Smaller businesses face unique challenges when implementing a social media marketing campaign. That’s because they don’t have the limitless budgets and number of employees that a large company has. When money is tight and employees are few, many businesses question whether social media marketing is even a wise idea. If acquiring new customers and building customer loyalty is an important goal for your business, then chances are social media marketing can be a smart choice for your business. But because resources are limited, it’s important that you do it right the first time. It’s important that you remember the five Ps of social media marketing success.

Plan

Too many business owners jump into social media marketing simply because everyone else is doing it. To be successful, businesses need to identify what they want to achieve through mobile marketing and then come up with a plan that will allow them to reach those goals. Without a plan, it’s unlikely your social media marketing campaign will get off the ground.

Patience

If you go into social media marketing with unrealistic expectations, your frustration may lead you to give up prematurely. Keep in mind that good things take time. Social media marketing is about building relationships and trust with customers. That won’t happen overnight. If you rush it, you’ll push people away rather than build trust. Be patient and success will come.

Persistence

Along with patience, you’ll need persistence. Because success takes time you need to keep pushing forward even when you aren’t seeing results initially. There is a fine line however between persistence and stubbornness. If one strategy just isn’t working and you’ve been persistent and patient, it may be time to try a new strategy.

Pay (what you can)

Though social media marketing is free to start, there are added benefits available for those willing to invest. The budget is often tight with smaller businesses but if you afford even a small investment, you may find that the return on that investment made it well worth it.

Prioritize

Social media marketing is exciting and it’s easy to get carried away with it. However, it’s important that you budget your time. You should periodically review your social media marketing goals, measure your success at accomplishing those goals, and budget your time so you can better meet them.

Source: mobilemarketingwatch.com/mmw-op-ed-5-ps-for-your-social-media-marketing-success-43286/