The Impact of Social Media on Brand Management
Creating and developing a brand in today's modern economy requires business professionals and entrepreneurs to establish a presence on social media. The impact of social media on branding is incredible, with data clearly showing that social media engagement has a direct impact on brand visibility and brand reputation. Understanding the role that social media plays in brand management can allow you to develop precise and effective marketing strategies.
The Role of Social Media in Brand Management
Social media is a pivotal part of any brand management strategy. Vast numbers of consumers are connected to the brands they support on social media, requiring businesses of all sizes and industries to invest in social media marketing strategies that bolster brand image.
How Social Media Shapes Brand Perception
Social media has the power to shape the individual consumer's perception of a brand, largely due to the principle of reciprocity. By witnessing other social media users like, follow, interact and purchase from a brand, consumers are more likely to trust the brand and be willing to engage with them.
Key Social Media Platforms for Brand Management
Before you can begin building your presence on social media and enhancing your brand identity, you will need to identify the key social media platforms to use for brand management. According to the American Marketing Association, some of the most valuable social media platforms include legacy platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram, and video platforms, such as YouTube and TikTok.
The Shift From Traditional to Digital Branding
Recognizing the power of social media, marketing professionals have shifted from traditional branding strategies to digital branding strategies. Digital branding strategies allow marketing specialists and marketing managers to leverage social listening tools and key metrics to collect actionable data, which can be used to guide their future branding campaigns.
Opportunities Social Media Offers for Brand Growth
Social media ushered in a new era for branding, in which businesses of all sizes could develop positive brand images with their target customers. Prior to the social media era, only the largest corporations had access to the traditional branding tools required to develop a cohesive brand presence among consumers.
Social media can help support brand growth and development by:
Enhancing Brand Visibility and Awareness
Social media allows you to access customers from around the world in a matter of moments, ultimately expanding your ability to raise awareness about your brand and improve your online visibility overall. It is one of the most powerful marketing tools for attracting new customers and developing a sense of brand loyalty.
Building Customer Relationships and Engagement
Social media lets you stay connected with your customers in an organic and personal way. By creating content that is relevant, useful, interesting and enticing, you will be able to increase social media engagement with your followers and allow them to develop a deeper sense of brand loyalty.
Content Marketing and Storytelling
By prioritizing content marketing for brand awareness, your organization can stand out in a crowded social media landscape. Content marketing and brand storytelling on social media allow you to share more insights into your organization and allow you to increase engagement levels with your target audience.
Data-Driven Decision-Making
By leveraging the power of social media to improve your overall brand identity and visibility, you can also improve your ability to make data-driven decisions. By collecting consumer data and relying on key metrics, you can begin to develop a deeper understanding of your customers. Through analytics, you can learn more about:
- Who your customers are.
- What they prefer to purchase.
- What drives their decision-making process.
- What type of content they like to see.
When you collect and analyze this type of data, you can continue to refine your brand management efforts and improve your social media marketing strategies.
Challenges of Social Media in Brand Management
While social media opens up an entirely new world of opportunity for brands of all sizes, it also comes with a host of new challenges, many of which are quite complex.
Some of the most common challenges that marketing professionals and brand managers may have to navigate when using social media for brand management include:
Handling Negative Feedback and Crisis Management
Sometimes, a seemingly simple post can set off the fury of the online masses, sparking a viral outrage that can require brand managers to implement their social media crisis management strategy instantly. When handling negative feedback, Sprout Social notes that you can effectively manage the crisis by:
- Identifying the level of the crisis.
- Creating clear and effective communications that address the needs and views of your customers during the crisis.
- Showcasing your customer service through social media during the crisis.
- Providing insight into the next steps the brand plans to take.
Maintaining Consistent Brand Identity Across Platforms
Most brands rely on various social media platforms to reach as many consumers as possible. However, it can be difficult to maintain consistency across platforms, particularly when the type of content created for each platform can vary significantly. Using consistent messaging and weaving brand images into your content can improve consistency overall and create a cohesive social media branding strategy.
Balancing Paid and Organic Reach
Social media brand managers have to delicately balance the power of paid social media marketing campaigns and organic social media content. By relying too heavily on one or the other, your brand visibility may suffer, due to the nature of the complex social media algorithms used by the leading social media platforms.
Privacy Concerns and Ethical Considerations
At all times, brands must protect the privacy of their consumers and work to ensure that the content they are posting is fair and ethical. Before you post images of your customers on social media, you must make sure that you have their express permission to do so.
Best Practices for Effective Social Media Brand Management
While each brand's needs will vary, specific social media brand management strategies work well for any organization, regardless of its size or scope.
These are the best practices for social media brand management:
Establishing a Clear Brand Voice and Identity
Before you begin posting stories on Instagram or creating TikTok videos, you will need to establish a clear brand voice and identity that your consumers can associate with your products and services. The needs of your target audience should dictate the voice and tone of your brand, so you will want to complete effective market research before you begin the branding process.
Engaging With Your Audience Effectively
Know your audience and provide them with the type of content that interests them most. Don't be afraid to get up close and personal with your audience on social media, as this is what modern consumers expect, and what they genuinely love about interacting with brands on social media.
Leveraging Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing for brands is one of the most powerful and lucrative opportunities on social media. Through social media influencers, you can reach your target audience in new and exciting ways. Influencers are seen as objective, trusted sources, and their followers are inherently motivated to purchase what they recommend.
Using Social Media Analytics for Optimization
Social media analytics allow you to collect real-time data about your consumers, and give you the ability to optimize your branding strategies to improve your brand visibility and increase your social media engagement.
The Future of Social Media in Brand Management
Social media is expected to continue to play a critical role in online brand management, requiring marketing professionals to continue to learn about the leading social media brand management strategies.
Emerging Trends in Social Media Marketing
The social media landscape is constantly evolving, which keeps social media marketing and branding experts on their toes. Some of the emerging trends in social media marketing include:
- An ongoing shift toward macro- and micro-influencers, who can provide you with more immediate access to niche audiences.
- The continued influence of short-form video, which is the most engaging content on social media.
- The integration of AI and AR filters, which will redefine the type of content that brands create.
Adapting to Algorithm Changes
Constant change has long been a part of the social media landscape, and marketing professionals must work to remain aware of algorithm changes that can impact their brand's online visibility. Being able to adapt accordingly and continue to create relevant content that will achieve top rankings is a crucial part of your success as a social media brand manager.
Building Long-Term Brand Loyalty Through Social Media
Getting followers is only the first step — the next step is to keep them and ensure they remain engaged with your brand. Social media engagement is crucial to long-term brand loyalty, requiring marketing professionals to work to create relevant and interesting content actively.
Explore the Leading Online Brand Reputation Management Strategies at Indiana Wesleyan University
Building a brand on social media requires you to go beyond the basics. Today's most visible and impactful brands employ the leading social media marketing strategies to expand their reach and form lasting connections with their target demographics. At the DeVoe Division of Business at Indiana Wesleyan University, we offer academic programs across all business disciplines, including marketing. Throughout our academic programs, you will become proficient in the leading online reputation management tools and learn how to employ the best social media brand management strategies.
Find your program and request more information about Indiana Wesleyan University today!
Sources
https://www.indwes.edu/academics/cas/school-of-professional-studies/division-of-business/
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/impact-social-media-brand-building-cilteams-gudlf
https://hbr.org/2016/03/branding-in-the-age-of-social-media
https://medium.com/@hi_61274/the-impact-of-social-media-on-brand-management-e4e795fe7a1
https://www.ama.org/marketing-news/social-media-marketing-platforms/
https://sproutsocial.com/insights/social-media-challenges/
https://sproutsocial.com/insights/guides/social-media-crisis-management/
https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/managing-social-media-for-companies
