Social Media and WordPress: What’s the Best Way to Incorporate Them?

Social media is any form of media or technology that focuses on interactions between people. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and even our blogs are all social media. WordPress is an open-source platform used by millions of websites to power their content management system (CMS).

The key question for many bloggers is how to best combine their social media marketing efforts with WordPress blogging software.

Benefits of using Social Media and WordPress Together

With over 455 million WordPress users, this is an extremely popular combination. Integrating your social media strategy with WordPress allows you to:

• Attract search engine traffic directly from your blog posts.
• Create and manage a robust feed that reflects all of your content.
• Target your social media efforts to specific audiences, interests, and geographic areas.
• Automatically notify your social media contacts of new blog posts.
• Build an email list or forum group to support your blog.
• Leverage WordPress’s robust built-in social network widgets.
• And much more!

What’s the Right Approach?

There are many different ways to integrate your social media efforts with WordPress that it is worth talking to Click Intelligence, or read on for the best way to incorporate social media and WordPress:

1) Advertising on Your Site

Many bloggers choose this method because it’s easy and cheap for them, but it can be challenging for the blogger. The approach here is straightforward: You set up an advertising account on a third-party site like Facebook and Twitter, then point those sites directly at your site with a short code.

2) Getting Your Blog Posts Out to Social Media Sites

This approach is also quite popular, especially for people who have busy schedules or don’t want to manage their social media relationships. The idea here is to configure your blog to post new content to your social networks automatically. This often includes options to schedule your posts in advance so you don’t have to worry about it later.

3) Creating a Social Newsletter

Called an “eNewsletter” or “newsletter,” this approach involves adding social networking buttons directly to the end of each blog post and/or creating an email subscription form on your site that allows people to receive email notices when new content is published.

The question is, “How do I combine my Social Media marketing efforts with my WordPress blogging?”

Finding The Right Social Media Platform

The easiest way to start using WordPress for social media marketing is to install the default Woocommerce plugin. This plugin will allow you to share product details directly with sites like Facebook.

The best way to incorporate social media into WordPress:

1. Start your blog with a premium theme.
2. Add the Woocommerce plugin to allow sharing of posts.
3. Add your Facebook fan page widget to the sidebar and a share button to every post.
4. Install add-ons like Facebook and Twitter comments, Related Posts, and Facebook Likebox.
5. Your site is set up for social media marketing!
6. Set a schedule for posting (at least once daily).
7. Engage with readers through comments, conversations on social media sites, and email campaigns using Mailchimp.

How to Get the Most Out of Social Media and WordPress

Now that you know how to use WordPress to integrate its social media features, let’s explore some of the best ways to get the most out of your efforts.

1. Create a Blog Feed

One of the simplest things you can do is to create a simple blog feed. This is simply sharing new content from your site on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. You may also want to use Instagram or LinkedIn if you have them installed on your site.

2. Collect Email Addresses of Visitors

The easiest way is to simply follow other bloggers who have their social media accounts and mention their names in new posts by linking directly back to their page or website. The more social connections you have, the better!

WordPress is an amazing system for managing all of your online content. Since it’s adaptable, it’s the perfect tool for your social media marketing efforts.

3. Make and Share Videos

These days, blogs are often treated like the author’s personal websites, so including a video or two on your blog can help add to its visual appeal. You might post a commercial at the beginning explaining why you created your blog and what your readers will get from visiting and supporting it.

4. Create a Forum for Reader Comments

Bring together like-minded people by including a forum on your site. This will reinforce your position as an expert and resource that invests in that particular niche.

5. Make Your Blog a Part of Your Social Media Efforts

You can integrate links to your Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest pages into their corresponding widgets on your site. You may also want to post blog entries on those same sites rather than WordPress.

Remember, you have the option to schedule these posts in advance, so they don’t appear while you’re sleeping or away from your computer! This way, you’ll keep your social media efforts moving forward.

6. Create Polls and Surveys

This allows you to get a pulse from your audience by asking them what they want from you or if they think something should be changed in your business or products. Use these as a communication medium and initiate dialogue with readers who have questions you can answer.

7. Mention Other Bloggers on Your Blog

Let others know you are following their blogs and add links to their posts. This will help drive traffic to them, and maybe they will return the favor.

8. Link to Bloggers in Your Target Niche

If someone mentions your blog or website, go out of your way to let them know you noticed it by commenting on their blog or website, linking to it, or adding a comment on their social media page. This will help build relationships with other bloggers, which can be vital if you are trying to work on a campaign together.

Find out where people are talking about your niche (keywords and phrases they use), mention them by name in relevant posts, and link back to their pages or sites.

9. Create a Social Media Widget with the Most Popular Posts from Your Blog

Let others know you share great content by displaying the two or three most popular posts (by social media shares). This is a great way to build trust with your readers and show them you provide quality content.

10. Create Short Product Videos

With the growth of tablets and smartphones, people are increasingly looking for information as well as entertainment. Your videos should have at least five to ten seconds of clear, concise information about your product or service. You may also want to include some testimonials (from your customers), how-to guides, or a demonstration.

11. Use Twitter Lists

You can customize a list of your followers so you can easily see what they are interested in and monitor their conversations without having to keep up with everything they say all day long.

12. Use Hashtags on Twitter and Facebook.

Use relevant hashtags that relate to your niche that people will search for on these websites and be able to find you there more easily.

13. Use Facebook’s “People” Section

This is a great way to have people discover your blog, and it’s linked directly to your Twitter account, so they can find you easily this way.

14. Create an Email Campaign

This is a great way to keep in touch with people (who may be interested in your products or services). Try having them fill out a form before you send them an email with the details of what you offer.

15. Create Social Media Graphics for Your Facebook and Twitter

Keep them looking their best by creating graphics for each profile that are simple and easy on the eyes. 

16. Mention others in Articles

When you are writing about your niche, it’s important to mention other blogs and websites that readers might find interesting.

17. Update Your Blog Regularly

Most people will subscribe to an email list if they know they can get useful information from you regularly. Remember, it’s better to publish one good article than ten bad ones!

18. Include Links to Other Sites in Every Post You Publish

Don’t be shy about it! Try including at least one or two links in every article. This will help you build up your social media accounts, and they’ll be more likely to share, tweet, and pin your content.

19. Use Images in all of Your Posts

Images are important for catching the reader’s attention and making sure he or she finds you online! If you are writing about products or services that include photos of those items, make sure to include those with the articles so people will click through to them from your site.

20. Post a Link to Your Blog in Your Signature File on Discussion Forums

When you sign a new topic in online forums, including an interesting or useful link. This will help people find out about you and what you’re about.

Conclusion

By including social media in your WordPress blog, you’ll reach a whole new group of potential customers. You can also use them as a feedback system to find out what they want and what they’d like you to change in your business or products.

WordPress also works well with other platforms (like Facebook), so you can use it to host an event or campaign that’s simultaneously promoted on social media sites such as Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, and Pinterest.