But there\u2019s so much more to the world of social media than just making and maintaining connections \u2013 especially for savvy marketers.<\/p>\n
Why Is Social Media Marketing Important For Brands?<\/h2>\n
For business purposes, sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram present an opportunity to engage with a massive audience.<\/p>\n
Last year, there were more than 4.7 billion people<\/a> worldwide using social media platforms, which means a whole lot of potential customers.<\/p>\n Social media allows you to tell your story and humanize your brand.<\/p>\n Without a large budget allocation, it lets you build an audience and stay top of mind with your targets.<\/p>\n You can connect and interact with customers, deal with feedback (both positive and negative), and build authenticity just by being active on the right sites.<\/p>\n Not convinced? Here are some key stats about social media marketing:<\/p>\n From paid display ads targeting a highly specific demographic to organic posts that go viral, social media presents an incredible opportunity to evangelize your brand, increase your visibility, and find new customers.<\/p>\n But what separates the companies who are really killing it on social media from the thousands of also-rans who never quite seem to get any traction from their accounts?<\/p>\n In this piece, we\u2019ll take a look at some outstanding ways popular brands are leveraging common platforms to inspire your campaigns.<\/p>\n Before we dive into the fun stuff, let\u2019s take a moment to discuss how you can track the results of your social efforts. Some KPIs you may consider include:<\/p>\n The ones you use to measure success will depend on your goals.<\/p>\n For example, if your goal is increasing awareness, you\u2019ll want to examine your reach and impressions statistics.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re trying to generate leads, you probably want to focus primarily on conversions.<\/p>\n Each brand is different, which means they will not only measure success differently but will also vary in which platforms are most effective for their social media marketing efforts.<\/p>\n With this in mind, we\u2019ve broken down our examples and inspiration by platform. So, with no further ado, let\u2019s jump in.<\/p>\n [embedded content]<\/p>\n When: <\/b>2019<\/p>\n Campaign Outline:<\/b><\/p>\n Recognizing beauty comes in many forms, Dove launched Project #ShowUS, a social media campaign intended to challenge stereotypes of what is and isn\u2019t considered beautiful.<\/p>\n Employing women and non-binary people, this campaign is a collaboration with Getty Images and Girlgaze Photographers.<\/p>\n The Numbers:<\/b><\/p>\n Why Did It Work?<\/strong><\/p>\n For generations, media and advertising have presented an image of what beauty is. However, this has left 70% of women feeling like they are not represented by media and advertising.<\/p>\n Dove spoke directly to the feelings of its target audience, engaging with them about the brand\u2019s value and encouraging them to take pride in being themselves.<\/p>\n Strategic delivery helped reach women worldwide.<\/p>\n [embedded content]<\/p>\n When: <\/b>2019<\/p>\n Campaign Outline:<\/b><\/p>\n In January 2019, Gillette launched a social media campaign aiming at a modern interpretation of manhood.<\/p>\n The short film<\/a> posted exclusively on YouTube depicted several cases of men struggling with traditional masculinity that Gillette itself used to glorify: the fear of showing their emotions, sexual harassment, and bullying others.<\/p>\n Then the film shows several examples of positive masculinity, such as standing up for others, caring for your loved ones, and so on.<\/p>\n The campaign was clearly inspired by the #MeToo movement.<\/p>\n On their Instagram, the company also posted positive male role models with short stories about their journey in the world:<\/p>\n In addition to that, the company promised<\/a> to donate \u201c$1 million per year for the next three years to non-profit organizations executing the most interesting and impactful programs designed to help men of all ages achieve their personal best.\u201d<\/p>\n The Numbers:<\/strong><\/p>\n Why Did It Work?<\/strong><\/p>\n This campaign managed to tap into an extremely relevant and widely discussed issue.<\/p>\n It juxtaposed the previous branding of Gillette with a new one and showed the willingness to change.<\/p>\n At the same time, it was also quite controversial \u2013 some people didn\u2019t agree with how the short film portrayed men and thought that it was offensive.<\/p>\n They even started a #boycottgillette hashtag. However, it only took up around 3.5% of all the conversations around the campaign on social media.<\/p>\n THIS is how you use your brand. THIS is how you engage with your audience. Gillette being aware of mostly having a male audience and using their influence as a global brand to make a change for the better. other companies take notes pic.twitter.com\/KCdxKDLji0<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 💭 (@spidervesre) January 15, 2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n [embedded content]<\/p>\n When: <\/b>2016<\/p>\n Campaign Outline:<\/b><\/p>\n If there\u2019s one thing the internet loves, it\u2019s cat videos.<\/p>\n Buzzfeed and Friskies tapped into this sentiment with their \u201cDear Kitten\u201d videos, in which an older house cat teaches a kitten how to be a cat.<\/p>\n The Numbers:<\/b><\/p>\n Why Did It Work?<\/strong><\/p>\n You don\u2019t have to have genius-level insight into the human psyche to understand why this campaign was so successful. It has cute cats and a funny script.<\/p>\n When: <\/b>2015<\/p>\n Campaign Outline:<\/strong><\/p>\n The world\u2019s most popular smartphone manufacturer, Apple, takes great pride in the quality of images that can be captured on its devices.<\/p>\n To highlight the great photos that it can take, it launched a competition that asked iPhone users to \u201ccapture the little things in a big way<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n Photographers were then invited to share their images on Instagram and other social media sites using the hashtag #ShotOniPhone.<\/p>\n A panel of judges then selected 10 winners from tens of thousands of entries, which were then featured on Apple\u2019s website, the company\u2019s Instagram, and on 10,000+ billboards in 25 countries.<\/p>\n It has since become an annual campaign for the brand.<\/p>\n The Numbers:<\/b><\/p>\n Why Did It Work?<\/strong><\/p>\n User-generated content<\/a> (UGC) is a low-investment way for companies to promote their brand on social media, but this isn\u2019t the reason for this campaign\u2019s success.<\/p>\n Instead, Shot on iPhone encouraged people to discuss the campaign, which closely aligned with Apple\u2019s reputation for creativity, lifestyle, and innovation.<\/p>\n It encouraged existing users to participate in product launches and built a sense of excitement about being part of the iPhone community.<\/p>\n Additionally, it gave iPhone users a sense of being part of something cool, which everyone likes.<\/p>\n When<\/b>: 2019<\/p>\n Campaign Outline:<\/b><\/p>\n Starbucks U.K. partnered with Mermaids, an organization to support transgender and gender-diverse youth, for a #WhatsYourName campaign focused on trans rights.<\/p>\n The campaign builds on a well-known aspect of the Starbucks experience \u2013 having your name written on the side of your cup \u2013 by committing to respect the names that customers want to be called by.<\/p>\n In addition to that, Starbucks started selling a mermaid tail cookie to raise funds for Mermaids.<\/p>\n Social media users were encouraged to use the hashtag on Instagram to tell about their experience<\/a> with gender.<\/p>\n The Numbers:<\/b><\/p>\n Why Did It Work?<\/strong><\/p>\n The team behind the campaign created a simple, clear campaign hashtag.<\/p>\n And they led with their values, which helped this campaign make a real, emotional impact.<\/p>\n Many brands avoid politicized topics, but ultimately, your employees and customers want you to take a stand.<\/p>\n Specifically, they want companies to lead on issues of diversity and community.<\/p>\n When: <\/b>2019<\/p>\n Campaign Outline:<\/b><\/p>\n Three years ago, Spotify launched a campaign<\/a> where its users could see the most important musical highlights on their website.<\/p>\n The special webpage Spotify Wrapped showed you your most listened artists, genres, songs, and other fun data discoveries.<\/p>\n You could even see how the music you listened to coincided with your life events that year.<\/p>\n Once you went through all the data analysis, Spotify suggested you share these highlights on social media, specifically Twitter and Insta Stories, and tag your favorite artist of the year.<\/p>\n The Numbers:<\/b><\/p>\n Why Did It Work?<\/strong><\/p>\n Spotify combined two big psychological triggers in this campaign: personalization and FOMO.<\/p>\n Firstly, the app provided a personalized story for each user \u2013 you could see how your music taste developed through the year and what songs accompanied you in your life.<\/p>\n Secondly, by enabling and encouraging sharing on social media, Spotify amplified the campaign\u2019s reach.<\/p>\n People naturally wanted to show off their highlights to their friends, thus making more people eager to try this experience.<\/p>\n When: <\/b>2019<\/p>\n Campaign Outline:<\/b><\/p>\n Recognizing the importance of mental health and overcoming traumatic experiences, Netflix launched Wanna Talk About It?<\/a>, a weekly Instagram LIVE series and accompanying website that addresses topics ranging from sexual violence and abuse to gender identity and suicidal thoughts.<\/p>\n It features stars from several Netflix movies and series, it was initially launched at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n The Numbers:<\/b><\/p>\n Why Did It Work?<\/strong><\/p>\n The global lockdown was a difficult time for many people. Unable to leave their homes, streaming services were a major source of entertainment.<\/p>\n With this campaign, Netflix addressed the mental health issues many were suffering through, giving them celebrities to whom they could relate.<\/p>\n When: <\/b>2016<\/p>\n Campaign Outline:<\/b><\/p>\n Swedish watch manufacturer Daniel Wellington was one of the first brands to recognize the power of social media influencers.<\/p>\n The company sent free watches to some of the most-followed individuals on Instagram, with the only requirement being that they post one photo on their feed using the hashtag #WheresWellington<\/a>. Followers were then asked to guess the location where the photo was taken.<\/p>\n This, in turn, generated a significant buzz around the brand, which increased in popularity with teenagers and young adults.<\/p>\n The Numbers:<\/b><\/p>\n Why Did It Work?<\/strong><\/p>\n By gamifying visual content on social media, Daniel Wellington gave followers a reason to engage with its posts, whether in the form of a like, a comment, or a share.<\/p>\n Guessing formats is a simple yet powerful way to encourage interaction on platforms like Instagram, while a branded campaign hashtag makes it easy to track success.<\/p>\n When: <\/b>2016<\/p>\n Campaign Outline:<\/b><\/p>\n You\u2019ve probably seen these quick and easy recipe videos<\/a> popping up all over your Facebook news feed.<\/p>\n BuzzFeed\u2019s Tasty videos are essentially cooking shows for the social media generation.<\/p>\n These videos, typically lasting less than two minutes, deliver on-trend recipes to a highly engaged audience.<\/p>\n The Numbers:<\/b><\/p>\n Why Did It Work?<\/strong><\/p>\n For starters, there\u2019s the content.<\/p>\n \u201cIt taps into a simple truth: People love tasty foods and the kind of foods that remind them of their childhood, comfort food, or food that reminds them of an experience,\u201d according to Frank Cooper<\/a>, BuzzFeed\u2019s chief marketing officer.<\/p>\n But more importantly, Tasty and Proper Tasty have exploded on Facebook because the content is tailor-made for that platform.<\/p>\n The videos are optimized for Facebook\u2019s autoplay feature, which starts playing videos without the sound on. You don\u2019t need sound to see, for example, a 45-second guide to making a cheese-stuffed pizza pretzel<\/a>.<\/p>\n Within 24 hours, that video had 37 million views, 650,000 likes, and 750,000 shares. (It\u2019s now up to 117 million views.)<\/p>\n When: <\/b>2020<\/p>\n Campaign Outline:<\/b><\/p>\n How much do you think you know about Fortnite? 🤔<\/p>\n Maybe it\u2019s time to quiz you!<\/p>\n \u2014 Fortnite (@FortniteGame) April 10, 2020<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Epic Games combined two of its most popular offerings in the online game \u2013 Fortnite and the now-discontinued social networking app Houseparty \u2013 to create a trivia challenge.<\/p>\n Members of the Fortnite community collectively answered more than 20 million trivia questions about the game to unlock a special in-game skin for all players.<\/p>\n Running from April 10-16, it received thousands of engagements on Twitter.<\/p>\n The Numbers:<\/b><\/p>\n Why Did It Work?<\/strong><\/p>\n Gamers are nothing if not loyal to their favorite video game.<\/p>\n By adding both a community element and gamification, Epic was able to generate significant engagement with its tweets about the campaign under both Fortnite and Houseparty accounts.<\/p>\n And by offering a tangible, exclusive, and limited-edition reward, it encouraged sharing and participation.<\/p>\n When: <\/b>2020<\/p>\n Campaign Outline:<\/b><\/p>\n We challenge you to recreate a work of art with objects (and people) in your home.<\/p>\n 🥇 Choose your favorite artwork And share with us. pic.twitter.com\/9BNq35HY2V<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Getty (@GettyMuseum) March 25, 2020<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n The Getty Museum is home to thousands of works by some of history\u2019s greatest artists, including Rubens, Monet, Rembrandt, and Cezanne.<\/p>\n In 2020, the Los Angeles-based Museum took to Twitter and other social media platforms, challenging people to recreate famous artworks with just objects from their homes.<\/p>\n The Numbers:<\/b><\/p>\n Why Did It Work?<\/strong><\/p>\n It was the pandemic\u2019s beginning, and people were bored and looking for a creative outlet.<\/p>\n Getty\u2019s Challenge allowed them to demonstrate their sense of humor while creating a positive diversion.<\/p>\n When: <\/b>2019<\/p>\n Campaign Outline:<\/b><\/p>\n Greggs is a British bakery chain loved by the Brits.<\/p>\n In January, they introduced their new vegan sausage roll, with a clever video ad parodying Apple ads.<\/p>\n However, it\u2019s not the ad itself but the events that made the campaign memorable.<\/p>\n Piers Morgan, a controversial public figure, retweeted Greggs\u2019 announcement and expressed irritation at the existence of a vegan sausage roll.<\/p>\n That made both pro-vegan roll and anti-vegan roll British people join the social media battle of the year!<\/p>\n Greggs responded to Piers Morgan along with 9,000+ other Twitter users.<\/p>\n And they didn\u2019t shy away from responding both to sausage roll lovers and haters with witty remarks.<\/p>\n Nobody was waiting for a vegan bloody sausage, you PC-ravaged clowns. https:\/\/t.co\/QEiqG9qx2G<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) January 2, 2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n As a result, the vegan sausage roll became one of the most popular Greggs products that year.<\/p>\n The Numbers:<\/strong><\/p>\n Why Did It Work?<\/strong><\/p>\n Even though the success of the campaign partly happened because of an organic retweet and not an action planned by Greggs, it once again shows us the power of influencer marketing<\/a>.<\/p>\n Even a negative opinion expressed by an influencer draws an incredible amount of attention to your brand.<\/p>\n Plus, if it\u2019s an influencer that most people hate, you only win due to this retweet.<\/p>\n Another lesson to take away from this campaign is the advantages of being witty on social media.<\/p>\n Greggs\u2019 funny responses to haters are what won over a new audience, and it\u2019s a good practice not to take yourself too seriously on social media.<\/p>\n When: <\/b>2020<\/p>\n Campaign Outline:<\/b><\/p>\n Perhaps one of the most bizarre social media campaigns: The beloved mascot of Planters snack food company died at the beginning of January.<\/p>\n His death was announced with a tweet and later explained in a video ad<\/a> posted to YouTube.<\/p>\n Apparently, Mr. Peanut sacrificed his life to save his commercial co-stars, Matt Walsh and Wesley Snipes.<\/p>\n You could win some snacks by replying to a tweet with a #RIPPeanut hashtag.<\/p>\n The brands and regular social media users alike played along with the campaign, and it even got a mention on SNL.<\/p>\n Goodbye, Mr. Peanut. Very few people understand how delicious our relationship has been: https:\/\/t.co\/0BP3h2j5mr<\/a> #RIPeanut<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/q6QxXJfArX<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Dr Pepper (@drpepper) January 24, 2020<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n The campaign was inspired by the reaction to celebrity deaths on social media.<\/p>\n It aimed to repeat the same level of engagement that Tony Stark\u2019s death caused in \u201cAvengers: Endgame.\u201d<\/p>\n Later Mr. Peanut was reborn as a Baby Nut and now happily tweets from the Peanut Jr. account.<\/p>\n The Numbers:<\/b><\/p>\n Why Did It Work?<\/strong><\/p>\n still can’t comprehend that this really happened at an ad agency in the last few weeks pic.twitter.com\/hX5UNbjVb0<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 rob trench (@robtrench) January 27, 2020<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n The campaign\u2019s premise was so crazy that it immediately became a meme.<\/p>\n Many comedians and funny Twitter personalities \u201cwere making jokes about Mr. Peanut\u2019s departure.\u201d<\/p>\n This specific brand of internet humor makes certain things go viral \u2013 and it worked.<\/p>\n When: <\/b>2020<\/p>\n Campaign Outline:<\/b><\/p>\n Another pandemic-birthed campaign, Airbnb introduced its Go Near campaign as an initiative to promote local travel and help the economy recover from the lockdown. The Numbers:<\/b><\/p>\n Why Did It Work?<\/strong><\/p>\n Recognizing not just its own livelihood but the income of the people who depend on it as a revenue stream, Airbnb reacted to the pandemic quickly.<\/p>\n The company deeply understood its audience\u2019s needs and created data-driven content to address them.<\/p>\n Airbnb also focused on creating personal connections that humanized the brand at a time when many were feeling isolated.<\/p>\n When: <\/b>2020<\/p>\n Campaign Outline:<\/b><\/p>\n Stay home & do the distancedance. Tag me & the hashtag in your video. P&G will donate to Feeding America & Matthew 25 for first 3M videos #PGPartner<\/a><\/p>\n \u266c Big Up\u2019s (feat. Yung Nnelg) \u2013 Jordyn, Nic Da Kid<\/a> <\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/blockquote>\n Created during the pandemic (seeing a trend here?), Proctor and Gamble took to TikTok with a campaign designed to encourage social distancing.<\/p>\n Under the hashtag #DistanceDance, the company teamed up with social media and former competitive dancer Charli D\u2019Amelio to help slow the spread of the coronavirus.<\/p>\n For the first 3 million videos posted to the short-form video apps, P&G donated to Feeding America and Matthew 25 Ministries.<\/p>\n The Numbers:<\/b><\/p>\n Why Did It Work?<\/strong><\/p>\n Recognizing that to reach a younger audience, they needed to reach them on their platform of choice, P&G jumped fully into this TikTok campaign.<\/p>\n Partnering with an established influencer helped the company reach an audience it would otherwise have struggled to connect with.<\/p>\n The give-back component also created a feel-good reason to participate in the hashtag challenge.<\/p>\n When: <\/b>2021<\/p>\n Campaign Outline:<\/b><\/p>\n United Nations Australia embraced the full potential of the short-form video site by creating a basic self-defense \u201cdance\u201d for women.<\/p>\n Consisting of four basic self-defense movements, #EmpowerMoves<\/a> is intended to give women and girls the confidence and support to protect themselves and shape a strong and equal future.<\/p>\nHow To Measure Social Media Marketing Effectiveness<\/h2>\n
Judge the effectiveness of your social media marketing by measuring your KPIs or key performance indicators<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n
\nYouTube<\/h2>\n
1. Dove: Project #ShowUs<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n
2. Gillette: \u201cWe Believe: The Best Men Can Be\u201d<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n
\n
\n
3. BuzzFeed x Friskies: Dear Kitten<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n
\nInstagram<\/h2>\n
4. Apple: The Shot on iPhone Challenge<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n
5. Starbucks U.K.: #WhatsYourName<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n
6. Spotify: #YearWrapped<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n
7. Netflix: Wanna Talk About It?<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n
8. Daniel Wellington: #WheresWellington<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n
\nFacebook<\/h2>\n
9. BuzzFeed: Tasty<\/b><\/h3>\n
![\"17](\"https:\/\/marketingnewsbox.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/17-awesome-examples-of-social-media-marketing-via-sejournal-anna_bredava.png\")
Screenshot from Facebook, December 2022<\/span><\/div>\n\n
\nTwitter<\/h2>\n
10. Houseparty: Fortnite Trivia Challenge<\/h3>\n
\n
11. Getty: The Getty Museum Challenge<\/h3>\n
\n
🥈 Find three things lying around your house\u2800
🥉 Recreate the artwork with those items<\/p>\n\n
12. Greggs: #VeganSausageRoll<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n
\n
13. Planters: The Death of Mr. Peanut \u2013 #RIPPeanut<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n
\n
\n
14. Airbnb: #GoNear<\/h3>\n
The travel industry was particularly hard hit by the pandemic, and the short-term rental company launched the campaign on social media using the #GoNear<\/a> hashtag to remind people that there are lots of fun destinations near where they live.<\/p>\n
\nTikTok<\/h2>\n
15. P&G: #DistanceDance<\/h3>\n
\n
\n
16. UN Australia: #EmpowerMoves<\/h3>\n
\n