Social media strategy: 12 steps to build a plan that works

Having a strong social media strategy is all about building a system that consistently drives awareness, demand and meaningful business results.

Most organisations are active on social, but many can struggle with explaining why they post what they post, how it supports the customer journey, and ultimately how social media activity ties back to wider commercial goals. That’s where a simple, practical strategy becomes a game changer.

In this post, we outline a 12 step framework that helps you move from just posting to developing and following a clear, structured strategy and plan that drives growth.

What is a social media strategy and what makes it effective?

A social media strategy is a clear plan outlining your current position, what you want social media to achieve, who you want to reach, which platforms matter, what content you will create, and how you will measure success. It is different from a content calendar. A calendar helps you stay organised. A strategy explains why you are posting at all.

An effective social media strategy includes the following elements:

• Defined business-aligned goals.
• Clear audience understanding.
• A realistic channel mix.
• A documented content structure.
• A consistent tone of voice and brand identity.
• A measurement framework that drives decisions.

This guide covers all 12 steps needed to build a strategy that does more than fill feeds. It helps you grow.

Step 1 – Define goals that go beyond “more followers”

Many brands fall into the trap of setting goals like “grow followers” or “increase engagement”. These are outputs, not meaningful outcomes. Your social media strategy should start with goals that support the wider business.

Examples of effective social goals include:

• Increase qualified leads from organic social by 20 percent within six months.
• Improve brand visibility among a target audience by increasing reach of educational content.
• Strengthen customer loyalty through community engagement and repeat interactions.
• Drive traffic to high intent landing pages and improve conversion rate.

Use the SMART framework when setting goals. A clear goal creates alignment, focus and better measurement.

Step 2 – Get clear on your audience and buyer journeys

To build a strategy that works, you need to understand exactly who you’re speaking to and what they need at each stage of their journey.

Audience research should uncover:

• Core motivations and pain points.
• What questions your audience asks before buying.
• Which platforms they prefer and why.
• What types of content they trust.

Map this insight against the customer journey:

• Awareness.
• Consideration.
• Decision.
• Loyalty and advocacy.

Map your audience’s questions

Your most valuable content ideas often come from real conversations with customers. Collect questions that sales teams hear most often, topics raised in support channels, and comments posted across your feeds.

Turn customer conversations into content prompts

Every question contains a potential post. Every objection is an opportunity for education. Every repeat conversation is a sign you need a clear, accessible answer.

Step 3 – Audit what you’re already doing on social

Before building anything new, review the performance of the past three to six months.

A simple audit should include:

• Which platforms currently deliver the most engagement.
• Content themes that perform well or poorly.
• Posting frequency / consistency.
• Brand voice alignment and visual cohesion.
• Any standout posts that drove meaningful action.

Create a keep, tweak, stop, start list:

• Keep what consistently works.
• Tweak what shows potential.
• Stop what drains time without impact.
• Start new approaches based on gaps.

This review builds a more strategic foundation for what comes next.

Step 4 – Choose the right channels and say no to the rest

Most businesses spread themselves too thin. You don’t need to be everywhere. You need to be where your audience is active and where you can create content consistently.

When choosing channels, consider:

• Audience fit.
• Internal resources.
• The role each platform plays in the marketing funnel.
• Your ability to produce content that suits the channel.

Define the role of each channel

Give each platform a specific strategic purpose.

• LinkedIn: thought leadership and demand generation.
• Instagram: brand storytelling and product proof.
• TikTok: discovery, reach and personality.
• Facebook: retargeting, community engagement and local visibility.

A channel without a purpose becomes a drain. A channel with a role becomes a driver of results.

Step 5 – Build your content pillars

Content pillars are the foundation of your strategy. They ensure your content has variety, purpose and structure, while giving your audience consistent value.

Typical content pillars include:

• Educate.
• Prove.
• Engage.
• Sell.
• Humanise.

Each pillar supports different parts of the funnel. Education builds trust. Proof builds confidence. Engagement builds community. Sales messages convert. Human content adds authenticity.

Turn pillars into weekly themes

For example, a weekly mix might look like:

• Monday: educational insight.
• Wednesday: customer proof.
• Friday: product or service highlight.
• Weekend: behind the scenes or team spotlight.

This stops you from posting reactively and creates a rhythm your audience understands.

Step 6 – Design a realistic posting cadence

Your posting schedule should be sustainable. It’s better to post three strong pieces consistently than sporadic bursts followed by silence.

To set a cadence, consider:

• Your team’s available time.
• Your content creation capacity.
• The platform’s best practice frequency.
• How much quality content you can maintain without burnout.

Predictability is a growth multiplier. Consistency builds recognition, algorithmic favourability and trust.

Step 7 – Plan your paid support the smart way

Paid social should amplify your strategy, not replace it. Many brands turn to ads because organic activity is inconsistent. The truth is that paid works best when organic foundations are strong.

Paid support can be used to:

• Boost top performing posts.
• Promote launches, campaigns or events.
• Drive traffic to high intent pages.
• Retarget engaged audiences.

Think of paid as the accelerant, not the engine.

Step 8 – Lock in your brand voice and visual cues

Your social media strategy must include a consistent tone of voice and visual identity so every post feels recognisably yours.

Define:

• Personality traits.
• Writing principles.
• Approved phrasing.
• Brand colours and style.
• Image and video rules.

A strong voice ensures every caption sounds like you. A strong identity ensures every post looks like you. This builds trust and makes your content instantly recognisable.

Step 9 – Choose tools that match your team and budget

You don’t need 20 tools. You need the right ones.

A simple tool stack includes:

• A scheduling tool.
• Basic social listening capabilities.
• A content repository for assets.
• Simple analytics.

This is where Fetch fits naturally. Fetch ensures you always have a bank of on-brand content ideas, captions and visuals ready to go. It allows your team to create, curate and publish without the usual time drain. It keeps your social always-on while you focus on the bigger picture.

Step 10 – Document your strategy on one page

A strategy becomes powerful when it’s simple. Keep it to a one page plan that your whole team can reference.

Your one page should include:

• Goals.
• Audiences.
• Channels.
• Content pillars.
• Posting cadence.
• KPIs.

If your team can’t explain your strategy in one minute, it isn’t simple enough.

Step 11 – Agree your metrics and reporting rhythm

Your strategy needs a clear measurement approach. Otherwise, you’re just posting and hoping.

Consider metrics across each stage of the funnel:

• Awareness: reach, impressions, video views.
• Engagement: saves, comments, profile visits.
• Traffic: clicks, time on site, scroll depth.
• Conversion: sign ups, leads, purchases.
• Loyalty: repeat interactions, UGC, retention.

Set a monthly reporting rhythm. Use insights to improve what you post next month. Strategy becomes stronger with iteration.

Step 12 – Review, refine and evolve

A social media strategy is never finished. It evolves as platforms change, customer behaviour shifts and your business grows.

Do a quarterly check to review:

• What is working.
• What needs adjusting.
• Which channels are delivering the best results.
• New content opportunities.
• Insights from audience behaviour.

A strategy is a system. When you refine the system, results compound.

Bringing it all together

These 12 steps turn social from something you “try to keep up with” into something that consistently drives business value. With clear goals, a defined audience, strong pillars, consistent cadence and the right tools, your social starts working for you, not the other way around.

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Related reading:

• Why your car dealership social media strategy isn’t working
• Organic vs paid social media: why you need both
• Social media and the evolving role of HQ marketing teams