​When it comes to successfully marketing your organization online, the days of one-way messaging are long gone. To maintain a thriving conversation with your audience now involves a lot more than just a pretty website—though creating a site that honestly (and beautifully) reflects your brand is your first step on your social media journey.

To engage and recruit new and loyal fans (who will share their love for you at every opportunity), you need a multifaceted strategy that involves omnidirectional interaction, at all times.
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Feeling overwhelmed about how to get where you want to go? No worries! We’ve got you covered!
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I found this wonderful infographic from Krumtech.com that walks you through the process, step-by-step:

Web Design
Since this is the face of your brand, it pays to invest a little extra time (or money) to ensure your site is not only aesthetically-pleasing and easy to navigate, but also reflects the YOU of your brand.

Here are a few up-to-date tips from Webflow.com for designing a website that will be visually cool, smoothly functional, and inviting to your guests.
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19 Web Design Trends for 2018
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​Landing Page
If you don’t want your customers to get lost in the muck while they are finding their way to your call-to-action, create a streamlined landing page where you can take them from A-Z without sending them on a treasure hunt of links. The easier you make it to get to where they want to be, the better chance they’ll do what you want them to do when they get there!

Here are some choice do’s (and a few don’ts) from our friends at Instapage.com:
 
https://instapage.com/blog/landing-page-examples
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Web Analytics

I know—me, too. Just thinking about it makes my head hurt. But trust me on this—what you don’t know about your customers can hurt you—a lot. And what you can easily (yup, I said, ‘easily,’) find out about them can mean the difference between ‘meh’ and ‘FAB’ e-WOM and brand performance!

How easily?

​Award-winning author and social media guru blogger on Occam’s Razor, Avinash Kaushik will tell you. No need to follow a yellow brick road. Like the Good Witch said to Dorothy, all you need to do is click--

https://www.kaushik.net/avinash/see-think-do-care-win-content-marketing-measurement/

Online Ads
Social media marketing is—well—social, and your number one priority when it comes to online marketing should be connecting your brand in a meaningful way with online communities.

That doesn’t mean you should feel awkward about splitting the tab every now and then—you just have to learn how to gracefully ask your new friends to chip in their share for the fun. Creating an unobtrusive and welcoming online ad that will lead to seamless transitions from party, to purchase is a learn-able skill.

​AuthorJeff Rayjeck, from his blog on Econsultancy, will teach you the tricks of the trade:
 
https://www.econsultancy.com/blog/69708-five-trends-for-online-advertising-strategy-in-2018

See there? I told you not to worry. Thanks to our favorite social media experts, your brand is already one-third of the way to social stardom!
 
Tune in next week for Part II of Mapping Your Way to Social Media Success. We’ll walk you through mobile and online ads, email marketing, pay-per-click, and effective SEO strategies that will keep your brand relevant and visible online.

Do you have any social media advice to share with wannabe marketing moguls? Share it in the comments section below. Thank you!