The 10 Step Guide to Increasing Brand Awareness with Social Media

We love social media here. It’s so … so … multifaceted. Where else can you see industry trends, baby pictures, live news, “fake” news, and relationship drama all in one place?

Social media also reaches a lot of people, so pay attention for some tips on increasing brand awareness for your B2B company.

Increasing Brand Awareness with Social Media

Learning how to increase brand awareness with social media can elevate your inbound marketing strategy. Here are 10 ways to achieve this:

     1. Develop a Strong Message
     2. Stay on Target
     3. Be Responsive
     4. Share Your Content
     5. Share Third-Party Resources
     6. Emphasize Visual Content
     7. Optimize for Social
     8. Reach Them 'Where' They Are
     9. Reach Them 'When' They Are
    10. Keep the Posts Comin'

1. Develop a Strong Message

Who are you? What do you stand for? Why should a buyer come to you? A following will gather around a content marketing campaign with a strong, consistent message.

You must become a great storyteller who tells great stories about:

• Yourself
• Your brand
• Your industry
  
  

2. Stay on Target

Keep it relevant. Keep it simple.

If you need to increase brand awareness for your business, social posts of your kids (no matter how cute they are) or your lunch will mean little to your ideal buyers. Give them content of value. Give them something actionable (even if action at an early stage of their buyer’s journey means only sticking with you to read more).

3. Be Responsive

Social media happens in real time. That’s a great thing. Presumably, if a client or potential lead reaches out with a question, you’ll feel the phone buzzing in your pocket right then.

Don’t leave them hanging. Too much time without a response, and they’ll seek answers elsewhere -- likely from a competitor.

Prompt, direct responses will delight your followers and show them you value their interaction and business. You can also weigh their input with surveys.

4. Share Your Content

Do you have a blog? If not, GO GET ONE, especially if you’re you’re using the inbound marketing methodology to educate potential buyers along their journey.

You can share your:

• Blog posts
• Landing pages to premium content offers where you can convert visitors into sales leads by gathering critical contact info
• Videos/infographics/podcasts
  
  

5. Share Third-Party Resources

It’s not about being intrusive and showing off what you do, particularly with inbound. You need to be an industry thought leader.

Did you come across a:

• Blog posts with info on a related field?
• News article about trends?
• Video demonstration?
• Customer testimonial?
• Whitepaper?

Share it all. Establish your company is an educational resource before, during, and after the sale. Also, sharing a competitor's article shows potential customers you’re not afraid to spread industry wisdom, no matter the source.

6. Emphasize Visual Content

It’s not enough to post just words. Social media users scroll and then stop on something interesting. What would you consider eye-catching? Probably a video or a photo.

Accompany your post with an artistic element to stop disinterested scrollers in their tracks.

What’s more appealing of these two fake examples?

"Looking for a company retreat with a beach getaway? Look no further than Todd Todderson’s Beachfront Paradise."

-or-

"Looking for a #companyretreat with a #beachgetaway? Look no further than @Toddersons_Beachfront #Paradise. Visit www.fakeurl.todd"

Kind of a no-brainer, right?

7. Optimize for Social

Look again at those fake example posts. Which one is more likely to be found among the 500 million tweets sent per day or to make the list of 4 million Facebook likes per minute?

You have hashtags in there to register for things people may be trying to find. You include the social handle so @Toddersons_Beachfront may reshare with its followers. You include a link to the site to read more or book a reservation. And who would gloss over that beautiful picture?

8. Reach Them ‘Where’ They Are

Some social channels are better for reaching certain segments of the population. Consider these numbers:

• Facebook is more generalized: 72% of online adults have an active account
• LinkedIn reaches a more professional crowd: 25% of online adults and 46% of college graduates have an account
• 71% of Pinterest users are women
• 30% of online urban residents use Twitter, while only 21% or suburbanites and 15% of rural residents do
  
  

9. Reach Them ‘When’ They Are  

Know the science behind reaching your buyers at the ideal time. When are they most likely to be checking out their news feeds? And, perhaps more importantly, when will they be open to considering purchasing your style of product or service?

• Before leaving home?
• Before leaving work?
• While at work?
• While lounging around and watching TV?

Keep in mind, 80% of the U.S. population lives in the Central and Eastern time zones. (Here are some more excellent social timing stats.)

You can use HubSpot analytics to figure out when your target audience is most likely on social media and also what resonates. If not, research your competitors’ social media activity to learn:

• Which channels generate the most response
• Which days and times work best
• Ideal styles of content
  
  

10. Keep the Posts Comin’

It’s disheartening to find a business online and see that its people haven’t posted anything since June 18, 2013. Don’t let your social media presence become a digital graveyard of stuff out of touch with today’s reality.

Ideally, you’d post on a daily schedule. It’s the perfect way to stay engaged with your potential client base. Oh, and what luck, most of the social media world is FREE (unless you’re venturing into ads and boosting posts).

Increase Your Brand Awareness on Social Media

Looking to increase your brand awareness? There’s a ton of power on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram, and the like. Learning how to build a strong B2B brand awareness strategy is important for your business. Social media can be pivotal in the success of your content marketing strategy!

Learn more about building a strong B2B brand awareness strategy by downloading our free ebook here:

(Editor's Note: This article was originally published in July 2017, but was updated in November 2020)