We work with clients regularly to help them evaluate or establish various channels of online communication with their key audiences. Social media is obviously often part of the process we use in helping them connect with these audiences. Often, but not always. When it is, just as with any other form of communication, one thing we want to establish right up front is a means of measuring the value of this activity. 

While social media communication has become very popular due to its reach and (presumed) low cost, there is certainly cost involved. That cost can be related to staff time or consulting services. Another, sometimes overlooked, cost is the potential impact on the organization's image or brand.

How to ensure you are leveraging social media effectively? Here are some tips:

• Clearly identify your target audience and make sure they are engaged in the social medial channels you're using. Seems obvious, but this is often overlooked.
• Focus on outcome measures. Those +1's, likes and retweets may make you feel good but, if you can't demonstrate they're driving desired results, they're meaningless.
• Establish your web site and "sales funnel" as the hub
  of all online activity -- drive traffic here, monitor results and make changes to improve those results. 

These are the social media steps that matter. Are you following them? We offer more information here. 

Strategic content marketing can help you build brand presence and thought leader status both through third parties (media outlets) and through your own communication channels.

More than ever before, there is opportunity for you to write about yourself or your products and services and submit what you've written to various publications (traditional or online), or other media outlets. 

Once written, this content can be distributed and multi-purposed in a variety of ways -- blog posts, e-letter content, social media posts, podcasts, videos, webinars, etc., etc., etc. 

There are four keys to success in content marketing:

1. Have a clear strategy, and measurable objectives, for what you'd like to achieve through your content marketing efforts.
2. Create high quality, relevant and useful content that provides value to your audience(s).
3. Have a process/schedule in place to ensure that you are leveraging the opportunity to share this content in multiple places and multiple formats.
4. Measure and act on results. Use your results to provide direction for future efforts, identify best practices and indicate areas where you may be spending more effort than necessary.

We have a strong background in print journalism, online content creation and social media. Most importantly, we take a strategic approach to leveraging all available, and appropriate, communication channels to drive real results. Let us know how we can help.

Or, if you're interested in a do-it-yourself approach, we offer some tips here. We also recommend EContent Magazine as a great resource for information on content management and content marketing.