Want to stand out among competitors and connect with your audience? Then, social media marketing should be a part of your marketing strategy.
Your product or service could be one of the greatest in your niche. But without a visible social media presence, you’re likely missing out on valuable opportunities that your competitors are already taking advantage of.
Social media marketing can help you engage potential customers, spark conversations, and drive sales.
As of October 2024, over 5.22 billion people use social media. Tapping into this massive audience with the right strategy could boost your social media marketing efforts.
This brings us to an important question: What is social media marketing, and why is it vital to your business?
This guide covers everything you need to know about social media marketing, including its benefits, effective strategies for audience growth, selecting a platform, and common pitfalls to avoid.
Let’s get started.
Social media platforms are online spaces where people connect, share content, and interact with each other.
In a nutshell, social media marketing strategically uses these platforms to promote your business, build relationships, and drive engagement.
Think of it like placing a billboard in a high-traffic area with guaranteed visibility.
However, unlike a static billboard, social media allows real-time conversations and meaningful interactions.
This level of interaction is invaluable in business. It transforms casual viewers into loyal followers and positions your brand as an integral part of their daily lives.
If you’re serious about attaining relevance, influence, and profitability, you wouldn’t leave such an opportunity to chance.
For instance, when Adobe posted an update on X, it didn’t just share information; it sparked interactions. Over 650,000 people saw the post. As a result, it generated over 700 comments, 300 likes, 250 reposts, and over 100 saves.
Image via X
This level of engagement shows how social media marketing can transform a simple post into a powerful conversation with potential customers.
With the right approach, your brand can start building a strong presence on social media with the goal of increasing engagement and expanding your reach.
Every time you see a brand sharing new product launches or running ads on your feed, that’s social media marketing at work. It’s a strategic way for businesses to reach their audiences, build brand loyalty, and drive sales by leveraging platforms that most people already use.
Social media marketing is all about understanding your target audience and engaging with them where they spend their time online. This could be on Facebook, Instagram, X, TikTok, LinkedIn, or other social media platforms.
For social media marketing to work, you must combine several important elements, including:
When done right, social media marketing is one of the most affordable and effective ways to connect with your audience and achieve your business goals.
The latest social media statistics reveal just how powerful social media marketing is right now. You can use these insights to craft a data-driven strategy that aligns with your audience’s needs and social media marketing goals.
According to the same study, the average person uses about 6.86 different social networks per month. This means your audience is likely on more than one platform, making a multi-channel approach crucial for maximizing reach.
Image via Statista
Image via DataReportal
Meanwhile, 60% of marketers expect consumers to shop more through social media networks than websites or third-party platforms in 2025.
In fact, 56% of marketers expect their social media marketing budget to increase in 2025, as illustrated below:
Image via HubSpot
To further understand what is social media marketing, we need to discuss why it matters to your business.
Here are the key benefits of investing in social media marketing:
Social media is an unrivaled force to build brand awareness. With billions of users actively scrolling through platforms like Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and X, your potential audience is vast and diverse.
Consistently sharing engaging content that resonates with your target audience ensures your brand doesn’t just exist but thrives in the spotlight.
Each like, share, and comment amplifies your reach, embedding your business into the minds of your audience. When people recognize and trust your brand, it naturally creates stronger customer relationships and increased sales.
What is social media marketing if not the opportunity to create lasting relationships with your potential customers?
With social media marketing, businesses can connect with their audience in real time. Businesses can create a loyal customer base and enhance brand trust by actively engaging with the audience through direct messages, live videos, and interactive features, like polls and Q&As.
Social media marketing is highly flexible and cost-efficient compared to traditional advertising methods.
Social media marketing allows businesses to advertise their products or services and reach a broader audience, even with limited financial resources.
Whether it’s creating content for Instagram, sharing a thoughtful LinkedIn post, or collaborating with micro-influencers, social media marketing can effectively spark conversations, amplify your reach, and drive conversions.
Authentic storytelling and consistent engagement help you connect with your audience, build trust, and grow your business—all without breaking the bank.
Have you come across links to blog posts, product pages, or special offers on social media?
Most definitely!
What is social media marketing if not a powerful strategy to drive visitors to your website and increase sales?
By sharing engaging posts with clear calls-to-action (CTAs), businesses use social media to attract potential customers to explore products, read content, or make purchases on their websites.
If done right, social media marketing can help businesses, particularly startups vs small businesses, increase website traffic and boost sales. Each visit to your website is an opportunity to convert interest into action—whether it’s signing up for a newsletter, filling out a form, or making a purchase.
Freightify’s LinkedIn post exemplifies this approach, briefly introducing a blog post and linking to its website to drive traffic.
Image via LinkedIn
Social media removes the barriers that once limited your audience, allowing you to showcase your offerings to a global target audience and tap into new markets.
Thanks to social media marketing, scaling your brand has become more accessible, and your next big market could be just one post away.
Imagine reaching millions of users worldwide with just a few clicks. Social media allows businesses to expand globally without the high costs of traditional international expansion.
Your market is larger than you think—if you know where to look!
We can’t successfully define “What is social media marketing? And discuss its benefits without mentioning it as an avenue to gather customers' feedback.
Businesses can learn about customer preferences, pain points, and needs through social media marketing. Businesses can monitor comments and brand mentions and leverage social listening techniques to gather valuable feedback.
Monitoring competitor feedback also provides insights into how people feel about industry trends or changes. Businesses can leverage social media analytics tools to access these key insights and adjust strategies proactively. This allows you to refine your approach, prepare for challenges, and identify improvement opportunities.
A business that disregards customer feedback will struggle to grow. Even feedback from dissatisfied customers can provide valuable insights and help you identify improvement areas.
Here’s an example of Monday.com calmly responding to a customer’s mixed review on X.
Image via X
Now we’ve answered the question, “What is social marketing?” Let’s discuss key metrics to track and terms. These numbers help you understand how well your content is doing, how people are interacting with your brand, and where you can improve.
Here are the important social media marketing metrics to focus on:
How to Calculate: There’s no manual formula since most social media platforms provide this automatically.
Generally,
Reach = Total unique viewers of a post
For example, if 1,000 people saw your post, your reach is 1,000.
How to Calculate:
Engagement = Total likes + comments + shares + clicks + saves + reactions
How to Calculate: Social platforms display this automatically. But if you want to measure follower growth, you can use this formula:
New followers = Current followers – Followers from previous period
How to Calculate:
Profile Visits = Total number of profile views over a given time
How to Calculate: Manually count or view totals from social media platform’s analytics.
Mentions/Tags = Number of times your brand is tagged or mentioned
Here’s an example of a post shared on Instagram using the hashtag. It has generated over 6,000 likes so far:
Image via Instagram
Hashtag Use = Total number of posts using your branded hashtag
How to Calculate:
Clicks = Total link clicks on a post or profile over a specific period
How to Calculate: Social media platforms track this for you.
Impressions = Total number of times your content is displayed
How to Calculate:
CTR = (Clicks ÷ Impressions) × 100
For instance, if your ad had 1000 impressions and 50 clicks:
CTR = (50 ÷ 1000) × 100 = 5%
How to Calculate:
Conversion Rate = (Conversions ÷ Clicks) × 100
For example, if 100 people clicked your ad and 10 bought something:
Conversion Rate = (10 ÷ 100) × 100 = 10%
How to Calculate:
Engagement Rate = (Total Engagements ÷ Reach) × 100
If your post had 500 engagements and reached 10,000 unique people:
ER = (500 ÷ 10,000) × 100 = 5%
You don’t need to calculate this. Your social media platform will provide audience insights.
The image below shows the key metrics to track across different social media platforms:
Image via Semrush
Like any other marketing channel, social media marketing requires a well-thought-out strategy.
What is social media marketing and how can you create effective strategies for your business?
In this section, we’ll walk you through the professional, step-by-step process for leveraging the full potential of social media marketing to achieve your goals.
Get the foundation right! The key to creating an effective social media marketing strategy is setting clear goals.
Are you looking to drive social media traffic to your website, increase brand visibility, generate leads, build customer loyalty, or drive sales?
Success doesn’t end in knowing what is social media marketing. Without clear benchmarks, it’s challenging to determine whether your efforts are succeeding, falling short, or merely maintaining the status quo.
Here are some examples of clear, measurable goals:
Is it okay to have several social media goals?
Well, it’s possible to juggle multiple objectives. But we suggest focusing on just one or two main goals at a time to avoid overwhelming yourself.
For instance, you might prioritize brand awareness initially, then shift your focus to social media lead generation once you’ve established a solid audience base.
To make social media work for your business, you need to understand your audience and what strikes a chord with them.
Knowing who you’re speaking to allows you to craft messages that resonate, build relationships, and drive action.
Imagine trying to sell a luxury product to budget-conscious shoppers or promoting workout equipment to people uninterested in fitness. Your efforts would likely fall flat.
When you know your audience, you can:
Unfortunately, many businesses skip this crucial step, rushing to post generic content that fails to engage or connect.
The result? A disjointed strategy with minimal impact.
Don’t make this rookie mistake. Take the time to define your target audience. Here's how:
Begin by gathering essential information about your audience, such as:
The image below highlights the key demographic factors to consider when defining your audience:
Image via Similarweb
Go beyond demographics and explore your audience’s personality, lifestyle, and values:
Study how your audience interacts with your brand and competitors.
Use web analytics tools, social media insights, and surveys to gather valuable data. Monitor their feedback in comments, reviews, and messages to understand their needs better.
Study the competition and find out if there are gaps in their approach that you can fill. For example, if the competitors' followers often complain of slow delivery, you could highlight fast and reliable shipping in your campaign.
Use the data to create detailed personas for your ideal customers. Each persona should include:
Defining your target audience sets the stage for a focused and effective social media strategy.
Many brands make the mistake of trying to be active on every social media platform, believing it will maximize visibility.
In reality, spreading your efforts across too many platforms often leads to burnout, inconsistent content, and diluted impact. Instead of covering all bases, focus on the platforms that matter most to your business.
If your target audience isn’t on Snapchat, there’s no reason to have a presence there. Likewise, if LinkedIn doesn’t align with your goals, it’s better to skip it altogether.
Effective social media marketing isn’t about being everywhere; it’s about establishing a robust digital footprint in the social media platforms that align with your business goals.
Narrowing your focus to two or three platforms allows you to:
To determine where your business should focus its social media efforts, consider the following factors:
Your target audience’s preferences should guide your platform choices. Different platforms attract distinct demographics and behaviors:
Businesses in various industries thrive on different social media platforms. Match your business type to the platform that best supports your industry’s needs.
For example, wedding planning businesses can leverage Pinterest to share inspiration boards and reach engaged couples.
IT consulting firms, on the other hand, should tap into their LinkedIn network to connect with corporate clients and decision-makers.
Each platform requires time and effort to manage effectively. If you’re a small team or just starting, it’s better to excel on two platforms than to perform poorly on five.
Choose platforms where you can maintain a consistent posting schedule, engage with your audience, and track analytics.
Each platform has unique features that can amplify your content marketing strategy.
If you focus on video storytelling, platforms like YouTube and TikTok capture attention.
Facebook Groups can provide the right environment for community engagement and discussion-based content.
Once you’ve identified your target audience and the platforms they frequent, you’ll know what type of content resonates with them.
But knowing this isn’t enough.
You need a clear, actionable plan to ensure your content delivers value and aligns with your goals.
To do this, follow these steps:
First things first, each post should have a clear purpose.
Ask yourself: Is it meant to drive traffic to your website? Will it educate, entertain, or inspire your audience? Does it encourage engagement like comments or shares?
Defining the goal for each post keeps your strategy focused and impactful.
A successful strategy blends diverse social media content ideas and formats, such as:
This LinkedIn poll by Intel goes beyond usual updates, directly engaging followers with a question.
Use a content calendar to plan your content and balance your content mix.
Take advantage of platform-specific tools and content marketing tools such as Buffer or Hootsuite to streamline scheduling and content management.
Not every post will be a hit—and that’s okay.
Track performance metrics such as likes, shares, comments, and reach to identify what works best. Use these insights to refine your strategy and improve over time.
Social media platforms are competitive spaces where organic reach alone may not always suffice.
Paid advertising allows you to amplify your message, reach a highly targeted audience, and achieve measurable results faster.
If used strategically, it can be a game-changer for your business.
Social media platforms offer a variety of ad formats, each suited for specific goals:
If you’re new to paid advertising, begin with a modest budget to test your strategy.
Experiment with different ad formats, messaging, and visuals to identify what resonates most with your audience.
Once you find a winning strategy, gradually increase your budget to maximize results.
It’s also important to regularly analyze ad performance to refine your strategy.
Use social media analytics tools to track key metrics like click-through rates (CTR), conversion rates, and return on ad spend (ROAS).
If an ad underperforms, adjust your targeting, visuals, or messaging to improve outcomes if an ad underperforms. Paid advertising is most effective when guided by continuous testing and optimization.
This guide wouldn’t be complete without smart tips to help you achieve more with less effort. Understanding “What is social media marketing,” is essential. However, equipping yourself with social media best practices early on will set you on the fast track to seeing great results.
Whether you’re just starting or refining your approach, here are essential social media marketing tips to strengthen your strategy.
Take a look at how Wendy’s, a fast-food restaurant engages its audience by responding to follower’s comments on Instagram:
Image via Instagram
See how Antler, a brand that sells luggage and travel bags, uses branded and relevant campaign hashtags in their Instagram post:
Image via Instagram
For instance, Gymshark collaborated with Tori, a micro-influencer on TikTok to promote its shorts collection and drive sales through affiliate marketing:
Image via TikTok
Have a look at Tim Soulo’s LinkedIn post, where he shared a new feature from Ahrefs and invited users to share their thoughts in the comments:
Image via LinkedIn
Your social media profile is often the first thing potential customers see when they visit your page. So, if you want to attract followers, increase conversions, and grow your brand on social media, you need to make a strong first impression.
This starts with creating polished and professional profiles that capture attention, build credibility and enhance your brand’s visibility.
Here’s how to build a profile that drives results:
Start by choosing a name and handle that’s simple, clear, memorable, and consistent across platforms. This makes your brand easy to find and recognize on various social media platforms.
Avoid complex underscores, numbers, or symbols that might confuse potential followers.
Your profile photo is the face of your brand. Make sure it's clear, high-resolution, consistent across platforms, and easy to recognize even in a smaller size. You can use your company logo and pair it with a high-quality cover photo that reflects your brand.
Take a look at Constant Contact’s LinkedIn profile and cover photo. It’s a great example of a clean design that reflects brand colors and core values.
Image via LinkedIn
In just a few engaging words, explain what your business does, the value you offer, and what makes your brand unique.
Include keywords (phrases people use to search your brand or offerings) naturally in your bio to enhance visibility. Lastly, add a strong CTA like “Shop now,” “Learn more,” or “Contact us” to guide visitors.
Including accurate and consistent contact information allows potential customers to reach you easily.
So, provide your phone number, business hours, email, website, and physical address (if you’re a local business). See how 3 Little Chicks prominently displays its contact details on its Instagram bio:
Image via Instagram
Double-check that all your contact details are correct and always update them in case of any changes.
Make it easy for potential customers to learn more about your brand or buy your products/services by adding links to your website or landing page. For instance, in the previous image, 3 Little Chicks includes important links in its bio.
Q1. What is social media marketing in simple words?
A. Social media marketing uses social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn to promote your business. It involves sharing content, engaging with your audience, running ads, and building a presence to reach existing and potential customers.
Q2. What are social media marketing tools?
A. These software or platforms help businesses manage, track, and improve their social media activities. Examples include tools like Hootsuite for scheduling posts, Canva for designing graphics, and Google Analytics for tracking performance. They save time and help optimize your efforts.
Q3. What are the benefits of social media marketing?
A. Social media marketing offers the following benefits:
Q4. What does a social media marketer do?
A. A social media marketer creates, schedules, and manages content for social media platforms. They also engage with followers, analyze campaign performance, and adjust strategies to meet business goals. Their role involves a mix of creativity, communication, and data-driven decision-making.
Q5. What is a social media marketing strategy?
A. A social media marketing strategy is a detailed plan outlining how a business will use social media to achieve its goals. It includes identifying target audiences, choosing the right platforms, setting goals, planning content, and measuring results to ensure success.
Social media marketing connects brands with their audience like no other channel.
Unlike the formality of emails or other platforms, social media thrives on authenticity and unfiltered conversations.
To succeed, you need to strategically position your business for success and apply what you’ve learned in this guide.
No matter how small, every action contributes to your overall impact.
With these insights, you should never have to ask, “What is social media marketing?” again. It’s time to implement your knowledge and craft your success story.
Need help driving results? Let Attrock’s expert content marketing services elevate your brand on social media.
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