier. Whether you crave a ride in a horse-drawn carriage or a meal by the fireplace, Four Seasons can be your home for the holidays.

This campaign coincides with the company’s expansion into Mykonos and the reopening of the historic Four Seasons Hotel New York—not just the upcoming holiday season.

The play: The #FourTheSeason campaign is a masterclass in leveraging the holidays to shift consumer behavior around what constitutes gifting while simultaneously driving PR for their expansions. The brand taps into our seasonal emotions, including nostalgia, burnout and the need for escapism. Consider how your offerings intertwine with the festive season and the emotional relationship consumers have to it.

Walmart: LIVE at home for the holidays

Walmart needs no introduction. The multinational retail corporation is famous for its hypermarkets, discount department stores and grocery stores. It’s no surprise the brand is already leading the holiday marketing charge on social.

Walmart’s Facebook Live series recently got a Halloween twist. The content features celebrities, influencers and creators demonstrating how to use their favorite Walmart products. Recent episodes of the show feature Halloween-inspired items, like ghostly treats and witchy hair dye, all set in the host’s home (which has been decked out for Halloween). The live events remind us of our favorite daytime TV programs, and earn impressive real-time engagement.

Even at the time of this article’s publishing in October, Walmart is already being recognized for its holiday shopping deals by major news outlets. We look forward to continuing to see how their holiday momentum builds in the coming weeks and tuning in for winter holiday episodes of their live series.

The play: It seems everyone in the social industry is talking about “serialized, ownable” content, but it’s not always clear how to deliver it. Walmart’s live content is the perfect example of how to execute a recurring, must-see-TV series that feels authentic, even when adapted for seasonal marketing or trends.

Bonne Maman: The holiday countdown is on

French brand Bonne Maman specializes in jams, marmalades and desserts that taste like the je ne sais quoi of homemade goodness.

Just like their products, Bonne Maman’s new 2024 advent calendar is made with love. The sweet twist on the classic Christmas tradition features beautiful artwork and flavors only available during the holiday season.

On social, the brand promoted the calendar’s release in multiple forms. While one Reel demonstrated opening up the calendar and finding the daily jam, another showed the calendar being wrapped like a luxury gift. Because the calendar is so popular, Bonne Maman created an Advent Story highlight for their Instagram presence where consumers can access the shoppable link.

The advent calendar is expected to sell out well before December—underscoring the effectiveness of launching the calendar as early as September.

The play: For brands like Bonne Maman with tried-and-true holiday marketing tactics, bringing your tradition to social (and making your campaign promo social-first) is an easy way to get consumers excited and build buzz early.

Small business spotlight: Maan Farms

It’s hard to beat a pumpkin patch, corn maze and sweet treats in the fall. Maan Farms, home of Canada’s scariest haunted corn maze, is well-known for all three and a witty social presence to boot.

On social, the brand recently went viral for sharing a reversed video of making their signature double pumpkin spice cone with the caption “what happens when a customer cancels their order.” The clever adaptation of the popular format drew in social users worldwide, and created intrigue for the treat (and their entire farm).

Maan Farms partners with influencers and creators with a similar wit who take their followers with them through the farm’s facility. One creator posted a video of all the reasons not to visit the farm, including “too many Instagram-worthy, aesthetically pleasing spots” and “too creative, delicious” food and drinks.

Another creator posted a hilarious vampire takeover of Maan Farms inspired by the Twilight franchise.

The play: There are bound to be many trends this holiday season and, unfortunately, there isn’t time (or reason) to join them all. The trends Maan Farms chooses to join feel authentic to the business and the voice they’ve developed, and the formats they adopt feel timeless when paired with audience insights. Ask yourself if the trends you want to join feel true to your brand and how you can use the format to inspire creativity, even if something is no longer trending.

All aboard the holiday express

That concludes this month’s installment of the PPR. Stay tuned for next month’s edition, where we’re featuring brands who’ve done an amazing job of building an executive-led social strategy. In the meantime, remember these key takeaways:

Post Performance Report Takeaways

Promoting multiple end of year holidays simultaneously can help you maintain engagement through the 'bers so long as you have a thoughtful and integrated approach.
Even brands not typically associated with the holidays or gifting can join the conversation.
Give your products or services a seasonal twist by tapping into seasonal nostalgia and holiday traditions.
Both trends and serialized content can be adapted for the holiday season—what’s most important is that it feels ownable.

Looking for more social holiday marketing tips? Find out how to make the most of your holiday marketing on social.

And if you see a social post or campaign that deserves to be highlighted, tag us @sproutsocial and use #PostPerformanceReport to have your idea included in a future article.

The post Post Performance Report: Brands making the most of the the holiday season appeared first on Sprout Social.

How Gen Z uses social media and what that means for brands

Aubree Smith — Tue, 22 Oct 2024 13:49:40 +0000

Before the 1960s, young people were seen as an undesirable marketing audience and mostly ignored. Everything changed with Baby Boomers. They were the largest and most influential generation in the history of modern consumerism, yet their social movements and corporate distrust confounded advertisers who had to completely rethink their playbooks. Sound familiar?

Since then, marketers have been trying to reach a revolving door of youth generations—from Boomers to Gen X to Millennials, and now Zoomers and Gen Alpha. Reaching young people and penetrating trend culture has become a consistent hurdle.

Casey Lewis, social media consultant, author behind the After School newsletter and expert of social trends among younger audiences, sums it up like this: “Any brand not actively trying to reach Gen Z and Gen Alpha is doing themselves a disservice. Even if you don’t care to be in the zeitgeist. They are our future consumers, so you need to have them in mind—even if you’re not trying to reach them today.”

After decades of consistently marketing to young people, marketers are again mystified by a new generation. Like Boomers before them, Gen Z represents a new kind of consumer: digital natives who are increasingly cynical, driven by ethical causes and are chronically online (or are they?) They are more discerning than their predecessors, which frustrates marketers trying to obsessively crack the code on how to effectively reach them without seeming indubitably cringe.

In this guide, we explain how Gen Z wants brands to show up on social media and what it takes to market to them the right way.

Gen Z social media usage

Gen Z has never known a world without social media or the internet. It’s enmeshed in their daily lives and serves as their go-to channel for information—even beating out popular search engines. When we asked Lewis how she would describe the way Gen Z uses social, she responded, “A better question is how don’t they use social? They use it for everything and they expect brands to use it for everything, too—from customer service to commerce, discovery to community.”

Data backs this up. Compared to other generations, Gen Z is most likely to use social for discovering new products, keeping up with the news and reaching out to brands with customer care needs, according to the Q1 2024 Sprout Pulse Survey.

Let’s break down which platforms occupy most of their time online and the types of content they engage with there.

Which platforms does Gen Z use and why?

According to The 2024 Social Media Content Strategy Report, 91% of Gen Z social media users are on Instagram and another 86% are on TikTok, making these platforms the most popular for Zoomers. Gen Z is most likely to use both channels for entertainment and connecting with friends and family.

Digging deeper into how they use certain platforms, Gen Z consumers report TikTok is their favorite channel to turn to for product discovery, closely followed by Instagram. The same report found that they are also most likely to use TikTok and Instagram for staying up to date on the news, and Instagram for customer care.

What brand content does Gen Z engage with?

On their top two most-used channels, Instagram and TikTok, Gen Z is most likely to engage with brand posts that include short-form video or static images, per The 2024 Social Media Content Strategy Report. What’s interesting is that they’re also most likely to watch long-form video on YouTube, their third most-used channel.

Lewis suggests all these channels and formats could be interconnected. “We all have short attention spans to go along with our preference for short-form video. But it’s interesting to see Gen Z podcasters uploading one to two hour-long episodes. Then they slice and dice, and upload videos across short-form platforms.”

Though Gen Z ultimately consumes all content on most platforms, the key is understanding the nuance and culture of each platform. That doesn’t mean completely recreating posts from scratch—and overtaxing your team’s bandwidth. It means, as Lewis illustrates, charting multiple points of distribution and connection, and prioritizing the platforms that matter most to this generation.

Gen Z social media trends

Upfront warning: This is not a trends listicle that will inspire specific content ideas (for that read our top social media trends article).

As Gen Z has matured (the oldest members of the generation are in their late 20s) and they’ve spent more time under marketers’ microscope, throughlines have emerged that give us insight into how they think about social and its future. Brands are beginning to understand that keeping up with a lightning pace trend culture is not the key to their lasting loyalty, and Gen Z consumers want a break from being chronically online too (kind of).

These trends map out the future of Gen Z’s social media habits, and give clues that reveal what it takes to build lasting brand resonance.

Growing trust in influencers and creators

According to The 2024 Influencer Marketing Report, influencer trust is holding steady but growing in some pockets—especially among young consumers. Nearly 40% of Gen Z consumers trust influencers more than they did a year ago.

This surge in trust isn’t necessarily because Gen Z finds influencers and creators more authentic. Only 35% rank authenticity as a top trait they care about. For Gen Z, authenticity at face value can seem performative. Instead, they look for other signs of credibility, like follower count, posting frequency and long-term brand affinity.

As the influencer economy continues to grow, Gen Z will certainly continue to expect (and favor) brands that partner with influencers in unique ways. For brands to make their investments count, they need to find influencers with credibility in niche communities who are genuine fans of their brand.

Disheartened by most brand-led activism

The surge of brands putting out “activist” content in the last five years largely backfired—especially with discerning Zoomers. Many brands were accused of getting it wrong, overwhelming their audiences or performing to bolster the bottom line.

Sprout’s 2019 #BrandsGetReal Report found that 70% of consumers then believed it was important for brands to have a public stance on social and political issues. The 2023 Sprout Social Index™ told a different story: Only a quarter of consumers said the most memorable brands speak about causes and news that align with their values.

But Gen Z doesn’t want brands to become completely agnostic. They want the activism baton to be passed to influencers they partner with. Almost all Gen Z agree they expect influencers to take a stand on social issues, per a Q2 2024 Sprout Pulse Survey. The emergence of influencer activism signals how younger consumers don’t just turn to these online personalities for product recs, and that many influencers are pressured to speak out (even when they’re ill- or under-informed).

The same survey found that almost half of consumers will unfollow brands if they work with influencers that don’t align with their audience’s values. Considering 68% of consumers follow brands to stay up to date on new products and services, losing followers can have serious revenue implications.

Even though brands are no longer expected to comment on most social and political issues, there’s a growing pressure to find influencers that do. Clearly understanding your Gen Z audience’s values is imperative for meeting their expectations and protecting your reputation.

Desire for more unique brand identities

Nearly 90% of Gen Z say a brand’s social media presence has a larger impact on whether or not they trust the brand compared to 2023, per the Q1 2024 Pulse Survey. To establish trust with Gen Z consumers, brands need to consistently convey their identity.

Hustling to keep up with trends or just posting libraries of user-generated content won’t cut it. All social media users are most likely to unfollow a brand when their content has become repetitive or unoriginal, according to the Q2 2024 Sprout Pulse Survey, . The best way to keep your audience coming back for more is by making ownable content.

Lewis explains, “Where brands go wrong is losing sight of their own POV. An amalgamation of random user-generated content is simply not going to resonate; the brand’s voice still needs to come through. Similarly, there’s a misconception that engaging with online trends and memes is a silver bullet for brands when it comes to winning over Gen Z. It’s not! Chasing culture rarely works. It’s better for brands to focus on creating culture.”

Lukewarm feelings toward AI-generated social content

Across the board, consumers of all ages are closely split on whether or not AI-generated content makes them more or less likely to be interested in a brand, according to the Q1 2024 Pulse Survey. The subsequent Q2 survey found that 83% of consumers think AI will make feeds even more saturated than they already are, while another 80% believe AI-generated content will add to misinformation on social.

Despite overwhelming concern, Gen Z still exhibits a slight enthusiasm for AI-generated content, such as AI influencers. The 2024 Influencer Marketing Report found that while only 37% of consumers say they’re more likely to be interested in a brand who uses an AI influencer, this rises to 46% among Gen Z.

While it might make sense for some brands to dabble in AI content creation, there will most likely be minimal returns from your Gen Z audience. The best AI use cases for brands are still increasing efficiency in areas like social listening, data analysis and customer care.

An overwhelming need to touch grass

A stereotypical image of Gen Z persists: an entire generation glued to their phones and tablets, suffering from loneliness at epidemic rates. No matter how many headlines or think pieces are written about this subject, the stats point to steady or increased social media use.

The Q4 2024 Sprout Pulse Survey found that 56% of Gen Z consumers plan to consume more content from companies in 2025. Yet, many in this generation are burnt out and suffering from the unhealthy impacts of social. Platforms like Instagram are doing more to protect the most vulnerable members of the Gen Z audience, but many feel forced to set their own limits with social media detoxes.

The Q1 2024 Sprout Pulse Survey found that 57% of Gen Z took a detox in 2023 and 63% planned to in 2024—the highest of any generation.

While it’s highly unlikely that Gen Z will start leaving social media in droves, we do expect to see more take breaks from principal networks and spend more time on community engagement networks like Substack. We also expect event marketing and IRL meetups will continue to appeal to Gen Z consumers craving a third space.

Brands Gen Z flocks to on social

As mentioned, Gen Z is a cynical generation. Overly promotional tactics, forced authenticity and glomming onto trends doesn’t win their favor.

Here are four brands who have mastered the art of Gen Z marketing, and found a way to breakthrough in a way that feels true to their image.

Marc Jacobs

Luxury brand Marc Jacobs is an unexpected Gen Z darling. The fashion brand is well-known for including Gen Z, TikTok-famous comedians and influencers in its content. But somehow these personalities all capture the essence of the brand.

As Lewis articulates, “Marc Jacobs takes trends and formats, and makes them their own. Sometimes you see someone’s presence and it feels stitched together and reactionary. Instead, their presence feels cohesive and has a unique Marc Jacobs stamp of approval.”

Give your brand a Gen Z glow up: Follow Marc Jacobs’ lead by keeping your content original and unexpected, yet completely on-brand.

Topicals

Skincare brand Topicals has mastered the art of brand trips and influencer marketing. Like their recent campaign #FadedFamilyVacation proves, the brand is in lockstep with their Gen Z audience and deeply understands their nuances.

“I’m interested in how brands are looking to their communities for insights and content. Brands like Topicals and other skincare brands are able to take action based on consumer feedback,” says Lewis.

Topicals has also built a positive reputation for listening to their audience’s product feedback and compensating creators and influencers. Lewis adds, “Topicals uses the TYB platform to engage with their community in a thoughtful way. The social, marketing and product teams are all co-collaborating on community management. They compensate people for UGC (giving them a tag is not enough), which makes sure it feels authentic and on-brand.”

Give your brand a Gen Z glow up: Take it from Topicals: When you reward your audience for their content and feedback, they’ll reward you with loyalty.

Graza

Graza, the brand behind the internet’s favorite green squeeze olive oil bottles, has become a Gen Z mainstay. The hype is due in large part to the brand’s social presence.

On social, the brand tackles product feedback head-on. A post of their co-founder apologizing for a packaging flaw is their most liked to date—a snippet of what makes the brand so human and relatable.

Other posts like their mascot Sizzle revealing what’s inside their purse (i.e., bag of granola) and a Carousel of the vibe their olive oil brings to the function show they aren’t afraid to have fun (in a strategic way).

Give your brand a Gen Z glow up: Speaking about Gen Z’s language isn’t about stuffing slang into your captions. It’s about capturing the essence of chronically online humor. It’s dry, absurd and, unmistakably, human. Just like Graza’s content.

ServiceNow

Software company ServiceNow isn’t your typical Gen Z marketing inspo. But the brand exemplifies a well-known Gen Z trait: subverting expectations in content. Like in the video where they literally interpreted cringy corporate jargon like “low-hanging fruit” and “ducks in a row.”

Give your brand a Gen Z glow up: Gen Z content is often layered. It relies on both the creator and viewer having context for inside jokes and cultural touchstones. Even B2B brands like ServiceNow can use that to their advantage. Gen Z makes up a large portion of companies’ current and future employee base, so even B2B brands have a vested interest in appealing to them.

Reaching Gen Z is crucial for long-term brand health

Each new generation brings its own set of challenges. Reaching Gen Z requires brands to rethink how they engage.

Brands who successfully reach Gen Z understand the generation’s unique values, preferences and nuanced behavior in the social media ecosystem. From platform choice to content style, Zoomers are looking for brands who facilitate genuine, community-driven interaction.

For social marketers, that doesn’t mean recreating every trend, but instead forging a distinct identity across platforms. That is the key to building trust and loyalty.

Looking for more insight into how each generation wants to engage with brands on social? Download The 2024 Social Media Content Strategy Report.

The post How Gen Z uses social media and what that means for brands appeared first on Sprout Social.

How to conduct a Facebook competitor analysis report [plus template]

Ronnie Gomez — Mon, 21 Oct 2024 14:30:15 +0000

A bit of competition can bring out the best in people. On social, a Facebook competitor analysis can bring out the best in your brand.

Successful marketers know that decisions aren’t made with owned analytics alone—routine competitive analyses are essential for getting the full picture.

Using Facebook data to bolster your competitive intelligence can provide you with the insights needed to zig where others zag. It’s no wonder Facebook is the most-used platform by marketers worldwide.

If you’re ready to engage in some good old-fashioned competitive sleuthing, you’re in the right place. Here’s everything you need to know to start monitoring your competition on Facebook.

What is a Facebook competitor analysis?

A Facebook competitive analysis is the process of evaluating your competitor’s Facebook activity for benchmarking data. These reports also provide insights into the strengths and weaknesses of your competitor’s social media strategy overall.

Conducting a Facebook competitor analysis involves reporting on key brand growth and engagement metrics for your brand and its rivals. It also requires a closer look at your competitors’ posting habits, content formats and how their audience engages with their posts. Your team can use this social data to set a baseline for audience growth, publishing and engagement goals.

These findings can help you define what it means to offer superior content and service on social media, increasing the business impact of your presence on the network.

Why should you do a Facebook competitive analysis?

When conducting a social media competitive analysis, make Facebook your top priority. According to Sprout’s 2024 Social Media Content Strategy Report, 83% of social users have a Facebook profile, and nearly half (44%) interact with brand content on the network at least once a day.

All of these little interactions compounded over time make Facebook a goldmine of strategic insights. If that’s not enough, here are some other reasons to consider.

Establish more relevant KPIs

Competitive benchmarking on Facebook can take the guesswork out of goal setting.

For example, say you’re trying to set a new engagement goal. Looking at your historical data can help you set an achievable target, but without competitive insights, you risk setting goals that aren’t in line with industry standards.

Your Facebook competitor analysis can motivate you to aim higher with your social content while keeping your strategy attainable and actionable.

Identify content gaps

Competitive analyses can illuminate cracks in your content strategy while supplying the information needed to fill them.

For instance, an oral health care brand conducting a Facebook competitive analysis might notice that Quip incorporates month-long observances into their content strategy. This provides an endless stream of social media content creation ideas that tap into trending topics.

Since these posts do well from an engagement standpoint, that brand may consider how they can put their own unique spin on similar events.

Create better content for your followers

Coming up with new content ideas is a top challenge for many social media marketers.

Industry data can provide valuable insights during brainstorming sessions, helping you generate smarter, more relevant content ideas for each social platform. That’s where your Facebook competitor analysis comes in.

The analysis will help you identify your rival’s content themes. As you notice them, ask yourself how your brand might approach something similar. What would you do differently? What opportunities are they not taking advantage of?

Eventually, you’ll come up with a unique piece of inspired content that stands independently from its source material.

Understand the strength of customer service efforts

Consumers are also more likely to turn to Facebook for customer care compared to any other channel—especially Millennials, Gen X and Baby Boomers.

A quantitative and qualitative review of your competitor’s Facebook pages can help you clearly define what they are and aren’t getting in terms of customer service. This will show you exactly what it takes to gain a competitive edge on social.

Facebook competitive analysis tools will help you keep a pulse on what your audience expects from brands on the network. Eventually, you’ll find ways to one-up their service offerings, cementing your spot as the brand people turn to for a better customer experience.

Learn from your competitors’ strategies

A Facebook competitive analysis gives you a clear snapshot of what’s working—and what’s not—for your top competitors.

By digging into their content, engagement metrics and audience interactions, you can pinpoint winning strategies, like the best posting frequency, content formats that get the most traction and the optimal times to post.

This data helps you refine your content strategy, adopt what works and avoid common pitfalls, so your brand stands out. Plus, it gives you a deeper understanding of how competitors are positioning themselves, helping you stay ahead with more strategic differentiation.

How to conduct a Facebook competitor analysis

Let’s go over our top tips for executing a Facebook competitive analysis effectively.

1. Identify your Facebook competitors

Before conducting your competitive analysis, narrow in on three to four key competitors on Facebook. Tracking every single competitor big and small can quickly become an unwieldy task. Instead, aim for an even representation of direct, indirect and aspirational competitors.

This is a good time to talk to your sales team and customers about which competitors helped them make their decisions. This will help you understand your position in the market and improve your approach.

2. Gather your data

Once you’ve confirmed your target competitors, it’s time to gather your data. While this process can be time-consuming, especially in competitive industries, thorough insights lead to more informed strategies.

Use a social media analytics tool to streamline your approach to tracking competitor metrics. If you’re using Sprout, you can even dig into data at the post level to figure out what content formats and themes are resonating most with the audiences of individual competitors.

Remember, this isn’t a one-time task. To stay ahead, it’s crucial to update your analysis quarterly or biannually, aligning with your overall social media reporting.

3. Analyze your competitors Facebook presence

Competitive intelligence involves both quantitative and qualitative insights. To gain the most comprehensive understanding of your competitors’ social channels, you need to explore how they present themselves across each platform.

Start your analysis by asking these three key questions:

How active are your competitors? Examining their posting frequency can reveal insights into their content and customer care strategies, as well as potential gaps you can exploit.
What types of content do they share? Review each competitor’s last 10 posts and determine the percentage that are promotional, such as calls to action for sign-ups or purchases.
What is their brand persona? Identify the different brand voices your competitors use and evaluate how effectively they resonate with their audience.

4. Use a tool to conduct a Facebook competitor analysis

According to Sprout’s Social Media Productivity Report, 63% of social marketers agree manual tasks prevent them from doing high impact work. Social media analytics and listening tools are essential for conducting a Facebook competitor analysis while balancing the other duties of your role.

These tools offer valuable data-driven insights, such as engagement rates and follower growth, which help you objectively evaluate competitor performance and spot trends. Social listening tools also track audience sentiment toward competitors, providing richer qualitative insights that reveal how well they engage their audience and where they may be falling short.

5. Identify areas of improvement

The insights from your competitor analysis can reveal strategic opportunities to help your brand outpace the competition. Focus on doubling down on what’s working well and closing any gaps that may be allowing competitors to get ahead.

Use these findings to develop a clear action plan, and share it with your team to gain their support and collaboration. Engaging your colleagues in this process not only fosters teamwork but also ensures everyone is aligned in driving the brand forward.

6. Create a Facebook competitor analysis report

Numbers are nothing without the right context.

For example, what if one of your competitors ran an enticing social media contest during your reporting period? That would definitely have an impact on either their engagement or audience growth. If your report lacks that context, it can result in an unfair assessment of your team’s performance.

Use storytelling to give your data meaning. Include the “why” behind your most interesting numbers so that your teammates understand the full story behind the report as well. This social media market research worksheet will help you explain what’s really driving competitor performance in 90 minutes or less.

Get the worksheet

How to analyze competitors on Facebook with Sprout

You could do some of this research manually, but Sprout will make the process much more efficient. Sprout’s Facebook Competitors Report lets you track metrics for any Facebook page to compare them against your own. Here’s how to use it:

Step 1: Set your filters

Use the Filter Menu to customize the data you want to see in your report.

You’ll find three different filters within the menu: Pages, Competitor Pages and Date Range.

Use Pages to select which owned Facebook pages you’d like to include in the report.
Use Competitor Pages to manage and select competitor Facebook pages
Use the Date Range date picker to select a time period for your report.

Step 2: Check the summary

The top widget in the Facebook Competitor Report is a summary table. This features averages of key metrics including Fans, Public Engagements and Public Engagements per Post.

Use the trends highlighted in the summary as starting points for your competitive investigation. For example, if you notice that your fan average is lagging behind, that may be the first item to review and cover in your report.

Step 3: Dig into the numbers

You’ll find three different chart widgets in the Facebook Competitor Report:

The Audience Growth chart shows how your audience grew compared to your competitors’ during the selected time period.
The Publishing Behavior chart shows the different types of posts you and your competitors published during the selected time period.
The Engagement chart evaluates how people are engaging with posts based on publish date.

Each of these charts goes deeper into the high-level metrics available in the Summary table. They also provide averages of each metric for both owned and competitor Facebook pages. Use this information to benchmark your performance against your competitors’ averages.

Step 4: Review post-level data

Use the Top Posts widget to review the most popular posts published during your selected time period.

The Top Posts widget will help you analyze published content across all competitors to understand what’s resonating within your shared audience. As you review the data, stay on the lookout for qualitative trends as well. What type of visuals and messaging drive the most engagement? Are there any topics people seem particularly excited about?

Understanding these trends will come in handy during your next brainstorm.

Step 5: Share findings

There are a few different ways you can distribute your report from Sprout.

If you’d like to limit the number of disparate files floating around people’s inbox, try the link sharing option. This will allow you to share reports with multiple stakeholders regardless of whether they have a Sprout account or not.

Top Facebook competitive analysis tools

1. Sprout Social

Sprout Social provides social media marketers with a well-rounded perspective on competitors’ performance across various platforms and data points.

With Sprout’s range of competitive reports, you can evaluate and enhance your social strategy using valuable metrics from Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and more. Sprout’s suite of competitive intelligence tools enables teams to see what your competitors are posting and compare your growth to the profiles you are monitoring.

Through Sprout’s Premium Analytics, you gain in-depth insights into your social platforms, accompanied by customizable interactive charts and graphs tailored to your objectives. If you want to discover how to use Sprout for analyzing your Facebook competitors, sign up for a free 30-day trial today.

2. Socialinsider

Socialinsider is another social media management tool that offers several different features—including Facebook competitor analysis reporting.

Marketers use Socialinsider to monitor metrics like views, engagement, follower growth and more, while also giving them access to information like historical content trends and top-performing content. The platform also helps users get competitive insights at the campaign level, so you can study specific plays in competitor strategies.

3. Brandwatch

Brandwatch offers data analytics for consumer intelligence and social media management, including competitive benchmarking for Facebook and X.

These tools allow users to monitor their competitors’ social media output, while tracking all mentions of specific competitors across the web. Reports can be exported and shared via Excel, PowerPoint, PDF file or through the Brandwatch API.

May the best brand win

A Facebook competitor analysis can be exactly what you need to level up on the network. Understanding where their strengths and weaknesses lie is the first step to understanding how to outperform them on social.

Compiling that data takes a lot of work, especially when analyzing multiple competitors. Sprout Social can eliminate all the data collection work so you can focus on planning your next steps. Sign up for a trial today to test out the Facebook Competitor Report free for 30 days.

The post How to conduct a Facebook competitor analysis report [plus template] appeared first on Sprout Social.

Social media integration strategies your brand needs

Annette Chacko — Fri, 18 Oct 2024 17:06:46 +0000

Social media integrations are a great way to combine marketing efforts across channels. They help customers shop directly from social networks like TikTok and Instagram, enhancing the shopping experience with seamless e-commerce. And provide brands with valuable social data for critical customer and market insights. In this way, social media integrations help you create memorable brand experiences for your audiences, including world-class customer care.

You’re able to level up your marketing efforts through a more streamlined omnichannel strategy to improve your online presence and user engagement. Plus, you dissolve digital siloes and provide smooth customer interactions that lead to better conversions, ultimately increasing revenue.

Read on to explore the different ways you can take advantage of social media integrations to grow your business. Plus, find real-life examples of brands that use social media integrations to strengthen their omnichannel presence to provide a cohesive customer journey.

What is social media integration?

Social media integration is the practice of connecting a brand’s social media platforms with other digital tools like CRMs, e-commerce platforms or websites to create a seamless, unified experience for users. It enables customers to easily use their social media account or associated email address to interact, shop or sign in without switching between different apps or sites for an enriched omnichannel customer experience.

Social media integration also helps marketing teams have smoother social media workflows. It gives them valuable customer and market insights, helping them understand the impact of their social media efforts on conversions and brand sentiment.

Benefits of social media integrations

Social media integrations streamline customer interactions across digital platforms and provide valuable insights to marketers to achieve business goals. Here are more benefits in detail.

Streamlined workflow

Integrating social media platforms with your digital tools like CRM software, email marketing, sms marketing and analytics simplifies and automates your social media workflow. Teams can manage content creation, scheduling and performance tracking, without missing a beat. You’re also able to integrate your social platforms with customer service platforms, like Salesforce Service Cloud, to manage queries and complaints for faster customer support on social media.

Enhanced customer insights

Social media integrations help you connect your social data with your customer databases, which gives you a better, well-rounded understanding of your audience. This enables you to develop data-driven proactive marketing strategies that are personalized and targeted for better results.

Improved engagement

According to The 2023 Sprout Social Index™, 51% of consumers think the most memorable thing a brand can do is respond to customers on social.

Social media integrations enable real-time interaction across platforms so your customer care teams respond faster to customer inquiries and complaints, as well as positive feedback.

This prompt and regular engagement helps create a memorable brand experience, which fosters better customer relationships.

Centralized analytics

Social media integrations with analytics tools like Google Analytics or Facebook Insights help you track performance across channels to understand how your social media efforts are influencing traffic, engagement and sales. Plus, consolidating data from different platforms into one dashboard enables you to monitor key metrics and measure performance to make data-driven decisions more efficiently. It also helps you prove your social ROI to decision-makers and leadership teams through impactful data storytelling.

Cross-channel consistency

Brands can build consistent brand messaging across multiple channels, making it easier to maintain a cohesive online presence. For example, you can link all your social media profiles with your websites, blogs and other apps so customers can buy your products or services directly through social media posts or ads. Audiences can also share your content or engage with you on whichever platform they frequent.

How to use social media integrations in your marketing strategy

Social media integrations help you optimize your marketing strategy and improve your product offerings based on customer interactions. Here are some ways you can use integrated tools to engage customers, drive conversions, monitor sales and increase revenue.

Connect e-commerce with social media

Connecting your e-commerce to social media is one of the best marketing strategies to impact sales. For example, e-commerce social media integrations like Shopify and Facebook Shops enable you to create shoppable posts, making it easy for customers to purchase directly from your social media platforms without leaving the app.

If you already use Shopify or Facebook Shops, Sprout’s social commerce integration is a great way to streamline order management and customer information. You can increase your product awareness and add engaging sales opportunities to your content by scheduling posts with product links.

You can also help customers more efficiently by accessing all relevant order information from one dashboard instead of toggling between different platforms. Plus, respond with personalized messages that help them make prompt purchases. Explore platforms like TikTok and YouTube for shopping integrations by linking videos to product pages, making it easy for customers to shop in-app.

Personalized ads on Facebook, Instagram or TikTok help you retarget customers who have visited your online store but haven’t bought anything. You can feature the exact products they’ve browsed or combine them with promotions or discounts to encourage conversions.

Further boost your omnichannel strategy by adding email marketing to the mix. Supercharge your email campaigns with insights from your social data. Expand the reach of your newsletters and grow your audiences through targeted links.

Keep track of your social commerce analytics often to see how well it’s working and how much traffic comes from referrals. This will help you improve your strategy over time. Building UTM parameters separately for your most-used links every time you publish on social media can be a hassle. But, it can be seamless with Sprout’s Google Analytics and Bitly integrations that bake link creation into your Publishing workflow.

Sprout’s Google Analytics integration helps you create tracking rules to automatically append parameters to your links in the posts you share in Sprout. These parameters then add the tracking results in Google Analytics (which you can also see in Sprout’s Google Analytics Report). You can create and edit URL tracking rules within Sprout, which will get automatically applied in Sprout’s Compose publishing window when the URL is added to a post.

Sync social media with your CRM

Integrating social media with your CRM tools is a powerful way to centralize customer data and interactions. For example, with Sprout, you can connect your LinkedIn account to your Salesforce CRM software. This will let your sales teams track leads, view social interactions and manage customer relationships directly from the CRM, making it easier for them to nurture prospects.

It also helps track customer engagement, conversations and customer preferences within one system.

You can link existing Salesforce contacts to new social profiles in the same workflow. If there isn’t an existing Salesforce contact, you can create one directly from within Sprout to capture the new lead in your marketing funnel. Once a lead has been created or linked, you can see Salesforce Contact and Case info related to this specific user directly from the reply layer in Sprout’s Smart Inbox.

Sprout’s lead management integrations also include Marketo and Microsoft Dynamics 365.

Once integrated, you can use this funneled data to create personalized marketing campaigns. By tracking how customers use your products and services on social media and in your CRM, you can send them offers that are right for them. You can also retarget users and improve your messages for higher conversion rates.

Plus, real-time social media interactions feeding into your CRM also help your support and sales teams respond more effectively to customer inquiries or complaints. Thus, creating a seamless experience to build stronger customer relationships and drive strategic marketing initiatives.

Explore review and reputation management integrations

Review and reputation management integrations like the ones Sprout has for review platforms like TrustPilot or Glassdoor help you strengthen your online reputation. This social integration enables you to monitor and manage reviews across your business and locations in one centralized stream.

Similarly, connect your social accounts with Google My Business (GMB). Set up custom notifications every time a review comes in and sort reviews into custom priority inboxes. For example, set up alerts from negative reviews with one or two stars. Respond right away to reviewers from within Sprout to address a poor customer experience, offer a resolution, clarify doubts‌ or thank them for leaving a review.

Review integrations also help you share positive reviews across your social profiles to boost your brand’s credibility. This approach strengthens your brand reputation and builds customer relationships by showing that you value their feedback.

Tracking reviews and social media interactions from one single source of truth also makes it easier for you to spot trends in market demands and customer sentiment.

Integrate customer support with social media tools

Customer care integrations are all about passing customer tickets and information between teams. These integrations are a great fit if you find that customer questions on social media often need to be passed to a different team to answer. They also give teams visibility into customers’ previous contact history with your organization for faster, more personalized care.

Sprout’s integration with Salesforce Service Cloud is a game-changer in customer care. Salesforce’s global partnership with Sprout gives you a comprehensive view of your customers. This enables you to deliver world-class social customer care plus turn your social data into crucial business insights.

Your care teams can talk to customers in real-time to fix issues with all the right information. They have access to ‌CRM data along with social data like conversation history and customers’ contact information for a seamless workflow—all through one unified dashboard.

In addition, Salesforce’s AI assistant, Agentforce, enables customer care teams to gain insights into customers’ history with your brand through AI-populated summaries of sentiment and cross-channel case overviews. This helps care agents and managers improve customer experience with deeper customer insights–delivered in real-time–translating into faster case resolution time.

Similarly, Sprout’s Zendesk integration with Facebook helps customer support teams track and respond to support requests to ensure a quick and smooth customer service experience. Once connected, Sprout automatically looks up users who’ve messaged you from your Zendesk instance and matches them with an existing profile. If a profile doesn’t exist, you can create one.

This helps customer care teams create Tickets easily and assign priority tags to the comments more easily. They can also coordinate with other team members more easily and document the Ticket status.

Another example is Sprout’s Hubspot integration, which fortifies customer support with intuitive ticket routing and updates. Manage your HubSpot contacts and tickets directly from Sprout’s Smart Inbox. Link relevant social profiles to HubSpot contacts and then view, edit, create and comment on all HubSpot tickets directly from Sprout.

Create meaningful customer experiences by tailoring your messages to customers’ unique needs and also use the data to identify trends to improve your care.

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Combine social media data with business intelligence for cross-channel insights

Social data is the bedrock of business intelligence because it brings context to organization-wide data. It uncovers audience insights needed to interpret trends, develop predictions and create informed, data-driven decisions.

With Sprout Social’s Salesforce integration and Tableau Business Intelligence (BI) Connector, you can leverage the power of social data to create a 360-degree view of your customer and inform wider business insights.

For example, if your brand has a sophisticated social presence that’s grown to include customer care, you’d want to analyze agent performance across data sources. This will inform your marketing strategy, product development and other organizational focuses. However, if your team uses Tableau, for instance, to aggregate marketing and customer care data without social data, a big slice of the customer view is missing.

Connect your Sprout data to Tableau and get an omnichannel view of all your social data plus automated and consolidated reporting and analytics. With customizable visuals and metric definitions, you’re able to slice the data based on your KPIs and business needs to create a compelling data story with social media intelligence for actionable insights. And do all this without expensive developer resources.

4 real-life brand examples of social media integrations

Here are four brands that use social media integrations to create stronger omnichannel marketing strategies. Let’s dive into the details of how they’re boosting the impact of social media on business and using it to their advantage.

1. Amazon

Amazon uses social media integrations for an omnichannel strategy that includes strategic advertising, engaging customers and driving traffic to its website—all while enhancing the entire shopping experience.

The brand integrates its product catalog with Facebook and Instagram Ads and uses targeted Ads based on customers shopping behavior and interests. For example, if a customer browses a product on Amazon but doesn’t make a purchase, they may see a retargeted ad on Instagram or Facebook offering a discount or free shipping, encouraging them to complete the transaction.

Amazon also successfully uses influencers to grow its brand. Its influencer program incentivizes bloggers and influencers to share Amazon products via links across platforms like Instagram, YouTube and TikTok. During Prime Day, Amazon partners with TikTok influencers to create viral videos around Prime Day deals. TikTok users who interact with these videos are directed to Amazon’s app or website, where they can browse and purchase Prime Day deals.

Amazon also integrates its product listings with Pinterest, where users can discover and pin products from Amazon’s vast catalog. Plus, social reviews on platforms like Instagram and X (formerly Twitter), tagged with #FoundItOnAmazon, help the company integrate user-generated content into product listings.

Amazon also takes advantage of social media for prompt customer service. Its @AmazonHelp account on X is where customers can tweet their issues, questions or concerns and get quick help from the Amazon customer service team.

The company also uses interactive shopping through Amazon Live for live-streamed events where viewers can engage in real-time and buy featured products directly.

All these social media integrations help Amazon build engagement, drive traffic and increase conversions. It also gives its customers a cohesive shopping journey and a memorable brand experience.

2. Sephora

Sephora uses social media integrations to create a seamless omnichannel marketing experience. The brand ensures a smooth customer journey from discovery to checkout by integrating its Instagram and Facebook Shops. This helps customers explore, review and purchase products directly from social media.

Similarly, through Pinterest’s “Shop the Look” Pins, users can explore beauty tutorials and product recommendations, leading directly to Sephora’s e-commerce site for effortless purchasing.

Sephora also enhances engagement with YouTube, creating shoppable tutorials and demos where viewers can purchase featured products through linked descriptions.

Their email-social integration ties email marketing to social media platforms, retargeting users with personalized ads based on their email interactions. This ensures consistency in messaging and drives conversion across platforms.

Sephora’s Beauty Insider loyalty program is integrated across social media, e-commerce sites like Groupon and in-store, encouraging customers to earn and redeem rewards from various touchpoints. Plus, their AR integration with Snapchat enables users to virtually try on makeup and links directly to Sephora’s store for purchases, creating a complete cycle from virtual trial to checkout.

3. H&M

H&M integrates social media into its omnichannel marketing strategy to create a seamless shopping experience across platforms. By using shoppable Instagram and Facebook posts, the clothing retailer enables customers to browse and buy products directly through social media, linking these platforms to their website and app for easy purchases. Plus, it uses Pinterest’s “Shop the Look” pins, turning fashion inspiration into quick sales by directing users to product pages.

The company also uses email integrations for social retargeting. It uses personalized ads on Facebook and Instagram to re-engage customers who interacted with their website or email campaigns but didn’t complete a purchase. They further integrated their mobile app with social media, encouraging users to follow H&M for exclusive deals and collections. They also provide the ability to save products from social posts for future purchases.

H&M takes advantage of user-generated content (UGC) through branded hashtags like #HMxME featuring real customer outfits both on social media like their YouTube and product pages to foster engagement.

The brand also collaborates with influencers on TikTok and uses paid ads to promote new collections, so users can shop directly through the app. This consistent, omnichannel approach helps H&M build engagement and drive sales across multiple touchpoints.

4. Shopify

Shopify used social media integrations to transform e-commerce processes for businesses looking to combine their social media presence with e-commerce capabilities.

The brand enables users to benefit from social selling on platforms like TikTok, Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook, empowering them to engage with their audiences and grow to their full potential.

And since Shopify is a platform centered on integrations, naturally they’re using them to their advantage internally, too. It integrates with Facebook Ads, Instagram Ads and other platforms to run targeted ads promoting its tools, features and testimonials to reach entrepreneurs, attract businesses and generate leads.

The brand also uses social media integrations to boost its customer care efforts by integrating with platforms like Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp. This way, it provides users with real-time customer support and builds engagement to improve the brand experience.

Beyond these workflows, the brand positions many of its social media integrations as partnerships to market itself and attract attention from business owners looking to use social media for growth.

Shopify often collaborates with TikTok and Instagram to create joint marketing campaigns to showcase their integration capabilities. It also uses TikTok and YouTube videos to highlight its new features and share tips for entrepreneurs. This helps it position itself as the prominent choice for anyone looking to benefit from social commerce.

The brand also partners with influencers and content creators to promote itself. These influencers share tutorials, case studies and discuss reviews, positioning Shopify as an advanced but user-friendly tool for those wanting to build and grow their online business. Shopify also relies on user-generated content to build trust among its audiences and encourages merchants to share success stories on their social platforms.

Shopify’s story is unique—they’ve made an entire business model out of social media integrations and how they can elevate a brand’s online presence.

Experience seamless business integrations with Sprout

Sprout is built to remove digital silos, so our customers immediately tap into the robust power of social. While organizing and integrating your ecosystem of tools can sound overwhelming, it doesn’t have to be. Integrating the tools you rely on most makes your team more informed and efficient and your customer experience stronger. Plus, it gives you all the insights you need to create an evergreen brand and stay ahead of the competition.

Experience seamless business integrations with Sprout. Sign up for a demo today.

The post Social media integration strategies your brand needs appeared first on Sprout Social.

Brand awareness: What it is and strategies to improve it

Ronnie Gomez — Wed, 16 Oct 2024 14:02:50 +0000

What does it take to build brand awareness?

In the old days, a steady drumbeat of messaging across a few audience-preferred channels might have done the trick. But in today’s cluttered landscape, that messaging needs to be even more consistent—and more compelling—to get noticed.

While it takes effort, the payoff is substantial. High brand awareness, combined with strong reputation management, builds trust that fosters long-term customer loyalty.

Building a memorable brand image takes some big swings, but you have to walk before you can run. To help, we’re breaking down the why and how behind driving and measuring brand awareness.

What is brand awareness?

Brand awareness is the extent to which audiences are familiar with your brand’s identity and its product or services. It’s the bedrock of your sales funnel. After all, you need to be able to recognize a brand to trust and buy from it.

Strong brand awareness is the competitive edge that keeps a business top-of-mind for consumers. Brands with high levels of consumer recognition can even become synonymous with their product. For example, when someone needs to fix a misspelled word written in pen, they’re usually not asking for “correction fluid”; they’re asking for Wite-Out.

Of course, achieving that level of brand recognition is a lofty goal. Our advice? Start where you are. Focus on building awareness within targeted audiences and grow from there.

Why is brand awareness important?

Every customer journey begins with the same step. That step is brand awareness.

Source: Marketoonist

Your brand awareness strategy will set the tone for a person’s entire experience with your brand. Start things out on the right foot, and you could sow the seeds for your next crop of brand advocates.

If that’s not enough, don’t worry—it’s not even the best part.

As your brand awareness strategy matures, you’ll soon find that the most effective awareness drivers don’t come from your official brand channels: they come from your fans. Our research shows that the most effective purchase drivers on social media are recommendations from friends, comments and product reviews and familiarity with a brand.

“Brand awareness creates a community that generates word of mouth buzz, ‘I love this product, and I know you will too.’ Your community knows what their friends and family like. Your audience becomes a pipeline to your most relevant customer in the exact moment their friends and family need your product. That is the power of brand awareness.”

– Akeeme Hogg, Social and Email Marketing Lead, ServiceMaster Brands

Combine positive brand sentiment with high brand recognition and you get fans. Fans beget more fans. Brand awareness truly is the gift that keeps on giving.

How brand awareness works

At its core, brand awareness is about standing out in a crowded market through consistent, memorable messaging and a strong visual identity. This can be achieved through a mix of organic and paid efforts, including social media, content marketing, PR, influencer marketing partnerships and more.

Brand awareness is the cornerstone of how consumers perceive and remember your brand. It works by increasing visibility across various touchpoints, making it easier for potential customers to recall your brand when they’re ready to make a purchase.

But exposure alone isn’t enough. Long-term brand awareness hinges on resonance—the ability of your audience to not only remember your ad but also like it, associate it with your brand and ultimately consider your brand when making purchasing decisions. This resonance keeps your brand top-of-mind, shortening sales cycles, reducing customer acquisition costs and fostering long-term loyalty.

How to measure brand awareness

Connecting brand awareness to ROI can feel like trying to explain how to get from Chicago to San Francisco by foot. Sure, it’s doable, but it’s pretty complicated.

The classic marketing funnel looks straightforward, but in reality, every customer journey is different and some can be much longer than others. Trying to track and assign value to every interaction between awareness and purchase simply isn’t the best use of anyone’s time.

Although it may be difficult to quantify the monetary value of every awareness effort, there are still important metrics worth tracking. There are quite a few methods to understand your efforts as you pilot new awareness strategies. Here are some of our favorites to help you measure brand awareness.

Brand surveys

Brand surveys are routine (often biannual) surveys that assess what an audience thinks and feels about your brand. Data from brand surveys can be used to track brand perception over time, providing businesses with the insights needed to shape their brand’s image in the right direction.

Unfortunately, these surveys take weeks (if not months) to design and distribute. If you want more timely data, you’ll want to supplement a brand survey with the following options.

Website traffic

Tracking month-over-month differences in web traffic isn’t an exact measurement of brand awareness. However, it’s much easier to connect web traffic to ROI, making it a management-preferred reporting metric.

As you test out new brand awareness tactics, use Google Analytics to see how those changes impact growth in new users. That’ll give you a rough estimate of how your efforts translated to site traffic.

You can also dig deeper to look at specific traffic sources, like organic search, referral and direct traffic. Direct traffic means someone found your site through a firsthand channel–like typing your brand’s URL into the address bar or revisiting a bookmarked page–a good indicator of brand awareness.

Social listening

Every day, people turn to social to rant and rave about the companies they love—and the ones they don’t. The right social listening tool can help you synthesize that chatter into timely, actionable brand insights.

If you use Sprout’s social listening tool, here are just a few of the metrics you can pull to understand how conversations are trending around your brand:

Total message volume tracks the total amount of messages shared around your brand.
Sentiment summary measures how people feel about your brand and whether or not it’s trending positively.
Share of voice compares your brand’s market share on social to its top competitors.

12 proven strategies to increase brand awareness with social media

Social is a go-to channel for raising brand awareness. But how do you become a familiar face within your followers’ feeds versus someone they just scroll past?

There’s no one correct answer to that question. The truth is, the options are as limitless as your creativity. If you want to use social media for brand awareness, use these 12 ideas to jumpstart your efforts. From fine-tuning your profile to experimenting with your content, any combination of these tips will help you rise above the noise.

1. Give your social presence some personality

First things first: your social media presence shouldn’t look like everyone else’s.

One of the most persistent social media marketing myths is that only certain industries can have a “fun” social presence. Fast food, retail, sports—those brands can get experimental. Everyone else has to play it safe.

That couldn’t be more wrong.

If you don’t believe me, just take a look at the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation’s social strategy.

It would be easy for them to just share some cute animal pictures every now and then. However, it’s their off-the-wall personality that’s made them so endearing to followers.

Marketers are told time and time again to create “unique” content. It might sound corny, but the person behind your social presence represents a one-of-a-kind voice.

Before you hit post, make a point to ask yourself: “Does this sound like something a bot would say?”

2. Fine-tune your profiles

Recognition is a key element of building brand awareness.

When followers glance at your social profiles, they should be able to understand the basics of your brand, its purpose and its personality.

From social bios to profile images, how you set up your profile determines whether or not people recognize you.

Brands only get a few seconds to grab someone’s attention and tell a quick story. If you can’t sum up your brand ethos in a few characters and 1500×500 pixels, don’t worry. A clean, well-optimized profile and photo are enough to establish your brand with new audiences.

3. Make your posts pop

A defined visual content strategy leaves a lasting impression. Consistent visuals—like logos, colors, typography and design—make your brand more easily identifiable in a sea of content. This increases the likelihood that consumers will recall your brand when making purchase decisions.

Don’t have eye-popping images featuring your products? No problem. The principle of making your posts stand out rings true in content marketing, too.

Notice how Sprout’s blog posts are all coupled with these colorful illustrations instead of generic stock photos?

Anything you can do aesthetically to make your posts stand out is a point in your favor. Even if you’re not a designer, there are plenty of social media post templates to help you whip up some eye-catching imagery.

4. Collaborate with other brands

You know what they say: Teamwork makes the dream work. When brands collaborate on new releases or campaign ideas, both parties get a chance to introduce themselves to new audiences.

Both co-marketing and co-branding campaigns bring engagement from the jump. Not only that, but collaboration is a surefire way to make positive impressions on other players in your industry.

Keep an eye out for strategic partnerships as you watch over your industry’s content landscape. You never know who could be the best fit for your dream team.

5. Harness the power of hashtags

Every now and then a viral hot take will try to force hashtagging into an early grave. Fret not, my fellow marketers, the hashtag is alive and well. If you’re choosing relevant, brand-applicable hashtags, they’re a surefire way to increase impressions on your posts.

When choosing which hashtags to include in your posts, consider both the network you’re posting on and the trends driving conversations at the moment. To get a look at hashtag trends thriving across multiple platforms, consider social listening. These tools surface hashtags and keywords that are trending within specific conversations, so you can develop your social copy with intention.

6. Take it to the comments

As more networks experiment with algorithmically ranked comment sections, marketers are gaining new territory to make their brands known.

Take this video from creator CorporateNatalie. Calm earned the top comments on the post, scoring more than 2,000 likes for their addition to the original joke in the video. On top of that, this video has been liked over two million times. That’s some seriously valuable brand exposure for every brand that’s secured a top spot in the comment section.

As you scroll through your social feed, keep an eye out for viral posts that relate to your brand or industry. When it comes to brand awareness, there’s no shame in riding on coattails.

7. Repurpose your content

If you’re like most marketers, you’re probably trying to boost brand awareness across multiple networks.

In that case, it’s important to repurpose your content to fit in with the best practices of each platform. After all, what works best on Instagram might not be prime for Facebook or Twitter.

One-size-fits-all content and captions aren’t going to win your brand much attention. To keep your feed from growing stale, you should always have new social media ideas on the back burner to support speedy content creation.

8. Share a distinct point of view

Stats. Case studies. Surveys.

If your brand is conducting any sort of original research, it can be a huge authority booster that does wonders for brand awareness, too.

And if you’re not in a position where such research is possible, don’t panic.

Consider how you can comment on industry trends and happenings from your point of view. Keep up with industry publications and research to see where you can insert your brand’s POV.

The takeaway here is that you should contribute to the ongoing conversation of your industry at large versus just sitting on the sidelines.

9. Experiment with social copy

We’ve talked a lot about visuals, but text is yet another opportunity to showcase your brand’s social persona. Use your copy to pique people’s interest and encourage engagement, giving a sort of taste to readers before they click through.

You can look to The Cut for inspiration on this one. Their posts on X (formerly Twitter) always pair perfectly with article link previews, creating a post you can’t help but click.

Don’t count out the power of a well-crafted text post. Once you find your brand voice, it can be a prime opportunity for connecting with followers and letting them know exactly who you are.

10. Use social as a teaching tool

Educational and “how-to” content is widely sought after on just about every social network. We surveyed consumers for our 2024 Social Media Content Strategy Report and found that 66% of social users find “edutainment”—content that educates and entertains—to be the most engaging of all brand content. It outranks memes, serialized content and skits.

Posting such content regularly positions you both as a positive resource and a thought leader. The more opportunities to show off your brand’s product or know-how, the better.

11. Partner with influencers

The creator economy is thriving. A new crop of trendsetters and thought leaders rises up every other week. No matter what industry you work in, there’s probably an influencer making waves with your target audience—and those waves have the power to result in serious revenue gains.

According to The 2024 Influencer Marketing Report, almost half of all consumers (49%) make purchases at least once a month because of influencer posts. On top of that, trust in influencers is holding steady if not on the rise, as nearly half of consumers trust influencers as much as they did six months ago, and another 30% trust them more.

12. Show up consistently

Finally, consider that nobody can truly be aware of your brand if you don’t post consistently.

According to The Sprout Social Index™ 2023, 74% of consumers think brands should post 1-2 times per day. To help you save time and to make the process of showing up easier, having a scheduling tool such as Sprout on deck can be a game-changer.

The more ground you and your brand can cover, the better. It all comes down to having a specific strategy which makes the most out of the time you spend on social media.

3 examples of building brand awareness

Now that we’ve explored the various paths to building brand awareness, let’s take a look at how some standout brands achieve it. These top-tier examples can serve as inspiration for your own strategy:

1. ServiceNow

B2B brands are often thought of as serious and straightlaced on social. ServiceNow, a software company focused on helping enterprise brands manage digital workflows, takes a different approach.

Their social team creates short-form video content that stands out in a sea of whitepapers and demo CTAs. When they joined the conversation around workplace jargon, they added their own clever multiverse spin. The team took overused phrases like “ducks in a row” and “foot in the door” and interpreted them literally, capturing their audience’s sense of humor perfectly. The post earned the company over 840 likes on LinkedIn and 23 reposts.

2. Scrub Daddy

For National Donut Day, Scrub Daddy teamed up with Dunkin to create donut-shaped sponges, generating excitement among their fans.

This collaboration not only tapped into their audiences’ enthusiasm but also drove significant brand awareness. The partnership, which started from a playful social media exchange, leveraged both brands’ fan bases, sparking viral interest. By listening to consumer feedback and delivering a creative product, both brands boosted their visibility and strengthened their connection with existing and new audiences.

3. UPS

UPS effectively leverages user-generated content (UGC) from frontline employees and satisfied customers to enhance brand awareness.

By featuring employees prominently in their TikTok strategy, UPS highlights their unique backgrounds and personalities, fostering a sense of community. Similarly, UGC from happy customers sharing personal stories about their UPS carriers strengthens emotional connections.

This strategy not only generates significant impressions and engagement but also differentiates UPS from competitors. According to Sprout Listening data, UPS enjoys higher sentiment than its top rivals, along with a 93% share of voice, showcasing how UGC contributes to a powerful competitive advantage on social media.

Take your brand awareness strategy to the next level

Building buzz around your brand takes an eye for both experimentation and data. Try new things, report on what works, rinse, repeat.

And when the workload gets too high, try automating some of your routine responsibilities. Sprout’s scheduling and analytics tools can remove bulky, manual processes from your day-to-day so you can focus on creating new brand awareness strategies that gain and retain loyal followers.

Try Sprout Social for free

The post Brand awareness: What it is and strategies to improve it appeared first on Sprout Social.

How to create a Black Friday social media marketing strategy

Jasmine Williams — Tue, 15 Oct 2024 14:00:42 +0000

Black Friday is almost here. Don’t expect busy shopping malls and crowded parking lots. Your customers will be looking for deals online and on social.

Now that Black Friday is a months-long event, many brands are already in holiday marketing planning mode. According to Sprout’s Advanced Listening tool, from August 9 to September 8, 2023, there were 23,000 Posts on X about holiday deals, holiday shopping and the holiday season.

Black Friday has evolved. And if you want to make the most of the holiday shopping surge this year, your marketing strategy must transform, too. In this guide, we walk through how to build Black Friday social media campaigns to boost your overall strategy this Q4.

Types of Black Friday social media campaigns (+ examples)

Spurred by the growth of online shopping and social commerce, Black Friday has become a five-day event, including Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday. Some retailers start their promotions as early as October. According to the National Retail Federation, consumers spent $38 billion online over five days (Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday in 2023), a 7.8% increase from the previous year.

Shoppers will most likely focus on retail segments with the most enticing offers. Companies known for featuring the best Black Friday deals include:

Clothing retailers
Electronics retailers
Department stores
Small businesses
E-commerce brands
Skincare and makeup companies
Furniture and home improvement retailers
Toy makers

Create a winning Black Friday marketing strategy by tapping into the power of social. Here are some proven Black Friday marketing strategy examples that have worked for other brands to inspire your campaign planning.

Influencer campaigns

Partner with influencers to create tailored content for specific demographics. From fashion lovers to tech enthusiasts, influencers usually have niche audiences. If your Black Friday deals are perfect for a particular type of customer, working with influencers who already speak to that crowd is a no-brainer.

For example, last Black Friday, Macy’s partnered with Robin Brown (@mystylemuse), a California digital creator and stylist specializing in fashion content to highlight the woman-owned and Black-owned brands that customers could shop during the sale.

Giveaways and contests

Grab consumer attention by giving away free merchandise. Create a social media giveaway or contest to improve your engagement and supercharge the buzz around your brand.

Giveaways and contests boost your follower count, convert leads, amplify brand awareness and increase loyalty.

Best Buy ran a giveaway for their followers to win a Theragun massage gun and a $100 Best Buy gift card as a pre-Black Friday offer. People followed the Best Buy and Therabody accounts, saved and liked the post and tagged two friends in the comments to enter the contest.

Running this contest in early November helps Best Buy grow its following, increase engagement and boost brand awareness, all in time for the Black Friday sales season.

Loyalty programs

Want to incentivize your audience to return to your website or shop with you after Black Friday ends? Promote your rewards or loyalty program. These programs typically offer discounts, coupons or early access to repeat shoppers.

Brands that give their repeat customers extra perks can encourage brand loyalty, especially if they provide an experience that people enjoy.

Yogurtland offered their Real Rewards members double the rewards points last Black Friday. The campaign framed the offer as a “shopping break,” letting them tap into the Black Friday hype without offering steep discounts, which can be challenging for restaurants and service-based businesses.

Omnichannel campaigns

Consumers are discerning. When they are looking to buy, the average consumer will now consult ten or more brand channels before making a purchasing decision.

During Black Friday, tap into omnichannel marketing by creating a seamless customer experience—from your social platforms and chatbots to email strategy and customer care. Meet your customers exactly where they are in every stage of their journey.

Share your promotions across channels and use different social platform tools to captivate your audience. During makeup brand Charlotte Tilbury’s Black Friday 2023 campaign, they promoted a 30% off their Eyes To Mesmerise eyeshadows deal on both Instagram and TikTok.

Both posts convey the same information, but they tailored the visuals to ensure each post aligns with the platform and their brand.

Community-inspired campaigns

A brand community comprises people who have an emotional connection to your brand. When you reach your community effectively, you will increase brand loyalty and even encourage customers to become brand evangelists.

Take a cue from your community when creating your Black Friday content. Get to know their other favorite brands, favorite social media aesthetics and how they spend their holidays. Use your insights to guide your social content development.

For example, following their Black Friday sales, pet supply retailer Chewy shared on Giving Tuesday (the day after Cyber Monday) that they’ll donate up to $1 million a week in pet food and supplies to local charities.

Highlighting a charitable giving campaign after Black Friday shows that your brand cares about more than just sales. It builds a positive, feel-good connection with customers, which is apparent from the comments on the post.

Black Friday marketing strategy tips

When developing a Black Friday marketing strategy for social, you need to plan ahead. Now is the time to get your content calendar in order, take stock of what’s been successful for you this year (metrics-wise) and think about how you will stand out in a swarm of other Black Friday social media campaigns.

Follow these tips to execute your Black Friday marketing strategy successfully.

Encourage opt-ins and new followers

Start building awareness for your brand by engaging new potential followers and email subscribers. Use an early-bird special to entice customers to follow your social accounts or to opt-in to your email newsletter for a unique Black Friday discount code.

Focus on growing your customer base long before Black Friday so your content can reach a wider audience.

A/B test different creative strategies

Kick off your Black Friday campaigns early to A/B test your different creative options. For example, analyze how a short-form video performs compared to an infographic with the same message.

When it grows closer to Black Friday, go with the creative format that will bring the most engagement, awareness and positive sentiment.

Partner with creators and influencers

Creators and influencers can help you generate more engagement, reach new audiences and strengthen your community on social this Black Friday. Start reaching out to them as soon as possible.

Find creators and influencers that resonate with your audience and have experience with your products to build the most impactful campaigns. Remember: the best content is educational and entertaining.

Prepare your profiles

One of the easiest things you need to do to prepare for Black Friday is to get your profiles ready. An up-to-date profile is essential to converting viewers and followers into buyers and brand superfans.

People will first notice your profile photos (both headers and profile pics). Consider updating your pictures with a holiday-inspired theme.

Consider also adding links to your profile bios (Instagram, X, TikTok) or the About sections (Facebook, LinkedIn) to your Black Friday promos.

Automate elements of your social strategy

Expect to ramp up your customer care strategy and content production as you enter the holiday season. Using automation and AI marketing resources will help you scale smoothly and prevent burnout during this busy season.

Use a social media management platform like Sprout to:

Schedule posts in advance at the best time of day
Program chatbots to handle the influx of messages
Track the performance of different post types
Use social listening to monitor brand sentiment and conversations around your brand/industry
Use AI to draft more engaging and personal customer service responses
Determine the best times to post automatically
Automate your social media approval workflow
Automate alt text generation with AI
Use sentiment detection to identify high-priority inbound messages
Schedule report deliveries

These tools will help you seamlessly and effectively execute in advance and during the big sale.

Create different promotions for different audiences

If you serve one specific, hyper-niche audience, skip to the next section. But, if you have several audience types, you should create different Black Friday social posts for each market segment.

For example, department stores should create posts highlighting holiday deals geared toward different audiences, whether it’s a customer interested in home decor and electronics or looking for clothing and outdoor gear.

Measure your campaign’s impact

Creating a reporting strategy for your Black Friday campaign is key to knowing what worked and what needs tweaking. A campaign performance report should provide insights on reach, engagement and conversions to see if your marketing efforts hit the mark.

A campaign report also lets you show leaders the direct impact your campaign had on revenue, helping you prove its value. These insights will help you make smarter, data-driven decisions to optimize your budget and resources for next year.

Black Friday social media campaigns to inspire you

Take a look at these successful Black Friday social media campaigns to help get the ball rolling as you plan yours.

REI

REI believes a life outdoors is a life well-lived. This Black Friday (and every Black Friday in the future), they are closing their doors to give their employees a paid holiday and a chance to recharge (presumably outdoors).

While the #OptOutside campaign might seem unorthodox, it aligns with the brand’s story, mission and values.

REI also encourages their customers to donate to their Cooperative Action Fund on Giving Tuesday to support grassroots organizations that are working toward their mission to, “create an equitable outdoors for everyone.”

If a mission-based campaign seems like it could be a good fit for your brand, make sure there’s brand authenticity. The last thing you need during Black Friday is a PR stunt gone wrong. Stay true to your brand.

Mejuri

Jewelry brand Mejuri went all out for Black Friday 2023, with deals for general customers and exclusive drops and discounts for Mejuri+ members.

Mejuri posted frequently throughout the sale, to the point that a Threads user joked about it. The brand responded by using the post as inspiration for a funny Reel.

Mejuri is a key example of how to have fun with your Black Friday campaign. The high volume of promotional posts over a short time can feel overwhelming for brands and consumers. But it’s also an opportunity to poke fun at yourself and relate to your audience.

Google

Google isn’t the typical brand you would think of for a Black Friday campaign, but we love their take on it.

Since people use Google to look up local retailers, the company used the holiday to highlight black-owned businesses and bring awareness to their black-owned business search function.

They launched the #BlackOwnedFriday campaign with a song and music video featuring actress Keke Palmer. Subsequent posts showed Keke visiting Black-owned businesses across the United States and talking to the owners.

Use this Google campaign to inspire you to think outside the typical Black Friday discount box. Consider using the hype around the shopping period to bring attention to your new offers or features or highlight your customers.

Amazon

Throughout November 2023, Amazon highlighted small businesses on their Instagram page with the hashtag #SupportSmallWithAmazon.

What works well about this campaign is the timing. Posting these videos well before the Black Friday shopping period signals to their audience that they care about the small businesses selling on their platform—not just on Small Business Saturday. The high production value of the videos underscores this sentiment.

The key takeaway is that if you want to take advantage of less sales-focused days like Small Business Saturday or Giving Tuesday, consider how the campaign fits into your long-term marketing and social media strategy. A one-off campaign may come off as performative and insincere.

Plan (and schedule) your Black Friday social media posts

To prepare for the retail holiday, make sure your Black Friday social media campaign and customer care strategy are in place well before the end of November.

As you build your campaign, remember to reinforce your mission, align with your organization’s goals, make your creative count and schedule your content ahead of time.

For more resources to help you plan your holiday strategy, check out our insights about holiday retail social media data.

The post How to create a Black Friday social media marketing strategy appeared first on Sprout Social.

AI in marketing examples and strategies you can use today

Jamia Kenan — Tue, 15 Oct 2024 12:00:35 +0000

There are a few universal questions that keep marketing leaders up during the quiet hours of the night: How do we do more with fewer resources? And how do we make a bigger impact without burning out our teams? How do we save time and effort while maintaining quality?

Enter the impetus for solving these challenges: artificial intelligence (AI).

AI marketing is enabling brands to increase efficiency, transform their strategies and achieve impactful results. Marketers are using AI tools to support customer segmentation, customer care, content creation, predictive analytics, reporting and more. In this article, we’ll share AI in marketing examples to inspire your strategy. And we’ll share everyday examples of AI in marketing that you’ve probably seen from top brands.

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How has AI impacted marketing

AI is transforming the marketing industry partly because of its vast applications. AI tools can automate routine tasks, freeing up valuable time and allowing you to focus your efforts on strategizing. But task automation is just one example of AI use cases in marketing.

AI empowers you to analyze vast amounts of data to better understand your target audience’s consumer preferences and behaviors. You can use this data to predict consumer behavior, optimize campaigns in real-time and deliver highly personalized content to mold an exceptional customer experience. Beyond analytics and reporting, generative AI tools can support content creation.

This dual impact of enhanced personalization and increased efficiency is revolutionizing business decisions and how brands engage with customers.

Examples of AI in marketing that you can use today

Even if you don’t realize it, you’re likely already interacting with AI. Have you used Siri or Alexa? That’s AI. Ever purchased an item suggested to you while online shopping? That’s AI. Seeing companies that use AI and how these tools are elevating customer experiences can inspire how your organization uses AI.

AI examples for personalized content and recommendations

Social media personalization makes audiences feel connected to your brand, which inspires loyalty and conversions. It is one of the most common use cases for AI in marketing as well.

Netflix uses AI to customize streaming experiences

AI can analyze customer behaviors to customize their website experiences and provide personalized product recommendations. For example, Netflix uses AI algorithms and machine learning in their product to provide recommendations for TV shows and films based on previous watch history.

The streaming service also uses Aesthetic Visual Analysis (AVA) to select the best thumbnail to display on a user’s home screen. AVA is a set of algorithms that filters through movies and shows to pinpoint the best frames for thumbnails, which is known as a frame annotation. Once frames are identified, Netflix uses data collected from your interactions on the platform. For instance, it analyzes your location, most watched genres, time spent watching and more.

Nike combines AI with augmented reality to create the perfect fit

Through Nike Fit, customers can scan their feet using a smartphone and get their exact shoe size. This feature was created after Nike shared that over 60% of people wear shoes that don’t fit correctly and half a million purchase the wrong size each year. Nike Fit uses visual data points to create a 3D model of your foot.

The sportswear brand also uses generative AI modeling to design new personalized products. Through the Athlete Imagined Revolution (AIR) project, Nike used AI to create prototype shoes for top athletes like Kylian Mbappé.

Examples for chatbots and conversational AI

Customer service chatbots can provide support 24/7, answer common FAQs and resolve customer issues efficiently. Chatbots can aid customer care professionals by addressing customers when agents are offline or by supporting escalation. As chatbots become a foundational part of customer care, consumers are seeking interactions that feel more realistic. Conversational AI uses text and speech-based tools like chatbots and virtual agents to create more human-like experiences.

Amazon’s Alexa uses automatic speech recognition (ASR)

You’ve probably heard someone say something along the lines of “Siri, call my mother.” This is one example of a voicebot, a type of chatbot that listens to vocal commands, performs set actions and replies to users in a natural speech pattern.

Along with having a conversation with you, Amazon’s voice assistant Alexa can perform various tasks like playing music, reporting weather and news, and controlling smart home devices. Voice assistants use automatic speech recognition in combination with other AI technologies to analyze speech patterns and provide voice-enabled experiences.

Salesloft uses chatbots to support lead generation

AI can be used for lead generation to engage website visitors. Salesloft helps customers transform website visitors into customers through Drift. For example, Drift Bionic Chatbots deploy chatbots in real-time with personalized responses. These bots can ask questions, provide responses and route conversations to a human sales representative if necessary. You can integrate the bot with your CRM to capture and manage lead data. These bots can also be trained to recognize your brand voice.

AI examples for predictive analytics and customer insights

Each year Pinterest releases Pinterest Predicts, a report that forecasts consumer and industry trends through their machine learning predictive methodology. But AI analytics can also be used for other predictive analytics like churn prediction and customer insights for campaign performance. These AI insights help businesses avoid losing customers and determine if their efforts are successful.

Salesforce uses machine learning and predictive analytics

Salesforce Einstein AI uses machine learning and predictive analytics to analyze historical customer data and pinpoint patterns that indicate potential churn. This AI-powered tool allows you to define specific features or that are connected to churn prediction, such as purchase history, demographics and interactions. Salesforce has an integration with Sprout, Agentforce. Sprout’s integration with Agentforce accelerates case resolution time and surfaces customer insights right where care agents already work—in Service Cloud. Salesforce’s Agentforce Assistant for Service Cloud also enables agents to more easily personalize responses to customers and enhance their customers’ overall brand experience.

Using data from Sprout and Service Cloud, Agentforce can surface answers about how a customer has previously interacted with your brand—on social and beyond—so agents get insights without digging for information, improving their time to resolution and the quality of your social customer care. Sprout is also the only social media management platform powering social data in Salesforce’s conversational AI.

Google Ads

Google Ads uses customer insights to improve campaign performance tracking by analyzing user behavior and preferences. This data is used to improve ad targeting and ensure ads reach the most relevant audience. Google Ads employs algorithms to predict which ads are likely to perform best, empowering marketers to make data-driven decisions. By monitoring and adjusting campaigns based on these insights, Google Ads helps businesses achieve stronger results and reap a better return on investment.

Examples for AI-powered content creation

The use cases for AI social media content creation are wide. AI can be used to support copywriting for social media captions and product descriptions, along with brainstorming for blog posts and videos.

Shopify Magic uses AI designed for e-commerce

Product descriptions play an essential role in convincing customers to convert. Shopify Magic will generate a description for you within seconds based on details about your product, customer information and keywords you want to rank for on search engines. This feature also supports eight languages. Along with Shopify Magic, the e-commerce platform offers the ability to integrate other AI-powered tools. For instance, there are a number of chatbots you can install on your website.

Sprout Social’s Suggestions by AI Assist support copywriting

Sprout’s Suggestions by AI Assist can support copywriting for social media by generating tailored copy that align with your brand’s voice and audience preferences. You can also choose from different tone options such as informative, humorous or persuasive to further refine your messaging. The tool analyzes past performance and trending topics to provide relevant and engaging suggestions, helping you create posts that resonate. AI Assist also optimizes your copy for different social networks so each post is suited to the unique traits and audiences of platforms like Instagram and LinkedIn. Using Suggestions by AI Assist help you save time while also enhancing the quality and effectiveness of your social media copy.

Prepare the next generation of marketers to use AI

Understanding the different AI in marketing examples is the first step to improving your strategies and achieving better results. As the digital landscape continues to evolve, staying informed and adaptable will enable you to save more time and effort. To further explore how AI can revolutionize your marketing efforts, see our AI marketing strategy guide.

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How to launch a product on social media: Strategies for success

Kimberlee Meier — Tue, 15 Oct 2024 12:00:12 +0000

A successful social media product launch should always tick a few boxes.

Cost-effective? Check. Scalable? Double-check. Positive return on investment (ROI)? Triple-check.

According to The 2023 Sprout Social Index™, 68% of consumers follow brands on social to stay informed about new products or services. The data shows consumers are discovering and researching new products on social media platforms, making it a popular way to announce your latest offerings.

The aim for a social media product launch is to generate excitement, drive sales and boost brand image. But with so much competition, it’s important to get the fundamental parts of a product launch right.

In this guide, we’ll explore the key steps and strategies to ensure a successful social media product launch. From setting goals and choosing the right platforms for your social media marketing strategy to measuring results, we’ll cover everything you need to know to make your product launch on social media effective.

Optimizing your social media product launch strategy

To launch a product on social media successfully, brands must start by setting clear goals and building a solid strategy.

Define clear goals and KPIs

According to the Index, marketers plan to connect the value of social campaigns to business goals, with 60% of marketers aiming to quantify the value of social engagements through potential revenue impact.

Before publishing a single post about an upcoming product launch on social media, clearly map out your goals and key performance indicators (KPIs) for the campaign. Are you on the hunt for mentions and new followers? Engagement from your community? Direct social sales?

Start by outlining what you want the campaign to achieve and linking these goals with KPIs that matter.

Choose the right social media platforms

Every social media network has different audiences and uses. Before launching a product, align on:

Your target audience. Understand where your target audience spends their time online, as some demographics and interests are more present on certain channels than others.
Network strengths. While TikTok is a great option for product launches involving videos and influencers, LinkedIn is well suited for corporate products or targeting larger businesses.
Campaign goals. Do you want to build brand awareness or drive people to buy a product immediately? The main goal for the campaign will help you decide which social media networks to focus on.

Craft a compelling product launch narrative

Strong brand messaging is the key to making a product launch stand out. It helps the campaign focus on what you’re selling, and why it matters to your target audience.

Highlight the benefits and unique features of the new product, but the main message should focus on connecting features to your audience’s pain points. When Grammarly launched Grammarly Authorship, its messaging focused on solving the challenge of balancing AI-written content with human oversight instead of just features.

This product launch narrative fostered an emotional connection between the audience and the product (spotting AI-written words) rather than focus on the technical aspects of how the feature works.

Building anticipation on social media

Creating excitement for a new product on social media is a large part of a successful launch. It requires a well-crafted plan full of engaging content that’s published at strategic times.

Create a launch timeline and content calendar

Teaser posts, stories and social activities leading up to the product launch are all pieces of a product launch timeline.

Although you might need all of these deliverables for every social media product launch, you will need to plan accordingly. Having a defined social media content calendar and asset library puts all of your social media marketing assets in one place, so you avoid having to scramble to fill in the gaps during a social launch.

Below is an example of a social content calendar in Sprout, which enables you to schedule your content across networks based on your timeline. This helps you align your messaging and timeline so your product launches successfully. You can also access all of your brand assets using Sprout’s Asset Library.

Use anticipatory content to promote your product launch

A good product launch doesn’t reveal too much too soon. Use a mix of “coming soon” posts, countdowns, product previews and early giveaways to drive social media engagement and excitement.

This speaks to the importance of putting together a launch timeline and your marketing creatives well before your launch to make sure your messaging is consistent.

For example, check out this email from Graza announcing its latest food product. The email previews a granola made with olive oil, natural ingredients and a limited number of boxes available to purchase.

Days later, Grazola followed up with a teaser post on Instagram asking followers to guess what the new product would be to generate interest.

Partner with influencers to generate buzz

Influencers are an ideal way to reach your target audience through someone they already trust. As long as an influencer has a strong following that aligns with your target market, they can broaden the reach of your product launch.

The main hurdle when building a partnership with an influencer for a product launch is finding one that aligns with both your brand and target audience. Tagger, Sprout Social’s influencer marketing platform helps you connect with top creators in your industry to plan and execute product launch campaigns and measure success.

With Sprout, you can find the right influencers with a target audience match, negotiate contracts and generate content calendars for your product launch. The platform also analyzes post performance across each social media network so you can measure ROI from each paid influencer you engage with.

Launch day and beyond

Launching a product on social media isn’t just about creating a buzz. It’s about executing strategic plans, promoting to the right audience and maintaining momentum after publishing your posts.

Executing your social media product launch

Successfully executing a product launch on social media is all in the details.

According to Greg Rokisky, Senior Social Media Strategist at Sprout, strong partnerships across internal teams are the best way to make a splash on socials. When Sprout recently announced its integration with Salesforce’s Agentforce assistant for Service Cloud, their teams worked cross-functionally on the launch from the moment they knew it was coming.

Sprout’s team shared information about Agentforce on LinkedIn, TikTok and Instagram Reels to help with the launch. The launch strategy involved brainstorming between the Creative and Product Marketing teams. These sessions resulted in creating social video assets that could be used across Reels, TikTok and Linkedin.

“We wanted it to be very lo-fi, so we were able to align with our product marketing, internal communications and creative partners on asset direction and who would film talent. We used Sprout’s Employee Advocacy tool to have something ready the morning it went live as well as having assets in a timely manner to be able to schedule it in Sprout at the optimal send times on launch day,” Rokisky says.

“All of this to say that to be prepared for a social-first product launch, it starts well before launch day,” he says.

Use paid advertising to promote your campaign

Paid advertising can amplify the reach of social media campaigns. It’s an investment, but can return dividends in exposure and engagement.

Decide what demographic and channel to invest in and then narrow down your audience using your chosen channel’s ad tools. For example, if you want to set up paid ads on Facebook for the product launch, you can choose to target people living in a particular country. It’ll then calculate potential reach based on your parameters and budget.

Once these parameters are built, turn your attention to crafting a message that makes your ads stand out.

Monitoring social media conversations

During a product launch, it’s crucial to have all hands on deck when it comes to customer care. This isn’t just about catching negative remarks—it’s about engaging with your audience to gather early feedback.

Since social media interactions are transparent and forward-facing, you’re not just answering them for one customer: You’re likely answering for multiple followers curious about what you’re selling.

If you are jumping between multiple social networks or have multiple people on your support team, tools like Sprout’s Smart Inbox keep all of your customer interactions on social within a single platform, all the while enabling teams to work together at the same time.

Sprout’s Listening tools can also track keywords related to your product launch to track whether audience sentiment is positive or negative.

Measuring and optimizing your results

What happens post-launch is equally important as the product launch itself. Understanding campaign performance using the metrics and KPIs you identified at the start is the best way to know how to optimize future product launches.

Analyzing your social media metrics

As your launch wraps up, use social media analytics tools to track the performance of your launch to reflect on what worked and what didn’t. This brings us full circle as you think about your goals and KPIs.

Did your social efforts result in direct sales? Did you improve storefront traffic from social? Did your mentions increase during your launch?

These answers and more can be determined through your analytics tech stack including social media analytics. Google Analytics can attribute website visits and conversions to various social networks. Meanwhile, native social analytics and URL tracking can attribute specific clicks to your social campaigns.

Sprout’s suite of social analytics tools provide a breakdown of performance across networks, including impressions, reach, engagements, conversions and clicks. With automated reporting, you can explain which social networks were most successful and demonstrate the ROI of doing a social-first product launch.

Making data-driven improvements for future product campaigns

Campaign analytics will give you the data needed to optimize your live launch activations and reflect and improve. The data collected throughout the launch will clearly show which social media posts generated the most buzz and if certain networks performed better with your audience. Incorporating these insights will help you pivot and tweak based on what the product launch campaign data tells you.

Social media product launch post ideas to inspire you

Launching a product on social media isn’t just about announcing your new product. It’s about telling a story that engages your audience. Here are some examples of brands that used storytelling to successfully launch a product.

Wilson x Caitlin Clark Limitless Collection

2024 was the biggest year in WNBA history for brands and advertisers and Wilson didn’t miss a beat when the sporting goods brand partnered with rookie Caitlin Clark to release an exclusive collection of basketballs.

The collection was highlighted on the brand’s social media for weeks, telling the story of how Clark dreamed of getting a basketball scholarship and one day making it to the WNBA. One of the special-edition basketballs featured Clark’s childhood handwriting.

To get a chance of buying a ball, people had to sign up for exclusive access and were notified when the collection dropped. When Clark’s signature basketballs finally went on sale, it sold out in less than 40 minutes.

The lesson from Wilson’s product launch is simple: Tell a story, know your audience and build up hype by making the product an exclusive offer.

ClickUp’s answer to Slack

When project management software company ClickUp launched its alternative to the communication platform Slack, they did so by going viral on LinkedIn.

The brand created a campaign called #CutTheSlack to directly challenge Slack by offering its own messaging tool as a better option. The campaign caught traction on social media because it used sarcastic humor and dared to be different in the software industry.

Not only did the campaign go viral, it also earned mentions in publications like VentureBeat after it launched.

Magic Spoon’s limited-edition launch

When Magic Spoon’s cereal started making noise in 2019, it was a direct-to-consumer (DTC) brand that could only be purchased online. It focused on marketing its product by sponsoring podcasts, making TikToks and harnessing influencers to promote its cereal online. However, the market was saturated, so it needed a way to stand out.

The brand decided to launch a limited-edition bowl and spoon for its third birthday.

The tactic worked, and the bowl went viral. Magic Spoon now re-releases the bowl in limited edition numbers and demand is always high.

Your product launch success story starts here

Launching a new product on social media is all about the planning.

It’s crucial to get your team aligned on the goal of the launch and which networks are the best for your content. Partnering with influencers to create engaging content is a great way to generate buzz for your new product, and using paid promotions can give more exposure to your target audience.

To give your next campaign the best chance of success, we put together this product launch checklist template to make sure it gets the social promotion strategy it deserves. It’s designed for creating a social-specific product launch campaign brief and setting up post-launch metrics that matter most to your brand.

The post How to launch a product on social media: Strategies for success appeared first on Sprout Social.