We get it, social media marketing can be overwhelming. But if you break down your advertising strategy into a handful of easily optimizable elements, it becomes yet another powerful business-building tool in your marketing arsenal.

As a growing advertising agency in Omaha, we’ve helped our clients drive brand awareness and increase sales by optimizing these five elements of their social media ad strategy:

1. 1. The goal
      If you’re using social media as a business growth tool (which you should be!) you’ve got to start with a clear goal in mind. Do you want to increase visitors to your website? Make more sales through social media? Just get more eyeballs on your brand? Build (or rebuild) your company reputation? Create buzz around your grand opening?There are as many different goals as there are companies! So get clear on your end game before you up your ‘gram game.

1. 1. The ad audience
      Got your goal? Good! Now it’s time to define your ad audience. Start with questions like:
      – What social media platforms do they use the most?
      – What are their demographic details, like age, location, and family structure?
      – What is their education and professional background?Once you’ve developed your audience persona, you can use this information to narrow down the social media users your ads will reach.BTW, this step is more complicated than it sounds. To effectively build your target market persona, it’s best to work with a local advertising agency (like Omaha’s own, MediaSpark!).

1. 1. The visuals
      When it comes to ad visuals, it’s time to pull out all the stops! The scroll-stops, that is. You want your ad visuals to be compelling, interesting, and self-explanatory or curiosity-invoking. Remember, on platforms like Facebook and Instagram, only the first few words or lines of text are visible when scrolling. So you’ve got to make sure your image or video quickly captures attention.The best kind of visual content to use for your ad varies by platform. On Instagram and Twitter, videos and GIFs get the most engagement. And carousel ads (those with multiple pictures or videos in one post) drive strong engagement on Facebook.

      Pro tip: Now’s a good time to do some A/B testing. For more info on how A/B testing can save your marketing budget.

1. 1. The copy
      A picture (or video) may be worth a thousand words. But you still need to add a bit of strategic copy to your social media ads. As a general rule of thumb, shorter posts that aren’t cut off by “See More…” perform better. Consider including a few eye-catching emojis too—if appropriate for your brand voice.

1. The call-to-action
   What action do you want your audience to take after they see your ad? Do you want to grow your platform following? Sell a product? Drive traffic to your website or an RSVP form? Tell them!Use your caption, visuals, or a specific call-out button to direct your viewer towards the first step. Remember, the more clear and simple your call-to-action, the better. Focus on just one request per ad.

Social media marketing isn’t hard, but it does require some strategizing!

Making social media work for your business takes planning and intentionality. But when these five elements are optimized, you can unlock a new level of growth, sales, and brand awareness for your business. It’s time to reach your newest customers where they’re at—online!

Calling all Omaha businesses! If you’re looking for an advertising agency that knows how to make social media marketing work for you, let’s chat. We can’t wait to watch your business grow!