What social media should my association be using? Increase member engagement with the right platforms

Association Marketing
the right social media for your association

Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Instagram, Snapchat – in a time when social media rules across industries, it’s hard to determine what the most optimal platform is for your association. Many times, we see groups trying to manage too many social accounts, resulting in an irregular stream of sporadic posts that fail to successfully engage with their audience. What makes social media so challenging is the constant evolution across platforms – if you’re not on top of the trends, your social strategy will yield poor results. Creating a social strategy that works takes time, energy and experimentation.

Here’s the good news: you don’t need to be active on every social platform to be successful. In fact, solidifying your strategy across 1-2 accounts will likely produce better results than scrambling to keep up with 3-4 accounts. To better determine what social media platform is right for your group, check out the qualifying questions and examples below.

1. Where does your audience hang out online?

Understanding where your members are active is critical to determining what platform you need to invest in. This can change based on age and industry. If your association is comprised of individuals 65+, it’s likely that Snapchat may not be the best platform to engage with. This may seem like a silly example but by thinking through where your audience isn’t, you can begin to narrow your list of choices.

A recent article from Forbes broke down social platforms by age. “American women and men between the ages of 25 – 54 make up 32% and 29% of Facebook users, respectively. And only 9% of users are between the ages of 18 – 24,” says Jia Wertz. If your association is made up of young professionals, Facebook may not be the best way to connect. However, if you’re group is comprised of individuals in their mid-40s, linking information from your company page to a Facebook group or page, may be a great way to further member engagement.

WESOS (Women Entrepreneurs Secret of Success), an AMO user, does just this. WESOS is a networking group dedicated to connecting women in business. WESOS members frequently engage at meetings and events to learn and grow as business owners. Along with their website, though, they needed a place to connect online. Most members are in the range of 25-54 and considering the stats above, it only makes sense to have a community on Facebook – a place where they could share photos, videos, inspiring articles and group updates.

2. What platform does your industry identify with? Where do members expect to find relevant information (besides your website)?

If you’re a foodie like myself, you’ve probably seen those mesmerizing sped up food tutorials on Facebook, a trend started by BuzzFeed. If you’re not familiar, these tutorial are “sped-up, sub-one-minute videos, in which an overhead shot shows two disembodied hands creating a dish,” (The Cut). See this example below from another AMO user, The North Carolina Sweet Potato Commission in partnership with Fit Foodie Finds, a local Minneapolis food/health blogger.

So the food tutorial business was born. These videos are constantly appearing on my Facebook feed and now, not only do I expect to see them frequently but I purposely check Facebook to see them. I know what you’re thinking… what’s my point (besides making your mouth water)? These videos claimed the social platform of Facebook because Facebook provided a platform to easily share content like videos employing a following of people who now depended upon Facebook to share this content.

If we think about this in the context of, perhaps, a political association, we can see a similar pattern. Twitter is a great platform to share quick messages with the world – as Twitter evolved, we saw news channels use it to frequently share snippets of live breaking news. Now, Twitter is one of the most common ways we hear from The President. For professionals in politics, Twitter became a platform where they looked for breaking news and updates on current happenings.

Where does your association fit in? Think about the different ways in which people interact with your group to find information – what platform can best deliver that content?

3. What are your quantitative goals?

Now that we’ve thought more about our audience and industry and how those variables can help determine what social platform we should use, it’s time to think about your goals for using that platform. “Ultimately, the purpose of your chosen social media channels to is support the achievement of your strategic goals,” says Sophie Smith of Digital Marketing Institute. If you can’t pinpoint your specific reason for using a social media channel, you may want to reconsider using one at all. Before committing to Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn, determine your what your goals are. Do you want to increase awareness of your group? Do you want to provide a community for members to engage? Once you’ve answered these questions, set up quantitative goals like engagement rates or number of followers.

Developing a successful social media strategy can be challenging – instead of trying to do it all, think first about the questions above and explore which platforms could help you best communicate your message. Still stuck? Give us a call and we can walk you through the best strategic plan for your group – 866-391-9951.