Social media is one of the most used platforms in this century. Billions of people use it daily to post about their daily lives and achievements.

There are different social media platforms where people engage in various activities. But social media is so much more than just sharing updates these days. 

Social media is essential for brands. It plays a significant role in promoting their business to a large audience. This is where the use of social media optimization comes in.

It is essential to optimize the content to reach a larger audience. Learning about your post’s engagement, traffic, and insights is also necessary. 

Many brands tend to make these mistakes regarding social media marketing. They ignore the crucial aspects that help the post reach a larger audience. Having a strategic plan is very important in this method. 

What Does Social Media Optimization Mean? 

The main aim of social media marketing is to use social media to reach a larger audience, and the tip and technique used in this process is social media optimization.

Creating a profile on all social media platforms is not enough to reach the desired audience. Social Media Optimization (SMO) provides an entirely different outlook. 

Coming up with a strategic plan is one of the first steps in SMO. It will help you to understand the needs of your audience. And help you design a post that targets them. 

There are a lot of benefits when it comes to social media optimization. 

• It will help you strengthen your brand. 
• Social media optimization is responsible for generating more substantial leads.
• It will help you in getting more visibility on the digital platforms.
• It will also help you to connect with the audience.

Every company these days makes use of social media optimization. With so much competition today, knowing what favors your brand is vital. Simply going with the trend will not lead you anywhere. 

Why is Social Media Optimization Important? 

These days, a majority of people are always on their phones. Being active on social media is the best way to grab their attention. People generally tend to unfollow brands that have repetitive content.

They also unfollow brands that post too much. Low engagement and lots of clutter also lead to fewer followers. Managing all these can be learned through social media optimization. 

The paramount importance of Social Media Optimization (SMO) is mentioned below. 

1. Enhanced Brand Awareness 

Social media optimization plays a vital role in brand awareness. Social media helps you introduce your brand to a larger audience.

This can be done by being present on the social media platforms. It also ensures you can maintain your engagement and remain consistent on the radar. 

Align Strategies with Mission and Followers

It depends on your company’s mission and your followers. Do you have a strong business model that [can be] leveraged on social media? Second, do you have a relationship with your followers in any way?

Is there a give-and-take, communication-wise? Once both [are] established, [then] you can focus on optimization strategies. [Regarding] following trends, it’s [more] important to focus on having a unique voice and a clear purpose.

Just getting your team to throw out a TikTok dance with the same song everyone else uses won’t cut it. You need to be an account of substance, depth, purpose, and influence.

Therefore, think about why you do what you do and what your ideal impact should be, and then work backward from there.

Jacqueline DiChiara, Content Strategist

2. Reaching the Targeted Audience 

Social media optimization also helps you in reaching your desired audience. It offers various tools that help in getting these audiences.

SMO gives you an insight into the audience that would love your post. It also makes sure that your post is redirected to the right path. 

3. Real Time Customer Interaction 

SMO is also responsible for increasing real-time customer interaction. The customers will be able to provide you feedback for the same as well.

You can then consider this feedback. This will, in turn, help build trust with your customers. 

4. Content Promotion

Social media optimization gives you a platform where you will be able to promote your content. This will help you in distributing your content to a larger audience.

Your content can be of any type: audio, video, or even infographics. Social media optimization can help it all reach a larger audience. 

Leverage Data Insights for Content Visibility

You could make the world’s most beautiful [piece of] content, but if nobody sees it, was it worth the effort? [This] is why [it is] essential to stay up-to-date on the latest trends and algorithm changes.

[There are] [lots of] free social media news resources [out] there that can help keep you informed of overall trends, but what works for one brand may not work for another.

Supercharge your posts by using data insights to ensure your message [is] formatted in a way that will reach the most people possible. Seek inspiration from what you have seen do well for similar industries, and experiment to see what your followers like.

Fey Grimm, Social Media Manager, Starkey

5. Better Analysis of Data 

Social Media Optimization will also help you to optimize the data in a better way. Learning the trends will help in adding more insight to your posts.

It can then be used to strategize the content better. 

Social Media Optimization Techniques that Work 

There are a lot of social media optimization tips and tricks available. It would be best if you chose the one appropriate for your brand.

This will help you make a better strategy. And also providing quality content. 

1. Strategy Optimization 

Lacking strategy is one of the biggest reasons for poor social media marketing. This pushes the brand down and ensures it does not stay on the radar for long. Less interaction with customers also makes it go down the line. 

This is where strategy optimization comes in. The main work of strategy optimization is to develop a solid strategy. The strategy is made by considering all aspects and analyzing the data. 

2. Keyword Research 

Search Engine Optimization(SEO) is also required along with SMO. Keyword research is one of the most essential things regarding SEO.

Keyword research means finding the correct phrases and words. These words help you achieve a rank in search engines.

The chances of your customer seeing your post increase if you rank well in the search engines. 

You need to know what your customer is looking for online. Once you get to know that, it is easier to rank high in the search engines. This will also help your post in reaching a larger audience. 

Having the right keyword will also help you understand the hashtags to be inserted into your content.

Hashtags also play an essential role in increasing the rank in search engines. 

3. Profile Optimization 

We all have created our social media profiles at some time. However, creating a business profile on social media is not similar to a personal profile. It would be best if you kept certain things in mind while doing so. 

Having an attractive profile always catches the attention, and the profile picture and name of your profile highly impact the traffic on your page. Here are specific tips that you can follow to optimize your profile. 

• Select a Username: Selecting a username is one of the most critical factors. It is also essential to keep the username short and straightforward. Following this will help your customers find your profiles at ease. 
• Profile Picture: An attractive profile picture can increase your engagement. People generally tend to avoid profiles with no profile picture. The case is similar with dull profile pictures as well. Also, make sure the image is relevant to your brand and username. 
• Bio: Updating your bio is also essential for profile optimization. A short introduction about your brand will go a long way. People these days generally avoid long paragraphs. A brief description of your brand will help the customers know you better. 
• Maintain Consistency: It is always essential to maintain consistency. Use the same username and profile across all your social media platforms. 

4. Make Use of Existent Influences 

Irrespective of your work, it is sometimes challenging to reach a larger audience. This is generally the case if you are a new brand.

Trying to grow digitally will take a long time. It is, therefore, essential to take help from the existing influences. 

You can think of collaborating with already existing bloggers and influencers. They can significantly help your brand because they already have a targeted audience base.

They will help your brand reach a large audience, and you will also get an idea of their likes and dislikes. You can also take feedback from them and implement necessary changes. 

There are different kinds of influencers and vloggers these days. You need to choose one whose content is somewhat related to your brand.

5. Content Optimization 

Content is everything in social media optimization. The content is mainly divided into two different parts. 

• The original content produced by your team.
• Contents that are curated from other resources. 

It is always better to mix the two different types of content. Combining these two types of content will give you an idea of the trend and ensure your content is fresh. 

The original content is the content that is made by your team. It can be infographics, reports, texts, pictures, or anything else. 

Curated content is the exact opposite of original content. In this type of content, the idea is curated from other resources. It can be different brands, social media influencers or anyone.

Mixing these types of content will lead to higher engagement, provided that it meets the expectations and needs of the audience. 

You also need to ensure that the content you are taking inspiration from is relevant to your brand. You cannot curate anyone’s content and expect it to have a higher reach. The more the audience will be able to engage with your post, the better it is. 

Prioritize Video Content in Strategy

Video content is on the rise, and although it’s been around for many years, more and more people are opting for fast-paced videos over static images or pieces of text.

Platforms such as TikTok and Instagram Reels have made audiences tune out [when it comes] to long-form content, and there’s been significant research on videos gathering more views online.

Although the content will be about the same topics, businesses should begin to opt for more videos within their social strategies, replacing infographics and text with either their videos or UGC.

Annie Everill, Digital marketing executive, Imaginaire

Combine Hashtags with SEO Tactics

Incorporating an SEO strategy that includes [both] hashtags and keywords into a content strategy is one of the best ways to maximize reach and engagement from what you share online. 

There’s a continued debate on whether one is stronger than the other in an SEO strategy, [but at] Scott Social, we believe that using both can only enhance reach and engagement.

Because social media is turning into a search engine [itself], incorporating relevant keywords into the body of posts and even on the profile [itself] will make your business that much more searchable.

Right now, video content is the #1 post type to boost engagement for your business. On nearly every social channel, video content is [being] prioritized, [and because] of this, this type of content performs well for those who do it right.

Keep it short, to the point, and valuable for the best engagement from your audience.

Chelsea Evans-Flower, Owner, Scott Social

6. A Fixed Posting Schedule 

The time you post your content has an impact on the engagement. Everyone doesn’t need to post at the same time. The posting time also varies for different groups of audiences. The best time for your post is primarily dependent on the type of audience you have. 

Always understand at which time your audience is engaging the most. It would be best if you found this out by keeping track of the previous engagements.

Monitor the posts you made earlier and check for engagement, then find an average time range where your audience interacted the most. 

The frequency of posting also plays an important role. Do not post anything abruptly on the internet.

If you have two best times during the day, then post those times. If you have one best time, make the most of it. Posting too much stuff at a single time might draw away the attention. 

Do not trouble your followers with too many posts in a day. Also, do not let them think that you are inactive. Hence, one or two daily posts keep the engagement intact. 

By the social media platform you are using. There is an average post frequency that you should follow. 

• LinkedIn: 2-5 posts per week 
• Facebook: 3-10 posts per week 
• Twitter: 5+ posts per week 
• Pinterest: 5-10 posts per day

7. Social Media Analytics 

Keeping track of your social media activities every day is significant. This will help you track the data, the engagement, and other aspects. This also explains how well or poorly your strategy is working. 

Keeping an eye on the traffic is essential. Apart from that, it would be best if you also track the social media metrics. The social media metrics effectively show the engagement on the posts. This will follow the likes, comments, dislikes, retweets, and others. 

There are different kinds of analytics tools available these days. Social media champ is one of the best tools for this. It can easily track all your activities on the social media platforms. They use easy-to-read graphs to explain everything in detail. You can also convert the reports to PDFs. 

Maintain Consistent Branding and Interaction

From my experience, a few common mistakes brands make in social media marketing include:

1. Lack of consistent branding: Brands often fail to maintain a cohesive visual identity and messaging across their social media platforms, which can confuse and disengage their audience.
2. Ignoring audience engagement: Some brands focus solely on broadcasting their messages without actively engaging with their audience, missing out on valuable opportunities for interaction and relationship-building.
3. Neglecting data analysis: Many brands overlook the importance of analyzing social media metrics and insights to understand what content resonates with their audience and optimize their strategy accordingly.

Social media optimization (SMO) can help address these issues by:

• Establishing a consistent brand presence: SMO involves optimizing social media profiles with consistent branding elements such as logos, colors, and messaging to create a unified brand image across platforms.
• Encouraging audience interaction: SMO strategies emphasize fostering meaningful conversations with followers, responding to comments and messages [promptly], and encouraging user-generated content to boost engagement.
• Leveraging data-driven insights: SMO [involves regularly] analyzing social media metrics to identify trends, understand audience preferences, and refine content strategies for improved performance and ROI.

Devon Yancey, Founder, Yancey Social

8. Test Headlines 

What you see being posted on social media is far beyond what you see. For a post or tweet to go viral, there are specific parameters.

An optimal design is one of the main things associated with these posts. In addition, a catchy headline is what attracts the audience. 

Using variety in the headlines is advised. Repetitive use of similar headlines will make the posts boring. This is when the audience tends to skip your post.

You can use a fresh headline every time you post new content. Recycling the old headlines from time to time can also be done. 

Another important tip is to have different headlines across social media platforms. Having other headlines will ensure that different types of people engage with your post. The same content will reach different people on various social media platforms.

9. Relevant Hashtags 

Hashtags also play an essential role in optimizing your social media. They increase visibility and also help categorize the content. This way, the audience can track your posting based on different categories. 

Hashtags are as crucial as the content these days. They are used across every social media platform. Every platform has a different hashtag integration going on.

The hashtag integration used for Facebook is more accessible than other online platforms. 

You can also use hashtag-generating software if you do not understand what hashtag to use. This will make your work easier. The software also generates trendy hashtags that go well with your posts. 

10. Engaging Visuals and Texts 

You will have a minimal reach if you use too many posts and minimum visuals.

People do not have time to sit and read paragraphs you write on social media. They look for short, crisp, and informative content.

This is why strengthening the image of your brand is very important. You will need to create helpful content that is loved by the audience. 

Making your audience react positively to your content is one of the primary goals. Memes, videos, and tutorials are some of the highly engaging content you can use. 

Also, make sure that your post or content is visually appealing. This will make people share and enjoy your content. You can even create live streams from time to time. This will provide the highest level of engagement. 

Emphasize Imagery in Posts

When it comes to social media optimization, imagery is more important than ever before. And if you’re groaning at the suggestion, let me say I was right there with you! I’m the CEO of a recruiting firm [working] in the industrial sector—not exactly a sphere that lends itself to visuals.

But it’s not just a Gen Z issue. Everyone’s attention span is dwindling, [and that means] you need to pique interest quickly. Images do that in a way that long copy can’t.

So I’ve had to ditch the wordy content, and I’d recommend others follow my example. Finding a way to communicate via images and video takes some effort, [but] it’s worthwhile if you want to compete on busy social media platforms.

Linn Atiyeh, CEO, Bemana

Key Takeaways

Social media marketing can completely change the game of your brand. It will help you reach a larger audience in less time. To make this happen, social media optimization is needed. 

Include social media optimization in your plan the next time you engage in content making. Using a strategic approach for your social media platforms can completely change the game. 

Guest Author: Saket Kumar

Last Updated on April 14, 2024 by Saket