There’s no simple recipe for social media success… well there is, but it’s not really a secret and it’s definitely not a shortcut.

When people ask me where they should start with their social media marketing plan, I tell them to find out where their audience is and start there.  If your clients are big Twitter users, your first social media platform should be Twitter.  If your target audience is engaged on Facebook, your first social media platform should be, you guessed it, Facebook.

It’s not rocket science, but it can take a little leg work.  You can do a social media analysis to see where your competitors are online, what their presence is like, and then make a judgement call as to whether or not you want to go down the same path.  You should also research where your clients are congregating and take that into consideration.

Ultimately, you’ll have to tweak your social media marketing mix so that it’s always reaching the target audience you define.  You may find that one or more of the social media platforms you launch doesn’t fit the needs of your clients, is a waste of your resources or just isn’t a good platform for your brand’s message.  In that case, it may be time to throw in the social media marketing towel.