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originally posted to www.carnsight.com 

Building your online presence, particularly on social media, takes more than just knowing what platforms to use and when to post. In our article, we take a look at the core tips and tricks to crafting an effective social media marketing strategy for yourself – or in our case, for clients – and put together a comprehensive guide into all the things you should keep in mind when you’re starting to put your plan together.

1. Start from the basics: what does a social media marketing strategy entail? In short, it is a core document that will outline how you target your key audiences using social media. It is an extension of your overall marketing strategy, expanding the detail of the social media element, and should cover all the tactics, tools, and audiences that you want to use and engage with.
2. First, define your few core elements – these being the design style, the tone of voice, and your target audiences. Settle on specific fonts, colours, graphics and image overlays you want to use and stick to them for a cohesive look. Use the research you did when you were developing your initial marketing strategy, and decide your tone of voice. Explore your target audience, and see if it consists of different demographics that need different levels of interaction – then act accordingly. 
3. Learn how to set goals. These will vary depending on your brand and product; clothing, beauty, and sportswear tend to sell very well on social media as you can quickly see real life examples of what you want to buy, whereas B2B organisations that offer cyber security, office space, or recruitment tend to have a longer customer journey. Setting concrete goals realistic to your industry will mean that no one is disappointed with the results, and everyone on your team knows what the purpose of your social media communications is.
4. Create engaging content that aligns with your goals and appeals to your target audience. How you create this content should represent you and your brand well and in line with your overall marketing strategy. Be it videos, images, games or polls, they should all serve to engage the audience, be valuable to them, and tell the story of your brand or product.
5. Utilise social media marketing tools. There are many, many different options at your disposal, so do your research! From content schedulers, to image editors, to AI powered content creators, knowing what’s out there, how to use them and how they might benefit you is essential to anyone crafting a social media marketing strategy.

If you’re just looking to see how to expand on your current strategy, or are starting from scratch, then these tips will keep you focused on what matters most and help you view your social media activity as an expansion of your overall marketing strategy. This is just a summary – for a more in-depth guide to crafting your social media strategy, read the full article on our website.

originally posted to www.carnsight.com 

Understanding the ups and downs of social media metrics

One of the most important lessons in social media management is understanding that not every metric will show continuous upward growth. There will always be ups and downs—fluctuations that reflect the natural ebb and flow of audience behaviour, content performance, and market trends. It’s essential not to expect green across the board every month, and if you do, it’s worth questioning whether your growth is truly organic and sustainable.

The pitfalls of artificial growth

Quick growth strategies like giveaways and competitions can indeed give your social media metrics a smile-inducing boost. It’s exciting to see a sudden spike in followers, likes, or shares, and these tactics can create a temporary buzz around your brand. However, it’s crucial to recognize that this kind of growth often presents a false impression of long-term success.

Giveaways and competitions attract participants who are more interested in winning a prize than in engaging with your brand. As a result, while these strategies can inflate your numbers in the short term, they don’t necessarily build a loyal, engaged audience. Once the excitement dies down, you may notice a drop-off in engagement, with many new followers becoming inactive or unfollowing altogether. This cycle can lead to peaks and troughs in your social media performance, making it harder to gauge the true effectiveness of your content strategy.

Focusing on sustainable growth

Sustainable growth is the foundation of a successful social media strategy. This means prioritising quality over quantity—focusing on attracting followers who are genuinely interested in your brand and likely to engage with your content over the long term. Instead of relying on quick fixes, invest in creating valuable, relevant content that resonates with your target audience.

Engage with your followers regularly, respond to their comments, and build relationships that encourage loyalty. Sustainable growth may not be as immediately gratifying as a quick spike in numbers, but it leads to a more engaged and active community, which is far more valuable in the long run.

Evaluating your social media success

When reviewing your social media metrics, it’s important to take a holistic view. A dip in one area doesn’t necessarily indicate failure; it might reflect a shift in strategy, audience behaviour, or even seasonal trends. The key is to focus on long-term trends rather than short-term fluctuations. Regularly check your analytics, but understand that sustainable, organic growth is a marathon, not a sprint.

If you do see continuous, unbroken growth, it’s worth scrutinising the factors driving it. Is your content genuinely resonating with your audience, or are you relying on tactics that might not be sustainable? The ultimate goal is to build a social media presence that not only looks good on paper but also drives meaningful engagement and supports your broader business objectives.

The long game in social media success

It’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of quick wins and impressive metrics. However, true success comes from playing the long game—focusing on sustainable growth, understanding the natural ups and downs, and consistently delivering value to your audience. By recognising the limits of quick growth strategies and investing in a solid, data-driven approach, you can build a social media presence that’s not just momentarily successful, but enduringly impactful.

Learn more about our approach to social media management and the value of continuous optimisation.

Birch, Bristol’s newest podcast studio, has opened at Nine Tree Studios in Brislington.

Designed with both “audio and video first”, the space offers high quality audio recording in a comfortable suite that’s designed for film.

“When we opened Nine Tree Studios, supporting the local creative industries was at the heart of everything” said Russell, Co-Founder of Nine Tree Studios.

“We have a huge amount of versatile space, and we want it to be useful, accessible and affordable – not just sit there empty. Bristol doesn’t have a huge amount of podcast suites, with some professionals even travelling to London just to record.”

“With our space we hope to welcome and support a variety of creatives, content producers, influencers and hobbyists alike.”

With full-RGB lighting and space for branding, the studio is perfect for both guest and episodic podcast recording.

Birch also has access to Nine Tree Studios’ other facilities, including ample parking, green rooms for hair and makeup, and a large kitchen breakout space.

The studio can be hired from the hour for just audio recording or including video, with various options to suit beginners and professionals alike.

Nine Tree Studios is Bristol’s biggest independent studio. Located just outside the centre of Bristol there’s parking for over 30 vehicles with easy access to Bristol, Bath and the M4.

For more information visit www.ninetreestudios.co.uk, email [email protected], or call 01173706372.

originally posted to www.carnsight.com

An effective social media strategy isn’t set in stone. It’s a living, breathing entity that requires constant attention and refinement. Social media doesn’t exist in a vacuum, either.

It’s part of bigger social and media landscapes that are subject to change daily, if not hourly. Content trends, user interactions, tech updates and changes to platform affordances, news cycles, global events – all of these things (among many others) can and do affect the way these apps work, and the level of success you can find on them. Keeping your finger on the pulse is a must. Paying attention to the landscape itself, and also how your content and interactions perform within this space, and are mediated by it.

Hence, our approach is rooted in continuous optimisation, where we regularly monitor social media analytics, extract performance insights, and adapt our content strategy in real time. That means we don’t sit around waiting for the monthly review to roll around to take a look at what’s working and what’s not. But what does this really mean, and why is it so crucial for success on social media?

Why continuous optimisation matters for social media success

Like I said in the beginning – the social media landscape is dynamic, with algorithms shifting, audience behaviours evolving, and trends emerging at lightning speed. Waiting until the end of the month to review performance metrics is like trying to steer a ship by looking at a map once a month—you’re bound to miss crucial turns and adjustments, and probably won’t end up at your desired destination.

Instead, we believe in keeping our finger on the pulse, making data-driven decisions on a weekly or even daily basis. This agile approach ensures that your content is always resonating with your audience and staying ahead of the curve. If you’re pumping out content that your audience isn’t engaging with, or is pushing back on, then it’s important to stop and look at the reasons why. Is it simply the wrong time? Is there a disconnect with the form/medium? Have you overcomplicated a graphic? Or not gone into enough detail, with a bland and uninteresting post?

Turning social media analytics into action

The beauty of social media analytics lies in their ability to provide real-time feedback. We don’t just collect data; we act on it, and we don’t just act on it every now and then. By continually reviewing metrics like engagement rates, click-throughs, and audience growth, we can quickly identify what’s working and what’s not. If a particular type of post is outperforming others, we’ll double down on that approach. Conversely, if something isn’t landing, we’ll pivot immediately rather than waiting for the monthly review. This proactive mindset allows us to maximise the effectiveness of your social media efforts, ensuring that your audience is always receiving the content they actually want to engage with.

Social media success is more than numbers

Depending on your objectives, that is – but a good, holistic objective will always go deeper than surface-level stats.

You want 50 comments a month? Why? What about? How does this link to your bigger-picture objectives? 50 comments might be pretty worthless if they’re spam. Sure, they at least show your community is engaging with you, but is it the right kind of engagement? The right kind of community? Is it connected to the broader action you want them to take or the change in thought/motivation/behaviour your hope to incite? All things to think about (which we do, and can help you do to 😉).

Interrogate what you want the end result to be – and please, please think about the bigger picture. Actions, metrics, objectives, social accounts and content – it’s all connected. And that’s how you need to be thinking of it. No post exists in isolation, no action is made without a broader impact. So understand where its place is in the wider picture of your business, and what you want to achieve. Break down the overarching objective into smaller objectives, and keep going until you’ve worked back to your initial metric. Now you understand how it fits in, and you’ve ensured it’s relevant and meaningful.

Social media success isn’t just about chasing likes and shares.

While it’s essential to give your audience what they want, it’s equally important to ensure that your content aligns with your broader brand goals. This balance is where our expertise shines. We craft content strategies that not only appeal to your audience but also serve your business objectives – whether that’s driving website traffic, generating leads, or building brand awareness. Sometimes, a post that generates moderate engagement may still be a success if it drives significant traffic to a new product page. It’s all about understanding the bigger picture.

Sometimes big numbers aren’t as valuable as you may think. Interrogate the value of your objectives – of course, reaching thousands of eyes is great. But are they the right eyes? If your post goes viral, it’s great for visibility and meeting new audiences. But if you discount the value of reaching targeted audiences – the people who are actually interested in your business, who your content is actually relevant to and who are more likely to convert into a lead/customer/advocate, then what do you put more stock in? It’s all a balance – pursuing one object doesn’t discount the other, but it’s important to understand this when thinking about what success on social media looks like to you and your business.

The benefit of adaptability in social media management

The key takeaway from our approach to social media management is adaptability. In a digital landscape that’s always in flux, the brands that thrive are the ones that can quickly adjust to new realities. We continuously analyse formats, messages, and strategies, fine-tuning our approach based on what the data tells us. This continuous cycle of testing, learning, and optimising ensures that your social media presence remains vibrant, relevant, and effective.

There will likely always be ups and downs – you shouldn’t expect to see green on every stat, every month, and if you do – question whether your growth is organic and sustainable. Quick growth strategies like giveaways and competitions are an easy way to give your metrics a smile-inducing boost, but it often gives a false impression and it doesn’t often last.

Crafting a dynamic social media presence

Successful social media management is about more than just posting content—it’s about building a dynamic presence that evolves with your audience and the market. By embracing continuous optimisation, we ensure that your social media channels are not only engaging but also strategically aligned with your business goals. We’re not just reacting to trends; we’re actively shaping them to deliver maximum value for your brand.

Let us help you transform your social media strategy into a powerful, realistic, and sustainable tool for growth. With Carnsight’s approach to continuous optimisation, your social platforms won’t just survive – they’ll thrive.

Learn more about our approach to social media management and the natural fluctuations of metrics to expect.

originally posted to www.carnsight.com

When it comes to social media, there are a lot of brands and businesses we speak to that think the best way to see success is to post multiple times a day, every single day, across every possible social media platform. But this isn’t the way to go.

Why?

Well, because of exactly that: Why? Why are you doing that? What are you actually gaining from it? Is this way of posting helping you reach and engage the right people? Or rather is it overwhelming your audience with content, pushing the same sales messages over and over and over?

I’d make a guess on it being the latter.

Social media in 2024 is about quality over quantity. If you want to succeed, you need to think about the purpose of every post and how it’s driving your overall goals and objectives. You also need to ask yourself if you really need to post at the volume you’re pushing currently, or if you only feel that you do.

Here are our top tips for ensuring quality over quantity when it comes to your social media content.

1. Choose your platform(s) carefully – Do you really need to be on Threads? Or FaceBook? Or TikTok? Ask yourself, where are the people I actually want to reach? Go there. You don’t have to be everywhere.
2. Be guided by the analytics where logical – Assess what types of content perform well and do make more of that. When you post three or four times a day, do you actually see results reflected in the stats? Think critically about your approach.
3. Focus on the relevant analytics – See our blog all about what the social stats actually mean in order to ensure you’re measuring the correct metrics for your specific goals.
4. Assess the purpose of each post you draft and ensure it leads back to one of your goals – Don’t post for the sake of posting. What is each piece of content aiming to do? Build your likability as a brand? Educate your audience? Push a service? Do you have a balance of all these across your content?
5. Remember the 80/20 rule – 80% of your social media content should give to your audience (educational or entertaining etc), only 20% should be self promotional.

To see how we use social media at Carnsight, you can check out our Instagram and LinkedIn. 

We hope this quick blog helped you assess your current social media output. Now go forth and make every social media post count.

Throughout our history the race has been on to explain how best to utilise language, visual media and interpersonal relationships to push a product into the consciousness of potential customers. There have also been countless efforts to shed some light on the origins of public relations, and understand the changing nature of PR.

As a distinctly separate discipline from advertising, PR aims to cut through the noise and deliver strategic campaigns that help to explore a company’s narrative. Here are some best-practices principles that PR companies should stick to even as they’re faced with the changing landscape of the industry:

1. Always understand your audience first. Representing a business can only be done well when understanding who you’re writing for and who you wish to communicate with.  Promoting yourself to the wrong audience could be worse than not promoting yourself at all.

2. Reformat & redress your messaging.  With promotional formats changing massively in recent years, making sure that all material produced can be reused across different formats – blogs, podcasts and advertisements – can extend your reach and engage a range of new and existing audiences.

3. Go beyond clean & linear PR. The online landscape for promotion is exceptionally complex. Trying to garner attention without understanding principles of modern digital marketing such as SEO, SERP features and backlinks (as well as the different tools used to analyse these strategies) can be extremely difficult.

In conclusion, there’s a lot to take in with the current PR and marketing landscape. To understand it better, it’s always good to ask people who know best – like us. Read the full length article on the changing nature of PR on our website.

originally posted to www.carnsight.com 

It’s all good and well looking over your social media analytics, but if you don’t understand them then you might as well not be tracking at all. It’s important to know what each stat represents and what goal they are useful towards. 

So, without further ado, here’s a basic breakdown of some of the common stats tracked on social media. Social media stats 101 if you will!  

Engagement Rate: Fostering Community and Loyalty 

Why It Matters: Engagement rate, which includes likes, comments, shares, and other interactions, measures how actively your audience is interacting with your content. 

Goals: High engagement means that you’re posting content that really resonates with your audience, fostering a sense of community and loyalty. Engagement is essential for building relationships and encouraging positive word-of-mouth interactions. Businesses aim for high engagement to cultivate a dedicated following and to enhance brand visibility through organic reach. 

Reach and Impressions: Expanding Visibility 

Why It Matters: Reach refers to the number of unique users who have seen your content, while impressions count the total number of times your content is displayed, regardless of clicks. 

Goals: These metrics are crucial for understanding the scope of your content’s visibility. A broad reach and high number of impressions mean that your message is being seen by a wide audience, helping with brand awareness and recognition. Businesses track these stats to ensure their content is getting in front of as many people as possible. 

Click-Through Rate (CTR): Driving Traffic 

Why It Matters: CTR measures how often people click on the links in your posts, leading them to your website. 

Goals: A high CTR shows that your content is compelling and effectively driving traffic to your site. Businesses aim to optimize their CTR to convert social media engagement into something actionable, such as website visits or product purchases. 

Conversion Rate: Achieving Business Objectives 

Why It Matters: Conversion rate tracks the percentage of social media interactions that result in a desired action, such as making a purchase, signing up for a newsletter, or downloading a resource. 

Goals: This metric is directly tied to the return on investment (ROI) of your social media efforts. A high conversion rate means that your social media strategies are effectively turning interactions into tangible business results. 

Follower Growth Rate: Building an Audience 

Why It Matters: This statistic measures the rate at which your social media following is growing over time. It’s the stat most people seem to hone in on, but it’s not always what you want to focus on.  

Goals: A steady growth rate indicates that your content is attracting new followers, expanding your audience base. It’s vital for long-term success, as a growing audience means more potential customers and increased brand influence. Businesses monitor follower growth to assess the effectiveness of their content.  

It all comes down to the fact that each social media statistic serves a unique purpose and aligns with specific business goals. By properly understanding these metrics, businesses can craft effective social media strategies that work towards their specific objectives.  

Want to learn more about Social Media? Have a look at Laura’s Day in the Life to understand the typical roles of a Social Media Manager.

originally posted to www.carnsight.com 

Let’s talk about something that’s essential but often overlooked: being totally open with your PR agency. Yep, we’re diving into the reasons why it’s crucial to let your PR agency in on not just your wins and strengths, but also the challenges your facing and the things you’re not so proud of (before they become a crisis!)

Transparency is Your Best Friend 

Whether it’s a recent hiccup in customer service, a product that didn’t quite hit the mark, or internal challenges, your PR team needs the full picture to craft authentic and effective strategies. Without all the pieces of the puzzle, even the best comms strategy is going to have holes and contradictions. Remember, your PR agency isn’t just there to make you look shiny and good, they’re there to build trust and credibility. 

Crafting a Crisis Management Plan  

No one likes to think about potential crises, but they’re a reality in the business world. Being proactive rather than reactive can make all the difference. When your PR agency is in the loop about potential weak spots or areas needing improvement, they can help you develop a solid crisis management plan. This means if something does go wrong, you’re not scrambling to do damage control; instead, you have a well-thought-out plan ready to go. 

We’ve written a whole blog specifically on crisis management. So, for more on this point, have a read – https://www.carnsight.com/2020/12/03/crisis-communication/

This isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach 

When your PR agency has a comprehensive understanding of your business, including areas that need improvement, they can develop strategies that are tailored to your unique business. This isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach. It’s about creating campaigns and communications that align realistically with your brand.  

Next time you’re hesitating to share a challenging situation with your PR agency, remember that they’re your allies. They’re there to support you, to help you navigate challenging times and to celebrate your successes. By being open and transparent, you’re not just improving your PR strategy; you’re building a brand that’s resilient.