Rachel Melegrito left her career as a university instructor to become a full-fledged content writer. She is also a licensed occupational therapist and a budding SEO strategist.
In an unprecedented global frenzy, businesses across the planet are plunging headfirst into the vibrant realm of TikTok advertising. In the heart-pounding first half of 2022, titans of industry like Amazon and HBO claimed the throne as TikTok's most monumental advertisers, with a jaw-dropping investment of $22.5 million and $19 million respectively, as per Statista's report.
Curious about why they're all flocking to TikTok? The answer's simple yet exhilarating: TikTok is a colossal coliseum of brand exposure and skyrocketing sales, buzzing with over a staggering billion monthly active users!
The introduction of TikTok for Business and Ads Manager has been a game-changer, simplifying the route for brands to zero in on their target audience in this dazzling social media universe. The plot thickened when TikTok forged a groundbreaking alliance with Shopify, unlocking a new realm of marketing possibilities for e-commerce and retail.
For small businesses, TikTok is akin to a treasure-laden galleon. A whopping 78% of SMBs proudly attest to harvesting a positive return on investment (ROI) from their foray into TikTok advertisements. Are you ready to discover the secret sauce of the best-performing ads on TikTok and sharpen your strategies to surpass all expectations and reap an extraordinary ROI? Let's dive right in.
Let's first unveil the TikTok ad formats leveraged by brands:
- TopView Ad
- In-Feed Ad
- Brand Takeover Ad
- Dynamic Showcase Ad (DSA)
- Video Shopping Ads (VSA)
- Deeplink Ad
- Branded Effect
- Branded Hashtag Challenge
- Spark Ad
Surprisingly, the dark horse, Spark Ads, despite being last on our list, claims a staggering 157% higher view-through rate compared to the typical In-Feed Ads. Yet, the crown for the highest click-through rate (CTR) belongs to TopView adverts, with a phenomenal 12–16% among all other TikTok advertising variants.
Knowledge of the different TikTok ad types is just the first stage of this thrilling journey. To truly unravel the power of TikTok advertising and catapult your ROI to unseen heights, it's time to master the art and science of maximizing the efficacy of your TikTok ads.
Mastering the art of TikTok advertising - and it is as much art as science - boils down to a few foundational best practices. Let’s dive into each of those best practices and find the best way to maximize return on your investment in TikTok advertising.
Who are you aiming to captivate with your riveting TikTok ads?
"Unlocking the magic of TikTok marketing commences with pinpointing your dream customer," advises Ryan Hammill, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Ancient Language Institute. "You must craft an intricate, quasi-fictional avatar of your ideal consumer to meticulously align your marketing efforts with the right individuals. This involves sketching out an in-depth portrait of your target demographic, complete with their preferences, quirks, and tendencies."
To resonate with the core ethos of your most valued consumers and delve into their TikTok behavior, Hammill prescribes taking into account the following multifaceted aspects:
- Age
- Gender
- Income
- Lifestyle
- Personality traits
- Aspirations
- Interests, and more.
While TikTok reigns supreme as the quintessential social media marketing hotspot for Gen Zers, the scales are slowly tipping. The echo of Millennials and Gen Xers footsteps is growing louder, as they make their presence felt on the platform. As of 2021, a significant 36% of TikTok's audience fell within the 35–54 age bracket, a notable leap from 2020's 26%.
Beyond this demographic dimension, you should also uncover your audience's expectations from your brand. Could it be a tantalizing discount they seek? Observe how The Farmer’s Dog brilliantly wooed American dog owners with a Spark ad, promising an irresistible 60% off.
Ensure your ads shine a spotlight on the most relevant content, meticulously curated to cater to the distinct desires and needs of your TikTok audience.
TikTok reveals a mind-boggling statistic - advertisements born out of a dynamic synergy between brands and influential content creators boast a staggering 91% higher six-second view rates. Moreover, these fruitful partnerships trigger a 27% leap in ad recall.
Consider Babbel's strategic move, who tapped into the enormous popularity of Ben Hanlin, a TikTok sensation with a thriving community of over 1.3 million followers. He regaled his audience with his journey of mastering a new language with Babbel, painting a vivid picture of his expeditions in foreign lands.
Why not chart your own course and craft a robust influencer marketing strategy for TikTok? Identify and connect with influencers whose ethos aligns with your brand.
Take the innovative example of SearchKibble, a search engine provider with a heartwarming mission - feeding shelter animals with every search. They partnered with powerhouse influencers who share a deep bond with their pets, such as Moca Cho Dien and Mason Glasco, boasting 8.9M and 6.6M TikTok followers respectively. These influencer collaborations propelled SearchKibble to phenomenal success, with a ROI of 2.3x, over 273,000 views, and a staggering 954,000 impressions.
Let's not forget Michael Kors' ingenious back-to-school campaign. By harnessing the power of Spark Ads to promote influencer content, they struck gold. The campaign reached an awe-inspiring 8.3 million people, amassing a whopping 58 million impressions.
A compelling call-to-action woven into your TikTok ad could be the catalyst that drives a tsunami of clicks and conversions. As per TikTok's insightful research, advertisements that incorporate on-screen text and a crystal-clear CTA are 55.7% more likely to steal the spotlight with increased impressions compared to those that abstain from text.
The TikTok Ads Manager is your secret weapon, allowing you to concoct Recommended and Dynamic CTAs:
A sterling example is PepsiCo Australia's masterstroke of deploying a 'Learn More' CTA button in their Brand Takeover ad. On the very first day, the campaign's CTR hit a blistering 24%. Overall, they reaped a solid 17% CTR and accumulated a staggering 10M+ impressions.
Hashtags are the unsung heroes of social SEO on TikTok. Long used on other platforms, many TikTok advertisers have not yet caught on to the effectiveness of hashtags on this platform. Savvy advertisers see this as a golden opportunity to expand their reach on TikTok. Hashtags serve as a beacon, guiding each user to their perfect ad match.
"To catapult your brand reach and ignite engagement, concoct a potent cocktail of trending and niche-specific hashtags," advises Carson Lang, Co-Founder and COO of Test Prep Insight. "If we were to promote ourselves, we'd sprinkle niche hashtags like #LSAT, #LSATexam, #LSATexpert, #LSATprepcourse, #lawschooladmission, #lawschoolexam, and trending ones like #lawyersoftiktok, #examprep, and #study."
As for the number of hashtags to feature, TikTok hasn't set a definitive cap, but a 100-character limit for the caption provides guidance.
For hunting down the most impactful hashtags, Lang suggests: "The Trending section on TikTok is your treasure map to the most popular hashtags. Alternatively, hashtag tracking tools like Tiktokhashtags or TikBuddy can also serve as valuable aids."
One fashion and beauty brand, Isle of Paradise, hit a home run with their custom hashtag #WakeUpandGlow in their Spark Ads to amplify brand awareness and promote their Glow Drops.
Their ad campaign returned a dazzling 500% ROI and an impressive 68% weekly revenue uptick.
Branded elements, from stickers to hashtag challenges on TikTok, can elevate your brand's presence and etch your name in the minds of potential customers. Dress your content in your brand's unique style to amplify visibility on TikTok, reel in new customers, and skyrocket sales.
We love the example of how ASOS exemplified this. The company devised an engaging Branded Effect and Branded Hashtag Challenge dubbed #AySauceChallenge. They strategically promoted this content through In-Feed and TopView ads, sparking their audience's creativity to showcase their favorite outfits. This clever initiative culminated in an astounding 488,000+ UGC videos and over 1.2 billion video views in a mere six days.
Even LG Electronics tapped into the power of a Branded Hashtag Challenge with their #lifeisgooddance and complemented it with a unique Branded Effect. This combination supercharged their brand visibility, generating 100M+ total ad impressions, 7B+ video views, and 2M+ video creations.
TikTok echoes this mantra time and time again.
Jesse Hanson, Content Manager at Online Solitaire & World of Card Games, emphasizes: "TikTok is defying the norms of traditional advertising. It's critical to embrace a revolutionary approach to advertising on TikTok. Break the mold, infuse fun into your content, don't shy away from humor, and create awe-inspiring TikToks."
According to Hanson, your TikTok ads should be:
- Concise (9–15 seconds)
- Engaging
- Authentic
- Entertaining
- Immersive
- Fun-filled
- Creative
To hit the bullseye with your TikTok ad creation, incorporate high-quality videos/images. Moreover, use an eye-catching hook (like a catchy sound, vibrant color, meme, trigger word, or other TikTok tactics) within the first three seconds to outshine the mundane.
Consider how Itsu seized attention with contrasting colors in their In-Feed ad.
Why not simplify the process and engineer automated, easily scalable campaigns? Consider using MarinOne + TikTok for Business to steer your campaigns and glean reports automatically with minimal effort. Plus, with creative A/B testing and advanced optimization, you can smartly allocate your budget and anticipate the impact of your TikTok ads.
Influencer marketing on TikTok has proven to be incredibly effective in reaching and engaging with the platform's active user base, particularly for discovery and acquisition purposes.
The effectiveness of influencer marketing on TikTok stems from influencers' ability to build trust and credibility among their followers. These influencers have amassed large followings and possess the skills to create engaging and authentic content that resonates with their audience and, if chosen wisely, with your brand's target audience. When collaborating with TikTok influencers for acquisition, it is crucial to select individuals whose content aligns with your brand and target demographic. Seek influencers who hold a strong presence in your industry or niche and whose followers match your desired demographics. By partnering with influencers, you can leverage their existing fan base and tap into their influence to promote your products or services. When influencers recommend or endorse a brand or product, their followers are more likely to take notice and consider making a purchase.
The content produced by influencers for your product or service can take various forms, such as product/service reviews, unboxings, tutorials, challenges, or simply incorporating your brand into their entertaining videos.
Pixel Implementation: Install the TikTok Pixel on your website or app to track user behavior and capture relevant data. The pixel enables you to build Custom Audiences based on specific actions taken by users on your digital properties.
Define Retargeting Segments: Analyze the actions and behaviors of your website visitors or app users to segment them into different retargeting groups. For example, you can create segments based on users who abandoned their carts, visited specific product pages, or engaged with specific content.
Create Custom Audiences: Utilize TikTok's ad platform to create Custom Audiences based on the defined retargeting segments. Upload your customer lists, sync with your app data, or utilize pixel data to create these audiences.
Develop Engaging Ad Content: Craft compelling ad content specifically tailored to each retargeting segment. Personalize the messaging and creative elements to resonate with the audience's previous interactions with your brand.
Frequency Capping: Set frequency caps to control the number of times your retargeting ads are shown to users. This ensures that the ads don't become overwhelming or repetitive, leading to ad fatigue.
Ad Sequencing: Consider creating a sequence of ads to tell a story or provide additional information to users who have previously engaged with your brand. This sequential approach can help reinforce your messaging and drive higher engagement and conversions.
Continuous Optimization: Regularly monitor the performance of your retargeting campaigns on TikTok. Optimize your ads, adjust bids, and refine your targeting to ensure maximum effectiveness and return on ad spend.
User generated content(UGC) campaigns on TikTok can be highly effective in engaging and retaining your existing user base while also attracting new users. UGC campaigns involve encouraging TikTok users to create content related to your brand, products, or services.
Here are some key steps and considerations for implementing a successful TikTok retention strategy using UGC campaigns:
Create a Branded Hashtag: Develop a unique and memorable hashtag that represents your brand or campaign. This hashtag will serve as a rallying point for users to participate in the UGC campaign.
Define Campaign Goals: Clearly outline your campaign objectives and what you hope to achieve with the UGC campaign. It could be increasing engagement, generating user testimonials, showcasing product experiences, or fostering a sense of community.
Promote the Campaign: Spread the word about your UGC campaign through various channels. Utilize your social media platforms, email newsletters, website banners, and other marketing channels to inform your existing users about the campaign and encourage their participation.
Incentivize Participation: Offer incentives to users who participate in the UGC campaign. This could include giveaways, exclusive discounts, or featuring selected user-generated content on your official TikTok account or other marketing channels.
Showcase User-Generated Content: Regularly feature and highlight the best user-generated content on your TikTok account. This recognition can motivate participants and encourage others to join in. Consider creating compilation videos or showcasing individual content creators to amplify their impact.
Engage and Interact: Respond to user-generated content, comments, and messages to foster a sense of community and connection. Engaging with your audience shows that you value their contributions and encourages ongoing participation.
Continuously Refresh and Evolve: Keep the UGC campaign fresh and exciting by periodically introducing new themes, challenges, or opportunities for users to contribute. This helps maintain user interest and engagement over time.
Measure and Analyze: Monitor the performance and impact of your UGC campaign. Track metrics such as engagement rates, reach, and user sentiment to assess the effectiveness of the campaign and make necessary adjustments.
TikTok's reign in social media marketing is indisputable. The platform is revolutionizing business advertising in breathtaking ways. By harnessing the potent TikTok advertising techniques shared in this article, you can fuel positive ROI, sharpen your competitive edge, and smash your marketing objectives.
Cut down your efforts and ramp up results with MarinOne's automated solutions and analytical tools.
Rachel Melegrito is a guest contributor to Marin Software.
When the cold call is dead and traditional B2B prospecting tactics are not enough, it’s time to derive the maximum from LinkedIn – one of the most effective social media platforms for generating leads.
40% of B2B marketers acknowledge that LinkedIn is the #1 channel for driving high-quality leads. In addition, they report two times higher conversion rates on LinkedIn. Among all LinkedIn’s products, 74% of B2B sellers prioritize the top three sales intelligence tools: LinkedIn.com, LinkedIn Premium, and LinkedIn Sales Navigator.
Indeed, Sales Navigator changes the whole leads-sales game for B2B companies on LinkedIn.
This article will enumerate some valuable LinkedIn Sales Navigator benefits and give you the most helpful tips.
So, let’s get the ball rolling with the definition.
Sales Navigator is a social selling tool on LinkedIn. It has a relationship-based system that helps you conduct outreach on LinkedIn, nurture qualified leads, and establish a robust sales pipeline.
LinkedIn Sales Navigator is a paid subscription-based tool offering monthly and annual billing. Currently, there are three plans:
LinkedIn Sales Navigator is highly beneficial for B2B organizations. Here’s why.
LinkedIn generates the largest number of B2B leads on social platforms – 80% compared to roughly 13% of leads driven by Twitter and 7% by Facebook. Using LinkedIn Sales Navigator, you’ve got the richest source of B2B data: over 75 million organizations have LinkedIn accounts.
Depending on the Sales Navigator subscription plan, social marketers have access to different features and tools to get qualitative leads and convert them into clients:
One of the Sales Navigator’s features, Smart Links, allows packaging and sharing of sales content: product overview, sales presentation, demo video, PDF case study, pitch deck, brochure, etc.
Additionally, it enables tracking your prospects’ behavior with your content. Smart Links has great selling potential and can help expose your company’s content more efficiently and increase LinkedIn conversion rates.
Based on LinkedIn’s report, Hyland Software, for instance, reduced sales cycles by 30% to 60% with the help of Sales Navigator.
A faster sales cycle is a huge competitive advantage, as it improves cash flow and gives you the fuel you require for continuous and more rapid business growth.
In 2017, LinkedIn analyzed companies from 14 different industries. All of them had been using Sales Navigator for over a year. During that time, each organization’s revenue was significantly impacted by Sales Navigator. The percentage of income prompted by social selling ranged from 51% in telecommunications to 67% in computer and network security.
Now, let’s look at the top five tactics you can use to leverage LinkedIn Sales Navigator, unlock more possibilities in B2B prospecting, and target the right buyers.
An Advanced Search option in LinkedIn Sales Navigator offers over 30 search filters for sales prospecting. It allows you to find accounts and leads, segmenting them by location, industry, job title, profile language, company headcount, etc.
“An often underestimated practice in LinkedIn Sales Navigator is the Boolean search,” says Tory Gray, CEO & Founder of Gray Dot Company.
“Booleans like OR, AND, NOT, parentheses (), and quoted search “ ” can help you prospect more efficiently and close B2B deals faster. You can use them in the keyword search bar for accounts and leads in the title field.
After using Booleans, you should refine your search results with Advanced Search. Together, they give you a more polished list of leads,” Tory mentions.
After filtering your search results, you can make a saved search.
Alternatively, you can save particular leads, click “Select all,” and then save them to one list.
Make a new lead list if you haven’t done it before.
Chris Cozzolino, Co-Founder and CEO of Uptown Creation, explains how to keep LinkedIn Sales Navigator leads organized in this video. He recommends creating four Lead lists:
Of course, you can name and organize your lead lists however it feels most convenient.
InMail is a feature that lets you contact any B2B prospect or lead with a direct message without sending a connection request first.
In LinkedIn Sales Navigator, you get 50 free InMail message credits every month, irrespective of the Sales Navigator edition. You can also purchase some additional InMail credits if needed.
Note: the open rate for InMails is 166% higher than regular emails. Besides, personalized InMails can bring you a 15% greater result than those sent in copy-pasted heaps.
Follow some pieces of advice on InMail personalization and other actionable tips on using InMail shared by Logan Mallory, VP of Motivosity:
“Targeting your B2B prospects with InMail, you should personalize your messages as much as possible so that each recipient can feel a personal touch throughout the text.
You should start with personalized subject lines, of course. But don’t forget to optimize them with attention-grabbers to achieve higher open rates. You’ve got 80 characters to do magic with your subject line, so don’t squander them.”
Check some examples of creative subject lines for InMail sends below.
Logan Mallory also believes it’s beneficial to use the Rule of Three regarding the InMail body. When three items are grouped, named, or listed together, they are more memorable, impactful, and motivational. For example: reduce, reuse, recycle. You can stick to a three-part structure in your message and group your ideas into three big categories.
Social selling leaders typically generate 45% more sales opportunities than those who have a low SSI.
SSI is a performance indicator and helpful metric to measure your efforts on LinkedIn by focusing on the four components:
Each component is worth 25 points. Your total score may range from zero to 100.
Calculating your SSI score, LinkedIn relies on the following data in Sales Navigator: a) saved leads and accounts; b) profile views; c) people searches; and d) Account and Lead Lists.
When sales and marketing on LinkedIn are properly coordinated, the customer retention rate grows by 36% and the revenue – by 208%.
Besides, LinkedIn members are 25% more likely to reply to a Sales Navigator InMail message from a sales representative when they see marketing content from that brand.
“Building brand awareness and improving engagement of your B2B audience on LinkedIn is as simple as posting short videos,” according to Max Wühr, co-founder & CGO at FINN.
“Video marketing on LinkedIn helps you communicate your brand’s message in the most effective visual way because videos perform better than images and texts. You can make your mark with B2B videos on LinkedIn and keep your prospects updated on what’s happening in your company,” he notes.
Regularly, FINN shares video updates about their business on LinkedIn. Their most recent announcement, for instance, was a video of the first car delivery for a B2B customer in the United States.
You can effectively use Sales Navigator and tap into the power of LinkedIn marketing with MarinOne to merge sales and advertising and maximize the ROI in every promotional campaign.
If you’re searching for the best methods to increase B2B leads and sales, LinkedIn Sales Navigator is a true goldmine for that. You won’t find a more powerful channel to connect with the right people on LinkedIn.
You have just seen the major benefits of Sales Navigator and the best ways of using it. Now it’s time to begin your path to B2B lead generation success on LinkedIn.
On this road, MarinOne can help you focus on your best-performing campaigns and help you understand the impact LinkedIn advertising has on your business goals through intelligent analytics. Check out MarinOne in three minutes with a product tour, or start a 30-day free trial right away.
Rachel Melegrito is a guest contributor to MarinOne.
The growth of the mobile industry in recent years has been tremendous, and this trend is expected to continue in the future.
According to a report, about 86% of the global population owns a smartphone, which is about 6.9 billion people. That's huge, right?
Due to this extensive coverage, many businesses now use mobile marketing as a powerful tool to reach and engage with their customers. As technology continues to evolve, new trends and technologies are emerging in the field of mobile marketing that are worth keeping a close eye on. In this article, we will explore the future of mobile marketing, highlighting some of the most exciting trends and technologies that businesses should keep an eye on.
From the rise of 5G to the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning, this article will provide a comprehensive overview of the most important mobile marketing trends and technologies that will shape the industry's future. Let’s dive in.
Location-based marketing is an innovative trend in mobile marketing that uses a person's device location to deliver tailored and relevant content or offers. It is made possible through location-based services and GPS technology, which allows businesses to track a device's location and send targeted messages to users within a specific area.
For example, a business can use location-based marketing to send a special offer or coupon to customers near their store. This type of marketing can also be used to deliver relevant content or promotions to customers at a specific event or location, such as a sports stadium or concert venue.
There are many benefits businesses stand to gain from using location-based marketing. One of the most important is reaching customers at the right place and time, increasing the chances of converting them into customers.
John Gardner, Co-Founder & CEO of Kickoff, adds, "Location-based marketing allows businesses to gain insights into consumer behavior and preferences by tracking their interactions with various types of content and offers."
There are a multitude of channels through which location-based marketing can be delivered, including SMS, push notifications, and in-app messages. It can also be integrated with other types of mobile marketing, such as social media marketing and mobile advertising, to create more effective and personalized campaigns.
Personalization is another fast-emerging trend in mobile marketing. It refers to how businesses tailor marketing messages, content, and offers to the individual preferences and needs of a specific customer. Marketers use data and insights about the customer, such as their browsing and purchase history, demographics, location, and other relevant information to increase advertising personalization.
For example, a clothing retailer might use personalization to send targeted promotions to customers based on their previous purchases. If a customer has previously bought a lot of athletic clothing, the retailer might send them a promotion for a new line of workout clothes.
Another great way to use personalization is through mobile advertising. It allows businesses to target a specific group of customers with tailored ads. For example, a business can use personalization to target ads for a new product to customers who have previously shown interest in similar products.
In today's world, more and more people are using their mobile devices to watch videos online. And businesses have to take advantage of this by promoting their products and services through videos on mobile devices like smartphones and tablets.
Since businesses now know that their target audience is spending most of their time on their mobile devices, they can use mobile video marketing to target on-the-go consumers, such as those commuting, waiting in line, or even during lunch breaks.
Another advantage of mobile video marketing is that it is a highly engaging form of content. According to a study, video content is 1200% more successful than other content forms; viewers absorb 95% of the message while watching videos.
According to Tom Golubovich, Head of Marketing & Media Relations, Ninja Transfers, "Videos are more likely to capture the attention of viewers than text or images, and they also tend to be more memorable. That makes mobile video marketing an effective way to increase brand awareness and drive conversions."
There are several ways to implement mobile video marketing, such as creating short video ads that can be placed on social media platforms or creating longer-form videos that can be shared on a company's website or YouTube channel.
Businesses can also use live streaming to connect with their audience in real time and create a sense of immediacy.
Let's face it. Artificial intelligence and machine learning are taking over the world. These technologies now have applications in many parts of our daily life. In mobile marketing, businesses can use these advanced technologies to analyze data from mobile devices to create personalized and targeted marketing campaigns. Artificial Intelligence and machine learning are powerful technologies that allow businesses to create more effective and personalized mobile marketing campaigns.
According to Anthony Martin, Founder, and CEO, of Choice Mutual, "These technologies can help businesses target the right users with the right message at the right time, which can lead to higher conversion rates and better ROI. As such, they are certainly among the technologies to watch in mobile marketing."
Regarding mobile marketing, it is possible to use 5G and edge computing now to provide faster and more reliable connections for things like mobile ads and location-based marketing.
For example, with 5G, an ad can be delivered to a customer's phone almost instantly, and with edge computing, businesses can personalize ads based on the customer's location. It can lead to more effective and targeted advertising, resulting in better business outcomes for the companies involved.
Voice-enabled technology allows users to interact with their devices using only their voice rather than typing or touching the screen, thus making using a mobile device more effortless and convenient. In mobile marketing, businesses can use voice-enabled technology to create more interactive and personalized advertising experiences.
For example, a voice-enabled mobile ad could allow users to ask questions, receive information about a product or service, or even purchase using only their voice. That can make the advertising experience more exciting and convenient for users and help businesses target and convert potential customers better.
Another potential use of voice-enabled technology in mobile marketing is in the creation of virtual assistants. These software programs can be programmed to understand and respond to a wide range of voice commands and can help users with various tasks, such as scheduling appointments, making reservations, or even ordering products and services. This can make mobile marketing more interactive and personalized and help businesses engage with their target audience better.
There's no doubt that voice-enabled technology is an exciting and rapidly-evolving area of mobile marketing that can create more engaging, personalized, and convenient advertising experiences for users and help businesses reach better and convert potential customers. For these reasons it is considered one of the technologies to watch in mobile marketing.
Mobile marketing is becoming an increasingly important aspect of digital marketing as more and more people rely on their mobile devices for everyday tasks. The emergence of new technologies is helping businesses create more effective and personalized marketing campaigns for mobile users.
As these technologies continue to evolve and become more mainstream, businesses must stay up-to-date with the latest trends and technologies to stay competitive in the mobile marketing landscape. However, it's also important to note that while technology is advancing rapidly, the key to successful mobile marketing will always be understanding the customer.
As such, businesses should be aware that data and technology should be a supplement, not a replacement, to understanding their target audience and tailoring their mobile campaigns to meet their needs.
Rachel Melegrito is a guest contributor to Marin Software.
According to Pew Research, 72 percent of U.S. adults use at least one type of social media, and 23 percent of these use Twitter, making Twitter the 7th most used social media platform in the United States in 2021.
Twitter is a free social networking site that houses over 300 million active users, allowing people to post ‘tweets’ to engage, socialize and connect with users on the same platform.
While the purpose of Twitter for each person or organization remains the same, the ‘hows’ of using the platform vary for regular Twitter individuals or organizations using Twitter as a marketing platform.
Digital marketing has a long history, and one can’t deny how it has transformed the way marketers and audiences consume content, especially on social media platforms like Twitter.
Twitter might seem like a daunting platform to venture into for marketing, mainly because, unlike Tiktok, YouTube, or Facebook, Twitter’s main algorithm focuses more on conversations rather than visuals.
We’ll look at this tweet from the Climbing House as an example:
Alejandra Leyva, a Content Manager working with Climbing House emphasizes, “Different social media platforms require different techniques for marketing. In this case, we tried to spark a lighthearted conversation around climbing as a go-to activity for a first date. This makes it easier for us to converse on Twitter and grab the attention of young or old people looking for exciting date alternatives while leading them to our website.”
This is what the magic of Twitter marketing is—conversations. As a social media platform, Twitter is well-known for its ‘trending’ lists, be it words or hashtags. This trending list shows Twitter users the most talked about topic at a given moment for a specific location or worldwide. This is one of the best ways to clue into what’s happening in the zeitgeist quickly and understand what topical conversations your team should pay attention to in relation to your industry.
Because the charm of Twitter is centered around conversations, the benefits of using this platform as a marketing tool are centered around this as well.
The benefit of Twitter marketing is that because people are used to conversations, tweeting multiple times a day is normal and is not annoying for most users. However, Twitter is heavily chronological in the sense that it could take a nanosecond for one tweet to be buried among the tweets of the other people your followers follow, so making the best out of your content that would make people stop scrolling should be one of your top priorities.
There are endless benefits to Twitter than you might think, and these benefits have become successful strategies that marketers have utilized over the years.
Twitter is one of the most excellent platforms for establishing a company’s brand voice. While selecting a brand voice and reputation takes time and effort, Twitter as a platform makes this easy.
A company’s brand voice can either come off as lighthearted and casual or serious and professional, and you can establish this through your tweets and interaction on Twitter.
Take, for example, this tweet from Felix:
Kyle Zien, Director of Growth Marketing at Felix, says, “We aim to reimagine the Canadian healthcare experience, and we believe it starts with how we interact with our audiences. We try to build our brand voice in a casual, friendly way where people feel like they’re taking advice from a friend rather than an organization.”
Social media marketers often have a lot on their hands, juggling three to four social platforms simultaneously. Using a social media content calendar allows you to plan and organize content ahead of time, making strategic content posts rather than just winging whatever content at any moment.
What’s more, most social media content calendars let you schedule posts even without logging in to the platform, so you don’t have to fear forgetting to post your marketing content.
If you ask any person who uses Twitter what’s the most significant feature of Twitter that’s most attractive to them, at least three out of five will have one thing in common—hashtags.
While other social media platforms also use hashtags, Twitter makes the most use of this feature through its trending tags list immediately visible when you log in to the website.
An important aspect of Twitter's marketing campaign is that it utilizes hashtags to join conversations or create and invite discussions surrounding its product and services.
An example is this tweet from Prize Rebel:
A person who does not necessarily follow Prize Rebel will discover this tweet because it has joined in on the conversation about making money online or earning extra cash.
According to Jerry Han, CMO of PrizeRebel, “Ever since we established our Twitter account, the use of hashtags has proven how easily people can see us when they search for the same tag on Twitter. We sometimes supplement this with a “retweet to win” CTA as a condition for the prize, which also gives us more visibility to our audience.”
This tweet from PluginHive about their FedEx WooCommerce plugin also uses several hashtags to help increase the tweet’s visibility among those looking for information on shipping through FedEx.
Before the great Twitter overhaul by Elon Musk, getting the tiny blue checkmark beside your profile name meant that your profile was your ‘proof of authenticity. Today, two forms of verification badges exist on Twitter—the old blue checkmark (which can now be bought on Twitter Blue by any user) and the ‘Official’ badge found at the bottom of your profile name.
Technicalities of these verification badges aside, there is a sense of authority emitted by accounts with blue or official verified badges, making them more reliable to Twitter users. Working to increase your follower count also helps in marketing and spreading your content throughout the platform and also helps establish you as a reliable content creator and organization.
On Twitter, you can do both paid and organic social media ads. The question is how can you harness the power of both.
This is an example of a paid ad:
You should be able to see a “promoted” tag at the bottommost part of the post for a paid advertisement. Having a promoted tweet increases the visibility of a tweet and is just basically paid advertising, taking your tweet to users who might be interested in your products and services.
In the case above, BPI utilizes Twitter advertising to encourage more people to apply for a credit card with the bank. Not only are they getting more credit card applications, but they are also generating more leads using the information users input through the application.
The best way to ‘attack’ Twitter as a marketing platform is to stay human. You may be thinking, “But wait…what does that even mean?”
To put it frankly, in many cases marketing posts sound like they were extracted from an AI machine and then copy-pasted to the platform. This is the last thing you want to do if you wish to engage and convert your Twitter campaigns.
Twitterverse loves conversations. So go ahead, converse! Just like this tweet from Fig Loans:
Jeff Zhou, CEO of Fig Loans, says, “Our Twitter marketing campaigns don’t only rely on regularly creating or posting content for our follower’s timelines. We interact and reply to our customers or anyone interested in our products and services. That way, they know they will get top-notch customer service with us.”
Take another look at this Snickers-UNO interraction:
There is a more lighthearted approach present here for both organizations. Engaging in conversation for your followers to see an unusual interaction between two verified accounts is a fun way to tickle and grab the attention of Twitter users. Not only is Snickers bringing fun to their initial post, but they’re also subtly implying how your next pre-football tailgate isn’t complete without Snickers. UNO calling them out on the typo was really the cherry on top to reaffirming that both companies are made up of real people behind the brands, having real conversations.
It should be no surprise that digital and social media marketing has been all the rave in the last few years. As humankind fixates on digital technology, marketers must adapt to these changes and be interacting where their target audience likes to hang out virtually.
These social media platforms are different in their ways and should be dealt with differently. Twitter, as a marketing platform, should center around conversations and engagement. This allows marketers to establish a brand voice and take valuable information and data about consumer behavior in return.
For help on strategically approaching any social media platform, meet with one of Marin’s marketing experts today. We will ensure your paid social advertising performs at it’s best.
Rachel Melegrito is a guest contributor to Marin Software.
