We’re all aware of the prevalence of technology in our society, as well as its strong influence on consumerism.

Accordingly, many companies have started to integrate social media into their marketing strategies. When done well, these strategies can have an extremely positive effect on sales and audience size. (Here are three local women who have social media mastered.)

For those of you women running your own companies or establishing a brand, we’ve got a few tips for you. Read on to learn how to use social media in your marketing strategy to spectacular effect.

Tip 1: Understand Your Audience

Perhaps the most important aspect of using social media in marketing is understanding your audience. And, identifying your company’s target demographic is instrumental in the success of the business as a whole.

Characteristics of your intended audience, such as age, gender, and education level, will affect the platform you choose for your company’s social media presence. It will also influence the tone and style of your social media posts.

For instance, if you’re hoping to target a younger demographic, you may choose “trendier” social media platforms, such as Twitter. Similarly, if your target audience skews more toward an older demographic, you may want to consider creating your presence on more established platforms such as Facebook.

Create Unique Content

The best way to help your company’s social media presence stand out is by creating original and intriguing content.

This content comes in many forms, including blog posts, tweets, photos, or videos. It will likely vary depending on the chosen social media platform. Your posts should be both entertaining and informative. Try to entrance your viewers, while also providing them with important information about your company.

Additionally, social media posts should have an element of engagement for followers. These include calls to action, custom hashtags or a link to sign up for your company’s newsletter.

Incorporating an interactive element in your social media posts encourages followers to spend more time on your website. It also increases the likelihood of a sale. Cha-ching.

Post Consistently

As with any other marketing strategy, consistency in social media marketing is key.

Maintaining a consistent presence and regularly posting across your various social media platforms helps establish a more reliable brand image for your consumers.

Creating a social media calendar is a great way to help you stay organized and on schedule. You can use this calendar to plan blog topics, release dates or product launches.

Organization is crucial when you’re creating a social media calendar, but you should also be flexible in the event that you experience delays or that there’s a shift in trends.

A good rule of thumb is to post at least once or twice a week, depending on the platform and to check comments daily.

Host Buzz-worthy Events

Consistency is important in establishing an effective marketing strategy, but there’s nothing wrong with changing things up.

Incorporating an experiential marketing campaign into your marketing strategy is a great way to provide your audience with a fun and innovative way to interact with your brand. And, it can easily be used in tandem with social media.

Creating custom hashtags, designing photo ops and sharing upcoming locations for your experiential marketing campaign tour helps create a buzz about your brand and draws larger crowds to your event.

Event attendees will be eager to share their experiences on their personal social media accounts, helping to grow your audience exponentially.