Content strategy or social media strategy: Which is right for your business?

Should you be developing a content strategy for your business … or a social media strategy?

Over the years I’ve had people come to me to say, “Hey, I need a social media strategy, can you help me?”

Sure, of course I can help, but then we get to a certain point: If you’re going to create a social strategy, there’s a fair bit involved but at the heart of it, lies CONTENT.

Pull up stumps

If you go down the path of developing a social media strategy for your business, you’re going to have to pull up stumps pretty quickly unless you can effectively tackle the question: What sort of content are we going to be publish?

That’s the way I’m going to be thinking anyway: you develop a content strategy first for your owned media channels that can then dovetail into your social media and earned media efforts.

Even if you don’t run any owned media channels (not something I advise doing), you’ll still need a coherent content strategy that can then be adapted to social.

[ I explain more in the video below ]

Of course, if you want to be thorough, then you’re also going to need to know your communications goals more broadly, and how they support your overarching commercial ambitions.

It goes without saying, you’re going to have to know your audiences really, really well obviously, but again, think more expansively: who are the people who influence them? There might be content you have to create that extends beyond just your ideal clients.

FOR EXAMPLE: I once worked with a client who ran a consumer-facing business, but was concurrently exploring partnership opportunities in the B2B space, so having a credible industry profile was critical in the support of his goals. This required a different content stream altogether to what he was already doing.

Goals and audience mapping are obviously just starting points, albeit important ones. But if you want to do things properly, with purposeful intent, there are other boxes of a content (and social media) strategy you need to tick.

Again, I will stress, if you run a small business, there’s no need to overcook this process. Larger organisations, with multiple stakeholder groups, on the other hand, will require more depth of strategic thinking.

Thought leader profile

In developing a social media strategy, you might need to go off and explore different elements, depending on the size and nature of your business.

FOR EXAMPLE: You might have to factor in a channel for customer service - this is especially pertinent if your brand is B2C; you might also need to consider such things as personal branding, if an elevated thought leader profile is important to your overall PR and communications.

Speaking of which, this then will beg the question:

Where should you channel your social media (and content) efforts? Should the focus be on your business brand, or personal brand? But that’s a topic for another day 😃 

Rounding up …

So, if you’re ever confronted with the task of developing a social media strategy for your business (or someone else’s), I recommend you focus first on your content strategy and that, in turn, will dovetail nicely into your broader social plan.

However, if you want to take things more seriously and really up your game, maybe consider developing a more encompassing strategic PR and communications plan, of which content will play a leading role, along with social media and earned media.

Onwards!

TY

In case we haven’t met yet …

Hi, I’m Trevor. I help purpose-led business owners become clear and confident in how they leverage PR, content and digital communications for profit, impact and legacy.

Would you like to discuss how I can help you in a coaching capacity to build your profile and reputation as a trusted and credible expert or thought leader in your industry?  CLICK HERE TO BOOK A NO-OBLIGATION 30-MINUTE ZOOM CALL