industry paul sherratt Sports Trade
during events Twitter activity will be more effective. On this basis, make sure that your channel strategy, i.e. which platform you intend to use, is also integrated into your overall social media plan.
• Layer 3. The third layer is the ‘fluid’ element of your plan. This is the day-to- day reactionary element, and whilst some pre planning can be undertaken it is important that you leave flexibility. One can, for example, plan for two outcomes from an event e.g. something happens if X wins and something if X loses. It is reactionary, as far as the consumer is concerned, even though the actual content has been pre- planned. If the first and second layers of your strategy are put in place and, if you intend to use third party software such as Hootsuite to auto-post these strategy elements, then the third layer can be the ‘bonus’ elements of your strategy. In real terms we often find that clients
are able to spend time forward planning the first two layers and thus we can implement a successful strategy on their behalf on this basis. However it is when they find the time to complete and implement the third layer that the results often improve.
• Link building for traffic and SEO. Building traffic and authority is one sure way of ensuring that your social media campaigns are successful.
2. Create a channel plan Once you have established your goals you can begin to create a channel plan. In simple terms, think of the channel as three layers: • Layer 1. The top layer represents major events and/or focal points that are happening within the broader scope of your business. We are lucky that, in the sporting goods industry, it is relatively easy to find these – they could be sporting events for example.
Select the appropriate events that are relevant to you and place within your plan.
• Layer 2. The second layer represents the specific activity that you intend to focus on around the top layer activity. It may be, for example, that you run a special promotion around Wimbledon (if you are a tennis retailer/brand) or The Open (if you are a golf retailer/brand). Think about the social media activity wrapping around the top layer event i.e. activity should happen before, during and after the event. At this stage it is worth noting that before and after event activity is arguably best suited to Facebook whilst
A successful campaign So what makes the difference between a good campaign that goes viral, and a bad one that has little impact? The reality is that success is based on the same parameters as all the other elements of the marketing mix. Ensure you have the right message, targeting the right market, using the right methods of communication. To measure your success you must first understand where you are and where you end up. Use the tools available from all the platforms to assist you with this and set some key performance indicators. The analytics available will help you shape your future campaigns as well as allowing you to review your past programmes. There is, of course, an element of tweaking and changing, but don't give up. If you continue to review your goals and objectives, and continue to recognise that social media is just another element of the marketing mix, you will find that it can be become an integral part of your business development.
Good luck!
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