Digital transformation has been in full swing for the past two decades, but the events of 2020 accelerated it further. This is especially apparent in the way businesses utilize social media. In recent years, it has become one of the most important marketing channels.
According to HubSpot’s 2022 Social Media Marketing Report, 64% of marketers are building social media communities. This means brands are investing in not just creating social media posts for marketing purposes, but also making sure to cultivate a loyal following and engagement.
The same report also revealed that 77% of social media marketers surveyed said that social media marketing has been effective for the brands they manage.
In addition, more than half of these social media marketers plan on increasing their investments on Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok, the top three most used social media marketing platforms according to the report.
But while social media is a powerful marketing tool, it’s not easy to manage. Even the most experienced social media managers face challenges in managing the brands that they handle.
Below, we break down six of the most common social media marketing challenges brands face and how to solve them.
1. Poor post engagement
Organic engagement on almost all social media channels has been on a downward trend. With so many brands competing against each other to always be on users’ timelines, it’s inevitable that some brands will fall behind.
This is why reach and engagement are some of the top challenges that social media managers face today. They may have great content to post, but if those posts aren’t showing up for followers, engagement declines.
One of the main reasons for poor post engagement is the constantly changing algorithm that social media platforms use. Social media managers have to remain up-to-date with these algorithm changes so they can adjust their social media marketing strategy accordingly.
With the way social media platforms are set up today, the only way to beat the algorithm is to run paid promotions on top of your organic content. And regular social media users, which may include your target audience, notoriously dislike too many ads on their timeline.
But while it’s a delicate balance between running paid ads and publishing organic posts, and getting the reach and engagement marketers want can be an uphill battle, it’s not an impossible feat.
Solutions:
- Collaborate with a micro-influencer – The influencer market wouldn’t grow at the rate it has if influencers aren’t effective in bringing brands in front of their target audience. This is why it’s a good idea to start partnering with a micro-influencer if your brand is struggling with engagement.
- Make it easy for followers to interact – A big following is nothing if your followers are not interacting with your posts. To combat this, social media managers should make it easier for people to interact by including question-based or user-generated content.
2. Time Management
Another significant challenge that most social media managers face is time management. Creating content, particularly engaging content, takes time and effort. It involves brainstorming, research, the actual creation of content, and getting approval.
Apart from these, social media managers also have to be on top of notifications and messages from the platforms they’re managing. If a brand is present on multiple social media platforms, then cross-posting and keeping up with notifications can eat up time.
Solutions:
- Define priority – Sometimes, having a presence on all major social media platforms is part of a brand’s overall social media strategy. But if some of these platforms are simply taking up time and effort without contributing meaningful interaction, it’s best to prioritize and focus on the platform tied to the brand’s goals.
- Take advantage of social media management tools – Apart from being organized, which is a must-have trait for a social media manager, issues with time management can be solved using the right social media management tools, like post schedulers and template makers.
3. Coming up with fresh and creative content
Coming up with fresh content ideas is challenging enough, but coupled with previously established issues, it can be downright frustrating.
The thing about social media is whether the content a brand publishes falls flat or becomes viral and attracts new followers, social media managers are expected to keep producing new ones.
You can’t repeat content. You have to be original not just among your competitors to set yourself apart, but also compared to your own old posts.
What’s more, the nature of constantly changing trends in social media means you can’t really prepare content for months in advance when creativity strikes because the type of content trending today will likely be outdated in the next two weeks.
Solutions:
- Strive for authenticity – It’s hard to come up with relevant posts on platforms with fleeting trends. But one thing you can always count on is the brand’s own identity. Using the brand’s distinct characteristics is one way to not just stand out, but also not have to rely on trends.
- Regularly brainstorming – You cannot underestimate the power of multiple creative brains working together, which is why regularly brainstorming with a team helps when you’re in a content creation drought. You can come up with multiple ideas in one go or combine different ones for better impact.
- Learn from successful influencers in the same niche – There are usually creators, brand advocates, and influencers who target the same audience niche that you do. And they’re influencers because they can successfully come up with content that drives What can you learn from them?
4. Coming up with the right content strategy
It shouldn’t be difficult for a social media expert to come up with a social media strategy for a brand. And yet, several factors can lead to this scenario.
Keeping up with the latest trends, as previously established, makes it difficult to come up with a solid social media marketing plan. Some brands also have a limited social media budget, which may make it difficult to come up with a strategy that works.
On top of all these, the social media platforms that brands use can also present challenges to strategizing. For one, social media experts must identify the right platforms for the brand for optimal results.
Then, they have to come up with a platform-specific strategy since social media sites have different algorithms, audience types, and content requirements. As such, cross-posting content is not always feasible.
Solutions:
- Establish clear goals and expectations – The first step to having an effective social media marketing strategy is knowing the brand’s goals and expectations. When there is a clear vision of what you want the brand to achieve, it’s easier to come up with a strategy to reach them.
- Consider focusing on a single platform – As mentioned before, some strategies may require a brand to manage an account on all major platforms. However, if strategizing is a problem, focusing on one platform may be better for business, allowing managers to create with quality over quantity in mind.
- Create lead-generating content – Remember that the main goal of social media marketing, above all, is to generate leads. As such, strategizing for social media content is easier when you know you have to produce content that reaches new audiences and generates qualified leads for the brand.
5. Measuring ROI
Measuring ROI on social media is a common challenge among brands and marketers. In fact, 28% of marketing agencies struggle with quantifying the impact of social media on their campaigns and only 17% said they can provide accurate data.
In addition, 44% of CMOs also say they haven’t been able to measure the effectiveness of their social media marketing efforts on their business and only 20% state that they can quantify social media’s impact.
Despite the widespread usage of social media as a marketing channel in recent years, it’s still relatively new, making it difficult to accurately measure its impact on a business.
In addition, different platforms have different engagement metrics, so it’s a challenge to pinpoint which of these metrics determine engagement. Should you look at likes and reactions? Should you look at the comments? Should you prioritize views or shares?
And the most important question, which of these engagement metrics drive conversion? For brands, especially small businesses with limited access to advanced tools, all these factors make it difficult to measure social media ROI.
Solutions:
- Define goals and objectives – The best way to measure your social media ROI is to associate every social media effort with a goal. These goals should be as measurable as possible, such as increasing purchases or getting people to sign up for a free trial.
- Use ROI tracking tools – Together with measurable goals and the value of the results when they’re achieved, you can support your ROI measurement by using ROI tracking tools and methods. There are advanced social media analytics tools out there that allow you to accurately track and analyze social media conversions.
All of the challenges stated above and more are the reality of what plenty of social media managers today face. And if experts like them encounter these challenges, what more people with no experience handling social media marketing for a brand?
This exemplifies why professional social media management is crucial for the growth of a brand. Without a social media expert handling your online presence, you will likely face these difficulties and more.
Social Media Marketing Made Easy
Synapse Research is an all-in-one digital agency that drives long-term growth for clients with our innovative and results-driven services, including social media marketing.
Our team of social media experts leverages top platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn to grow your audience and reach your business goals.
Set up a free consultation today.