In 2008, only 24 percent of the U.S. population had a social media profile. Now, in 2017, that number has increased to a staggering 81 percent (source: Statista). With such a rapidly increasing number of social media users, knowing when and why to expand PPC marketing into social media can be extremely beneficial to your traffic.

SEM and social media may not seem related at first, but they are both heavily based on content and require research surrounding a specific market. Oftentimes social audiences are overlooked if content creation is too focused on search engine traffic, which is frequently the foundation of many digital marketing campaigns. If SEM has already made you knowledgeable about your specific market, many marketers benefit from transferring this knowledge seamlessly to social media. Consider two examples:

  • For instance, Facebook advertising can target a wide variety of extremely specific demographics and interests. This can help increase your traffic, as well as increase engagement and brand loyalty. Social media PPC typically impacts your social influence when your audience Likes, Follows, re-Tweets, comments and shares.
  • Targeting lookalike audiences automatically allows you to find new audiences that have similar interests and behaviors to your existing audiences. This is a perfect way to make the most of your existing content by exposing it to a group of new, focused viewers.

Although not every every “Like” or “Share” leads directly to a sale, this form of expanded content engagement is a branding strategy that can increase conversions and engagement in the long run, since comments, likes and shares contribute to your credibility and brand trust.

By expanding SEM efforts into audience-appropriate social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn, marketers are finding successful ways to engage their key audiences.

If you’re interested in how your PPC/SEM efforts could expand into the social sphere, HDMZ’s digital team can help you get started. Drop us a line at client.services@hdmz.com.