Understanding Online Marketing Terms

I was talking about social media recently, with a potential client, when I realized that they had no knowledge of social media or any terms related it. The person was very intelligent and brilliant in their industry, but knew nothing about Social Media.  I am beginning to see this more and more, as they do not understand the nuances of the art of social media, nor the terminology.  Words like content curation, content creation, social media management and social media strategy are very foreign to many business owners.  The truth be told, often, business owner's really do not want to know, they simply want the peace of knowing it is being taken care of for them.  I would recommend, however, that most person's know some terms so they can understand fully what they are getting and paying for with the service they choose.

Taking care of a client's social media often includes several items, but not all are necessarily included in many company's services and not all packages include all of these items.  When looking for someone to handle your social media, you should really learn the basic terms such as:  (1) content curation, (2) content creation, (3) social media management, and (4) social media strategy.   Content Curation is simply looking for and posting articles, posts, blogs, quotes that other's have created but that you want to use on your social media (it links back to the original author as well), and usually pertains or should be geared to your target audience (those you want to reach).  Content Creation is original content created for you, which can include quotes on pictures, articles, blogs, and more. These take more time and are created specifically for you and posted on your behalf.  Social media management and strategy are terms meaning that the company will manage your social media which usually includes monitoring the discussed social platforms, commenting on your behalf (or letting you know there is a comment) and providing reports - this is a minimum management, ours includes more, but this is the basic. Strategy is often included with management and is simply applying a strategy, discussed with you and on your behalf to reach the desired numbers of target audience. These are the basic terms to know when hiring a company to do your digital marketing/social media.

If I discuss Marketing with a client, it will most definitely  include those terms.  One thing you do not want to leave out is a discussion about Google Adwords, which most are familiar with now.   Marketing is done with so many different techniques today, including various social media platforms, online ads, as well as, print, radio, television and even guerrilla marketing.  

When we post on a client's behalf, there are a lot of things that go into it and it is not simply scheduling cute dog pictures in an automation software.  

When I begin with a new client we go through a process and I have them answer a questionnaire to assist me in knowing how to best help them.  This also assists me in learning their 'voice' or tone, which we take and hopefully infuse in the posts and online ads we create for them.  It is a professional, yet personal relationship approach that helps us get to know you and the heart of who you are and who your company is and what you represent.  More importantly, what you want to represent to the world, through online marketing.   It is a process and it takes time, but we work together as a team, getting rid of what might not have worked and keeping what did work and move forward.

There is so much that goes into online marketing that many do not consider and I guess that really is the beauty of it, because if we do our work right (esp. after getting to know you better) you, the client should not have to consider these things fully either.   It is not simply social media, posting curated content, answering posts, etc..., it is much more than that.  It is a matter of knowing who our client is and what it is that they want to say to the world and interpreting that into copy, pictures, article content & more so that it is your voice.  Next time when talking to someone about your online marketing be sure to include these new terms and see what kind of answers you get this time.  

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