72% of ALL internet users are now on social media but how many of the 72% really, truly understand how to use each social network to its fullest potential?

For this week’s blog, I wanted to do something different. I tend to use my Friday articles to talk about my experiences, and use my knowledge to speak about important topics where my target audience need guidance.

Following on from my webinar earlier this week on the 5 secrets to successfully drive traffic to your business using social media, I have done my own research, and have found four other social media experts, with something that I think is important for you to hear.

Today I am going to be sharing with you 5 secrets worth listening to about social media, from 5 social media experts. You may know some of the people I am going to reference, but if you don’t; I would recommend that you follow them, and engage with them online. They are thought leaders, social media experts, and share information that you can trust.

1. Melanie Perkins | Co-Founder and CEO of Canva

Whilst Melanie is not a “social media expert” she is the co-founder and CEO of a company which has helped me with my visual social media marketing. To have a business as successful as Canva, you do have to understand how it is used on social media, and what she says about visual marketing is worth listening to.

Here is what Melanie had to say;

“Be authentic and provide value. Create content that educates your users and helps them to improve their game – they will become loyal followers and genuinely engage with your content. It also helps you to become an expert in your field.

At Canva, we use this strategy throughout all of our social media channels and marketing activities. We frequently receive emails from users who thank us for the content we create, it’s a win-win!”

2. Jeff Bullas | Blogger, Author, Social Media Marketing Strategist & Speaker

Jeff Bullas is someone I have followed for a very long time, and is extremely successful in the US. He writes his own content, and has been featured in Forbes, The New York Times, Huffington Post and many other well known news outlets.

I recently read an article written by Jeff where he talks about social media as a way of making “friends”. I thought this was a really interesting point, and will let Jeff explain his point of view below;

“Friendships are important. Some are long-term and some are just beginning, but they are what make us connect as human beings. Positioning your business on social media is no different than having these type of friendships.

You need to advance your social media marketing to continue to nurture and court the following “friends”;

• Current customers with whom you already have a good relationship
• New customers, or those who have “converted” in some way
• Audience members who have just discovered you
• Future audience members you don’t know exist and who have not “discovered” you yet.

While your content marketing goals should include nurturing the first three “friend” groups, your long-term business growth must focus on the fourth group – the future “friendships” you have not yet made.”

3. Mari Smith | Facebook Marketing Expert & Social Media Thought Leader

Mari is someone I have been listening to, and following online for as long as I can remember. She is known as the “Queen of Facebook” and has over 170k “fans” on Facebook, and over 450k followers on Twitter. She had something really important to say recently about content writing and how crucial it is to make sure your advertising is getting the ROI it deserves.

“It’s not just about creating good content or driving them to your site. Now it’s got to be good sales copy, you’ve got to be good at crafting ads, you’ve got to get people to click, and you also have to have a super compelling landing page, a compelling offer, and you’ve got to be reaching the right market. There are a lot of components that people have to wrap their arms around.”

4. Lilach Bullock | Speaker and Social Media Marketing & Influencer Outreach

Lilach is someone I respect, and admire in the world of social media. Our paths have crossed many a times, and we are currently discussing ways in which we can work together. I had to include Lilach on this list, because she is someone you should be following. I am going to share a simple quote of hers, and explain why it has made it onto this list.

“What you are tweeting is more important than how many times you are tweeting.”

This, to me is really powerful. The underlying message behind this is that quality outweighs quantity and for social media to be a successful business driver, you need to have a strategy in place.

5. Warren Knight | Social Sales Expert and Award-Winning Business Growth Coach

I had to include myself, because there is a “secret weapon” I want to share with you, to help you drive more connections, more leads and more sales. I have been in the world of social media for 8 years, and have come across many tools, but this one in particular is a must-use for small businesses.

This “secret weapon” I am talking about is Openr. Turn everything you share into the action you want. When I share a link on social media to one of my blogs, and my audience clicks on it, they will see something similar to the below;

What I have done, is used Openr to create a pop up with a “call to action”. Whilst you are reading my article, I am saying to you “Here, have something for free, but first, I will need your name and email address”. To get something valuable like a name and email address, you need to give something of value which in this instance is my Free LinkedIn Training.

This is something I do for every single one of my articles as a part of my marketing strategy, and you should too! Click here to get started with Openr.

I know this article is a lot longer than usual, but I hope that I have shared some action-worthy information and if you are not following the above thought leaders, I highly recommend that you do today!