How to combine sales and branding in SMM: a practical guide

Problems of brands in SMM

When developing content for social media, brands often face two main mistakes:

1. Focusing on sales only. Content is focused on lead generation, but ignores building trust and reputation.
2. Focus on visuals. Brands create beautiful but ineffective posts that don’t generate conversions.

The ideal approach is to balance sales and branding. Social networks can be both an effective sales channel and a powerful tool for building an image.

We prescribe the SMM ecosystem

An ecosystem is a strategic document that defines the role of each platform in your content strategy.

What does the SMM ecosystem include:

• Social networks. The list of platforms where the brand will be represented.
• Target audience (TA). Define who you are creating content for (B2B, B2C, teenagers, youth, etc.).
  
• The purpose of each platform. For example, Instagram for visual presentation of products, TikTok for verbal content, LinkedIn for building a professional reputation.
• Content type. Clearly define what exactly you will create: graphic design, video, texts, memes, etc.
• Main topics. Formulate key messages for each social network.

Why do we need an ecosystem?

1. Structuring the work. Eases coordination between SMM managers, designers, and copywriters.
2. Audience coverage. Helps to attract different target audiences through customized content.
3. Universality. Allows you to show the benefits of the brand from different angles.

Checklist for the ecosystem:

• What is your target audience?
  
• What do you want to achieve on each social media platform?
  
• What content formats are appropriate for your goals?
  
• How will you measure success?

Working with hypotheses

Hypotheses are assumptions about how certain content will work. They allow you to test different ideas before scaling them up.

How to create hypotheses:

• Involve the team: SMM manager, designer, copywriter.
  
• Analyze trends, competitors’ cases, and audience research.
• Formulate specific assumptions.

An example of a hypothesis:

“A call to action in a non-standard style (for example, “Feel the magic of our product”) will attract more attention than the traditional “Details here”.”

Content testing

1. Publishing content series.
   Realize multiple hypotheses at once. For example, create a carousel, video, and meme on the same topic.
2. Measure results.
   Use metrics depending on your goals:
   • TikTok.The main metric is reach.
   • Instagram.Involvement, clicks on the link, conversions.
   • General metrics: ERR (Engagement Reach Rate), brand sentiment, subscription success, revenue.
3. Validation of hypotheses.
   Confirm or refute the assumptions using analytics.

Listen to the audience

How to collect feedback:

• Create a poll in the story.
• Create polls or content like This or That.
• Actively respond to comments and private messages.

Working with negativity:

• Divide negativity into constructive and destructive.
  
• Reply with empathy, clarify details, and offer solutions.
• Avoid boilerplate phrases.

Use the “brand tail” method

Brand Tail is an unobtrusive way to introduce your product to your audience.

How the brand tail works:

• Virality. Don’t use your logo or call-to-action on the first slides. Start with useful content.
  
• Gentle introduction. The carousel format allows you to gradually warm up the audience.
• Algorithms. Carousels are often re-shown to users, increasing their reach.

Example:

A publication on self-development, where the last slide unobtrusively offers to familiarize yourself with the app.

Conclusion

Creating effective SMM content requires a balance between sales and branding. To achieve this:

1. Create an SMM ecosystem.
2. Use hypotheses to test ideas.
3. Analyze your audience and adjust your strategy.
4. Use the brand-tail method for unobtrusive sales.

This way you will get sustainable sales, audience trust, and brand awareness.