How do you test social media strategies and tactics across industries?

1 Know your industry benchmarks

Before you start testing your social media strategies and tactics, you need to know how your industry performs on social media. This will help you set realistic and relevant goals, compare your results with your competitors, and identify areas of improvement. You can use tools like Socialbakers, Rival IQ, or Sprout Social to get industry-specific data on metrics like reach, engagement, sentiment, and conversions. You can also research industry reports, case studies, and best practices to get insights into your audience's preferences, behaviors, and expectations.

2 Define your objectives and KPIs

Once you have a clear picture of your industry benchmarks, you need to define your objectives and key performance indicators (KPIs) for your social media campaigns. Your objectives should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART). Your KPIs should be aligned with your objectives and reflect the outcomes you want to achieve. For example, if your objective is to increase brand awareness, your KPIs could be impressions, reach, mentions, and share of voice. If your objective is to generate leads, your KPIs could be clicks, conversions, and cost per lead.

3 Choose your testing methods

Testing your social media strategies and tactics across industries can be done in a variety of ways. A/B testing involves creating two or more versions of the same element, such as a headline, image, or call to action, and observing which one performs better. Split testing involves creating two or more different versions of the same campaign, like a different offer, message, or audience, and running them simultaneously. Lastly, multivariate testing involves testing multiple elements and combinations of elements at once to optimize your results. Tools like Facebook Ads Manager, Hootsuite, Optimizely, and VWO can help you run these tests on your social media platforms.

4 Analyze and optimize your results

After you run your tests, you need to analyze and optimize your results. You can use tools like Google Analytics, Facebook Insights, or Twitter Analytics to track and measure your social media metrics and KPIs. You can also use tools like BuzzSumo, Mention, or Brandwatch to monitor and analyze your social media sentiment, feedback, and reputation. You should look for patterns, trends, and insights that can help you improve your social media performance and impact. You should also document and communicate your findings and recommendations to your team, clients, or stakeholders.

5 Repeat and refine your tests

Testing your social media strategies and tactics across industries is not a one-time activity. It's an ongoing process that requires constant monitoring, evaluation, and adjustment. You should repeat and refine your tests regularly to keep up with the changing needs, preferences, and behaviors of your audience, industry, and market. You should also experiment with new ideas, formats, and channels to test your assumptions, challenge your limits, and discover new opportunities.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?