As budgets tighten, it’s more important than ever to make every advertising dollar count. Social Networking campaigns can be far more effective than traditional channels due to built-in audiences, interactivity, and viral effects. However, it’s just as easy to overspend on social campaigns as it is through traditional channels. Here’s how to avoid that.
1) Set Quantitative Goals and Measure Them
Social campaigns such as Facebook apps are no longer “experimental.” Brands are seeing real results and we have now reached a point where goals are moving beyond “branding” and “outreach” to “conversion” and “impression” metrics.
To spend effectively, determine the goals upfront with target numbers if possible. We’ve worked on campaigns with goals as varied as:
- Contest Entries
- Donations Made
- Downloads/Installs Performed
- Perception Changes Measured
- Clicks to Site
- Email Addresses Collected
These metrics can all have target numbers and Context Optional’s Social Marketing Platform is architected to track and report them.
2) Consider Alternatives to Custom App Development
Building a successful app is the holy grail of Social Marketing campaigns. The promise of users interacting with your brand and sharing that experience with their friends free of charge is priceless.
Context Optional has helped more than 30 well known brands get to that point, but the approach isn’t right for all projects or all budgets. We can also help with sponsorships inside of our popular applications, which spare you the cost and time of development and user acquisition. Additionally, we have a number of general purpose apps that can be customized for your campaign and deployed quickly at a lower price point.
Custom app development is still the best route for large and truly unique campaigns, but there is plenty of opportunity accross the budget spectrum.
3) Make Sure You’re Building for Today’s Platform
Social networks are evolving rapidly, so make sure you’re not simply cloning or copying a successful campaign or app from the past. What worked on Facebook last year won’t necessarily work again this year.
Viral channels on all social networks have changed — some are more restrictive and others offer new forms of communication. We often get requests for “profile widgets.” We do our best to help our customers understand that widgets are not effective and that profile boxes (on Facebook) are the least effective distribution channel. These days, we steer Facebook customers to more feed-oriented apps whereas a profile approach is more appropriate on MySpace.
4) Save Some Budget for User Seeding
Few campaigns take off on their own without at least an initial seed of users. Don’t make the mistake of spending all of your money on a terrific party that nobody shows up to! We recommend at least 5000 seeded users for a custom application before it has a significant chance of going viral.
5) Add Complexity Over Time
Unlike traditional media, social apps are easy to change over time. In fact, users of a successful app tend to demand it. If an app doesn’t stay fresh, its user growth will slow and the life of the campaign will be shorter.
By adding features regularly after launch, you gain flexibility by making informed decisions and priorities based on what sticks with users. You can also get your app out there with a smaller budget and shorter development timeline.
