Last month, we discussed why you need digital branding – topics included: Mindset for Digital Branding Success; Find & Define Your Identity FIRST: Who Are You Trying to Reach? What Do You Want from EACH Platform? How Can You Expand Your Audience? and Creating Strong Digital Branding Content.
Now, let’s talk about the nuts and bolts of getting this valuable content online.
What Kind of Content
As we previously discussed, everything you put on the web is going to do the following:
- Inform,
- Build A Relationship With Your Audience, and
- Have A Call To Action.
There are a variety of mediums that can deliver your messaging and establish your digital branding. For instance, platforms like Instagram, TikTok and Facebook allow you to go live.
This form of content is great, because you can interact with viewers in real-time. It gives you the ability to talk at length and address questions.
Better yet, “Lives” can stay up as permanent video posts – which is the next type of content on our list.
In my opinion, videos are the best type of content for social media. Video strengthens digital branding because people can really get a sense of your personality. Long story short: it shows a human is behind the business.
Depending on where you upload, these vids can be as short as 15 seconds or as long as several hours. And a Pro Tip: cut up longer videos for Reels, TikTok, etc. It allows you to repurpose and maximize results for videos on social media. Keep this timing in mind as you are filming, because I’ll touch on it more in the future.
People love pictures – namely, graphics. Graphics are a powerful asset on social media. However, in order to work they have to be done a certain way. So, edited photos or crazy effects aren’t the way to go here.
Think back to the three pillars of every post: Value, goodwill, and an offer.
Consider creating infographics that provide tips and information related to your industry. Another perk of these posts is that they are very shareable. That means your followers will repost them for others to see, organically growing your reach.
Don’t worry about being tech-savvy. Tons of apps can assist you in creating graphics. Additionally, you can often find freelance graphic designers who are reasonably priced.
Nevertheless, we cannot forget the OG of social media posts … Yes, there are still those who prefer to READ to get information. Consumers believe what they see, not what they hear. With that in mind, don’t underestimate an old-fashioned text post. After all, text-based content, like longer Facebook posts or blogs, proves to your audience that:
- You are an industry authority.
- You can express yourself clearly.
- And, you can be trusted.
At the end of the day, those are the ultimate goals of any brand.
There is much more ground to cover with your digital branding strategy.
At the end of the day, amazing content does nothing for you if you don’t distribute it!
Which Platform to Publish On
When you begin this journey, you will be tempted to make every detail perfect before it goes out. Again, I am going to give you some advice that will make you uncomfortable.
LET GO OF PERFECTIONISM.
Just like everyone begins with no followers, no one starts with great content. At the end of the day, amazing content does nothing for you if you don’t distribute it! As long as the asset you create has great information, forms a relationship with your audience and has a CTA, hit the “Post” button and publish it on every social media platform!
After all, every single piece of content you make can be resized, edited or reposted over and over. This is the “repurposing” I touched on previously.
Long-form videos can be chopped into Reels and TikToks, infographics can be transformed into listicle articles or Instagram posts. Also, don’t think people will complain that they “saw that post already.” Social media moves a mile a minute.
Even someone who follows you everywhere will miss posts you make. Remember, your target audience isn’t just following you.
Let’s put a pin in that concept as we go over the next piece of social media marketing.
When to Post it and How Often
Building upon the last topic, you are going to post everywhere, all the time – but you are going to have a method to your digital branding madness!
You will have a schedule for these assets to go up on social media at regular intervals, around the clock, 365 days a year … even while you’re sleeping.
Why you will do this should be apparent by now: because you want your message to be received by people outside your normal customer base and location!
However, don’t worry about waking up in the middle of the night to distribute your content. Some of these platforms have the option for you to schedule your posts ahead of time. There is also supplemental software designed for this purpose, as well. Regardless of how, make sure to allow potential customers a chance to get to know you online.
The Money is in the Relationship
Believe it or not, the No. 1 thing your customer will pay for is not the quality of your product –
IT’S YOU.
This is the reason influencer marketing is so effective these days. People like the influencer’s personality. They trust them. And more importantly, they don’t feel like they’re being sold to.
The difference here is that I want YOU to become the celebrity spokesperson for your company. After all, no one will promote your business harder or more effectively than you.
This is the theory behind any branding campaign – it makes sense that it is fundamental in the digital sphere, as well. Now that you have the basics, I will reveal facts about social media marketing that no one else will admit.
What NO ONE Tells You About Internet Marketing
As I mentioned before, I currently have over 8 million followers across all the platforms I use. I was even named “Top Marketing Influencer to Watch” in 2017. I am not telling you these stats to brag, by the way. The reason I bring them up is because I accomplished those things despite making tons of mistakes!
And, I guarantee that I would be ten times more recognizable and WEALTHY had I known the following facts. So without further ado, these are the secrets to cracking the social media code.
Collaboration is King
In terms of my digital branding strategy, one regret I have is this:
I SPENT TOO MUCH TIME TRYING TO DO EVERYTHING ON MY OWN.
Just like you are trying to connect with your audience, you need partnerships with people better at the game than you are. Collaboration and cross-promotion are a couple of the few actual shortcuts to blowing up your follower count. There is no reason to wait to start reaching out for these efforts, either.
If your message and product are solid, others will work with you.
CTAs Are NOT Always for a Sale
This article already covered the three pillars of every post – value, goodwill, and a call to action. However, you are not always going to ask for them to swipe their card. When establishing an online presence, brand awareness is more important than transactions.
With that in mind, other types of CTAs to ask for include:
- Follows
- Likes
- Shares
- Comments
You may have noticed that all of these non-monetary calls to action have something in common.
They are all types of engagement – which may be the most important social media metric of all.
All Engagement is Good Engagement
So, here’s the deal: No matter how great your content is, someone is going to have something negative to say about it. And you know what?
LET THEM. IT BENEFITS YOU!
See, the funny thing about these social media channels is that they register all engagement the same way. Even hate indicates to them that a post is good, so they show it to even more people! It’s pretty wild. For this reason, take negative feedback with a grain of salt.
It would be far worse if you were getting no interaction at all.
One Post Can’t Kill Your Brand
This is the perfect time to hammer home the point that you don’t need to be perfect on these platforms. With the prevalence of cancel culture, it makes people nervous that they could accidentally say the wrong thing. But, understand this: you are human and the purpose of online marketing is to showcase the humanity behind your business.
The masses forgive and forget on a daily basis. (We’re looking at you, Elon.) Don’t let fear keep you from putting yourself out there and getting some skin in the game.
The Algorithm Can & WILL Change
In ancient times of social media – the early 2000s – your number of followers indicated how many people saw your content. Unlucky for us, that is no longer the case. The programming that sorts through and prioritizes posts has changed throughout the years.
This programming – called the algorithm – is always evolving to keep users on their sites longer. Even social media experts are not completely sure how the algorithm works. However, you need to be informed about what is known and be ready to adapt as things change.
I can already hear you saying, “Grant, this is way too much work.” I promise this stuff pays off.
To prove my point, I’ll tell you how digital branding helped me land one of my biggest deals ever.
Strong Digital Branding Opens Doors
The story I’m about to tell you shows the power of an online presence. It happened several years ago in Houston, TX. I was on a business trip there to look for great multifamily real estate deals. After walking about 15 lackluster properties, I found the one. Immediately, I did some research and found out who the owner was to make him an offer. Turns out that the owner was one of the top three apartment owners in the country. When I called this guy up, his first response was that he “didn’t know me.” But, I was determined and told him I was going to fly out for a meeting.
Right before the appointment, I contacted him again to confirm that this big shot would see me. And, you’ll never believe what he told me.
“GRANT, NO NEED TO FLY OUT. MY 19-YEAR-OLD SON FOLLOWS YOU AND LOVES YOUR MATERIAL.”
Needless to say, I closed the deal and it made me approximately $20 million. This is the type of opportunity digital branding can allow you – if you stick with it.
Further Fine-Tune Your Digital Branding
I hope that after you’ve finished reading this, you have been equipped with a strong arsenal of digital marketing tools. Also, I hope you see that social media platforms are a gift that can make your business a global name. For free.
There is a lot to unpack here, so it is understandable if you still need some guidance. In that case, I recommend my Marketing Essentials Workshop. The Workshop can be attended either virtually or in person. And there, my team walks you through everything we do to feed the social media beast. Visit grantcardone.com to get more information.
But remember what I told you: it’s better to be seen and be bad at it than not to be seen at all.
So, get out there and be great.
