There are many brands who have found huge motivation to target social media as their primary method of marketing. While search engine optimization continues to be a major way to attract large numbers of people organically, some have made a tactical decision to pay upfront and generate large amounts of attention via ads on Facebook and other sites.

There are questions that need to be asked and answered before any marketing campaign goes live. When building campaigns on social media, there are specific considerations that should be made. Let’s talk about the most crucial ones today so you’ll be better prepared.

Does This Platform Cater to My Audience?

When pinging servers with social media marketing campaigns, you want to be sure you’re having the biggest impact. In order to do that, you have to be in the right place. While some people think that specific targeting features will help them find the people they want to persuade, not all social media networks are created equal. Some sites – like Instagram – might be better suited for select products and services than, say, Twitter. Ultimately, you can find people who fall into your target audience on every network – but determining which networks have the most ideal and largest numbers of people in that audience will get you better results.

Do I Know Who I’m Targeting?

Just as important as the medium, knowing who it is you’re trying to reach matters in social media marketing. Ideally, you will have already done a bit of market research or metric analysis to determine who exactly is your key demographic. With this information in hand, you can then target specific people on one or more networks that fall into these categories. Your target audience should be considered not just along lines of age, gender and geography, but also interests, activities and even specific actions taken on social media.

What Do I Want?

If you don’t know what it is you’re seeking to accomplish with your social media marketing efforts, then stop right here. It is imperative that you first craft a plan for what you expect out of each campaign. Are you trying to grow your subscriber base, sell a specific product or convince a person to donate? If you don’t know why it is you’re pinging servers with ads, then the likelihood of those ads being worthwhile is small. Always make sure to understand exactly what each campaign is supposed to deliver.

Can I Track My Progress?

Last but not least, you want to be able to monitor what you’re doing. This means that any effects of your social media marketing campaigns should be verifiable in one or more ways. From counting the number of clicks each ad generates to the total cost per engagement, you want to know if the campaign is generating better or worse outcomes. Over time, you’ll be able to compare campaigns against one another and generate more effective outcomes based on what works. Without a clear understanding of performance, social media ad campaigns have no room for growth and improvement.

Before starting any marketing efforts on social media, you need to know a few things. You first want to determine which platforms are best for targeting. From there, you’ll specifically target individuals based on what makes them attracted to your brand. Finally, it’s important to also understand what you want from the campaign and whether or not you are gaining ground. With these questions answered, you’re ready to start marketing successfully on any number of social media platforms.