Ever watch the TV show Pretty Little Liars? They’ve done something groundbreaking with their social media plan that you can apply to your business. Intrigued? Stay tuned to find out how.

Pretty Little Liars is a show about 4 girls in high school who know a secret and are hounded by a mysterious person via phone texts. Originally Warner Brothers, the studio behind the show, had a social media blackout. Tweeting was strictly forbidden on the set so no secrets were leaked. But eventuallythey realized the show had a social media storyline, and a lot of viewers who were active on social networks which equaled a huge opportunity. They acted on it and here are some out takes to learn from:

Check out the competition – Your competitors are on social media too so check out which networks they use (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc) and the engagement they have.  If there’s already a conversation going on, you probably should be part of it. But if there isn’t much going on in your industry, either start up the conversation or keep an eye on it. And just because your competitors aren’t using a certain social platform doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be there, so test it out. Speaking of which…

Test – Okay, we are often reminding you to test your marketing, but it’s important to keep up with what your followers are interested in. Test different social networks and see where your customers are and what they like and comment on. You can also test which social networks you should use based on how much engagement you get. You may find that Instagram, for instance, grabs more attention for your business than you expected. You never know where your followers will want to connect with your business.

Ask – Not sure where to start? Ask your customers! They’ll tell you where they are and where they want you to be too. Include a survey in an email, blog or even on Facebook to get feedback. It’s an easy way to make sure you’re on the right networks for your customers and fans.

Social media is ever changing, so stay flexible with how you use it. Are your customers on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest? Maybe not today, but that doesn’t mean they won’t be tomorrow. So don’t set your social media plan in stone and never revise it. You could  miss out on some star opportunities for you and your business!

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