Hyper-local social media marketing isn’t just about reaching an audience; it’s about reaching the right audience at the right place and time.
But what is hyper-local marketing? How does it compare to its cousin, local marketing, as well as its parent (regional marketing) and grandparent (national marketing)? (This family’s got some STRONG marketing genes.)
Getting even more granular, how (and where and when) is it appropriate to engage in a hyper-local social media marketing strategy?
We will answer all of the above questions — and more. First, let’s level set with some definitions.
National vs. regional vs. local vs. hyper-local
All four marketing strategies have their time and place. Which is better? It all depends, of course.
They differ based on scope/target audience, message customization, budget allocation, and distribution channels.
Scope and target audience
- National: Targeted towards a broad, nationwide audience, often focusing on general appeals that resonate across diverse demographic groups.
- Regional: Focused on specific regions within a country, often defined by geographical boundaries, cultural similarities, or common consumer behaviors.
- Local: Limited to a very specific location (county, city, town, etc.) often used by small businesses or franchises.
- Hyper-local: Super narrowly focused, often targeting neighborhoods or specific locations (street, block, neighborhood, etc.).
Message customization
- National: Very generic. Little to no customization. Must appeal to a wide variety of people often with varying interests and backgrounds.
- Regional: Slightly more customized compared to national, with a focus on regional characteristics and buying preferences.
- Local: Highly customized to local culture, needs, interests, buying behavior, seasonality, weather patterns, and so on.
- Hyper-local: Extremely tailored to the immediate environment, local trends, and the specific needs of a very localized, targeted, niche audience.
Budget allocation
- National: Large. Big 7-figure budgets. Need to send the message far and wide.
- Regional: Typically smaller than national campaigns but larger than local or hyper-local initiatives.
- Local: Modest. Tailored to the size of the local market, which can vary depending on if you’re targeting a rural or metropolitan area.
- Hyper-local: Often very small based on scope but can be larger if the goal is to flood this area.
Distribution channels
- National: National TV, major online platforms, national publications, and other media with a wide reach.
- Regional: Regional TV stations, websites, and social and print media.
- Local: Local newspapers, TV, and radio stations. Community events and local online platforms.
- Hyper-local: Localized social media campaigns, flyers, community boards, and direct mail within a confined area.
Hyper-local social media marketing
While many distribution channels can be effective for hyper-local marketing, social media is often the preferred method — the most bang for the buck and most efficient.
Why social media? In short, lots (lots!) of people use it daily, hourly, every second!
According to a recent Forbes article, around 4.9 billion people use social media worldwide in 2023. Other key stats cited:
- U.S. users have an average of 7.1 social media accounts
- The average person spends about 145 minutes on social media every day
- 77% of businesses use social media to reach customers
- 76% of social media users have purchased something they saw on social media
Those are some incredible numbers, but the real power of social media — as it relates to hyper-local marketing — is this: the ability to target advertising down the extremely granular level.
Some examples:
Behavioral
If you engage on social media at any level, you’ve seen this play out. Your search for (and view) content about, say, coffee. Next, you see ads for coffee and coffee-related services and products on every social media channel you frequent. Coincidence? Nope. This is behavior-based social media advertising.
Interest-based
You like and follow several social media accounts related to gardening on Facebook. You then start seeing ads for gardening tools, plant seeds, and related books … based on your interests.
Demographic
When you create social media accounts, you often add demographic information like age, gender, and (sometimes) income. Based on this data, you now fall into several “demographic buckets.” For example, a 28-year-old female may get served targeted baby product ads on their social media channels.
Location-based
There is a lot of data about where people live — state, city, neighborhood, zip code, etc. A local restaurant could use that data to target users within a specific geographic radius, offering discounts to those who live (or work) nearby.
Retargeting
You browse a new online clothing store your friend told you about. You don’t buy anything. Social media targeting doesn’t care. They know enough about you to now send ads about their store and products on all social media platforms.
Lookalike audiences
A business creates an ad campaign targeting users similar to their existing customers — interests, behaviors, location, and demographics (see all above) to find and target these “lookalike” audiences.
Custom audiences
Grab the email lists from your customer database and upload them to your preferred social media platform. The platform will show ads to that group of people based on their matching email addresses.
Time-sensitive
An event management company targets ads for an upcoming concert to users who have shown interest in similar events, intensifying the ad frequency as the event date approaches.
Engagement-based
Have you ever commented on a brand’s social media post only to see more ads from them over the next few days and weeks? This is engagement-based social media advertising.
Choosing the right channels
Not all social media is created equal. Many channels exist — Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter/X. The list goes on… and will certainly grow (and ebb and flow).
Which social media channel (and strategy) is best for you depends on where your audience lives and spends most of their time. It’s great to play in all areas, but consider where the ROI is highest. Don’t fall into the trap of having to be everywhere.
Constantly test, evaluate, and iterate.
And equally as important for hyper-local social media marketing is to pay or not to pay.
Organic or paid hyper-local social media marketing?
Social media marketing falls into two main buckets: paid and organic.
Paid social media marketing
Historically, Meta platforms, Facebook and Instagram, have shown the best return for hyper-local social media marketing. Be sure to add these channels to your strategy.
Organic social media marketing
Organic social media marketing should always be on the table.
Chances are, your organization already has its own social media channels it can leverage. Be sure to check all of the below boxes:
- Localization: Tailor all content to specific regions using location tags (and hashtags) and profile locations. Tailor for local SEO keywords.
- Content creation: Create content that resonates with your target audience, using language and imagery specific to the hyper-local area.
- Remain active: Brand awareness and engagement require activity. Don’t let your social media accounts lay dormant. There is no “perfect” number of posts you need per month, but a few times a week at minimum are necessary to stay top-of-mind.
- Strategy: What are you posting and when?
Which is better? Paid or organic? Ideally, a mix of the two. Find the best program for your needs and invest the time, money, and effort to maximize returns.
But you don’t have to go at this alone.
BrandMuscle is here to help
BrandMuscle offers three customizable social media services:
- Self-serve: You’ve got this on your own, but not without our support, of course. Our solutions provide easy access to all your branded content while giving you timely reporting, conversation monitoring, and article sharing.
- Do-it-for-me: Don’t have the time? Not your area of expertise? BrandMuscle experts will post on your behalf. We have several package options focusing on hyper-local (we’ve seen over 400% higher engagement from these). Additionally, we’ve seen local employee/customer spotlight posts with 1,000% higher engagements than branded promo posts.
- Custom concierge: Neither #1 nor #2 seem to be the best fit? We also offer white glove/concierge services.
Book a demo today and let’s start the conversation.
