Social Media / Articles

[ATP]

Hi Mozzers,

I have a couple of questions regarding starting out into social media with an e-commerce website. Most of my experience lies in niche content where a social media following is more natural.

Having completed most of the site audit (at least the planning). Its time to begin planning the next move into writing articles on the blog and heading out into social media to facilitate link building whilst i finish off creating the last of the updated website content.

I have plenty of subjects I can think to write about and many keywords to target with articles on the website. But I could do with some advice linking this into social media.

We have youtube, google+, facebook and twitter accounts but all of them are inactive bar profile information and have almost no following.

We sell technical measurement equipment across a selection of niches.

My plan is as follows so far,

1. Write 5-10 amazing new articles across the selection of products
2. Link to them all on each social media platform to begin populating each with content
3. Populate the website homepage with links to all our social media accounts to encourage following
3b. Include adverts stating discount codes etc can be obtained by following us on social media

a little unsure where to progress from this point, I have no budget available at the moment, but may be able to obtain some if I can achieve some results without.

As always thanks for your time.

[gowebsol]

Greetings!

Sounds like you have done some good already done and plenty of work ahead of you. Looking at your plan, I have a few suggestions that may help.

1. On your articles, consider creating a how-to or demonstration video to go along with the articles. This will give you video content to go along with the blog that you can optimize separately and will make that article more "sticky".

2. I'd also consider something tangible people can download to accompany each article, like a guide, checklist, diagram, infographic or something else of value. Keep it short, like 1-2 pages at the most, and put your branding and contact info all over it. The more graphical the better to increase the sharability on social media.

3. In addition to homepage links to social sites, I'd consider them on every page. I'd also add social sharing buttons to your blog to make sharing the content easier for users.

4. At the end of your articles, suggest one or more products that tie in with the article as a call to action. Even stronger, offer a discount or bundled offer.

5. An outreach campaign to potential influencers can really boost your social media marketing efforts both now and long term. Find some bloggers or journalists, and start interacting with them in social media or even directly in email. I regularly solicit input and link to content of influencers, creating good will. That often turns into then doing the same in return, giving my great links and mentions in their content.

That's 5 quick suggestions. I'm sure there is some more good input from the group. Best of luck!