Much like Google, social media networks tend to be in a constant state of evolution – and like to keep social users as well as marketers in the dark as much as possible. For example, a study released by MIT’s Center for Civic Media found that 62.5 percent of users surveyed were not aware that Facebook was using a complicated mathematical algorithm (containing an estimated 100,000 weighted variables) to determine the content displayed in their News Feed.

Digital marketers who employ social media in their marketing mix face the challenge of tracking the often bewildering number and frequency of changes in the social media landscape. No longer a “set it and forget it” marketing option, social media campaigns today require constant adjustment and alignment with an ever-changing and largely unwritten rule book in order to keep them on track and optimized for best results.

How to Squeeze Maximum Value from Your Social Marketing Efforts

Despite the obvious difficulty of identifying and applying the best strategy when so many variables employed by the various social media networks are unknown or unconfirmed, experimentation and testing has generated a number of effective “evergreen” techniques that are currently working for social marketers across a variety of industries and social platforms. Here’s a closer look at the power tips that are crushing social marketing today.

Mastering Twitter

1. Be sure to use a high-contrast brand image in your profile.
2. State your company mission. Let your brand personality and voice shine through.
3. Don’t forget to include your main business website URL.
4. Your tweets should run around 100 characters, which will allow your followers to add their own spin.
5. Headlines are “old school” and boring. Boost the power of your description by asking a question, using a quote from your post, or adding your thought or opinion.
6. Including an image in your tweet can increase retweets by as much as 35 percent.
7. Your most important tweets should be shared four times a day to maximize your reach.
8. Optimize your Twitter Stream with a landscape-oriented image, using a ratio of 2:1.
9. Hashtags will make your tweets easier for followers to find. Just don’t overdo it – one to three per tweet is about right.
10. Ask questions to encourage interaction, and be sure you respond to any questions that others ask you.
11. You can substantially boost your click through rate (CTR) by enabling Twitter Cards as opposed to relying on a plain-vanilla URL.
12. Boost interaction by replying to retweets and adding a question to your reply.
13. If you’re new to Twitter, you can build your following fast by retweeting the tweets of other users, and by participating in events such as Twitter chats and #FollowFriday.
14. Use the Twitter Search option to uncover the most popular current topics among Twitter users.

Making the Most of Facebook

15. Boost engagement by including images in your updates.
16. Your updates should be memorable and deliver real value if you want to increase your click through rate and interaction.
17. Uploading videos directly to Facebook rather than simply embedding a YouTube link will help increase your reach.
18. Place your call to action at the end of your update.
19. Remember that Facebook (as well as many other social media platforms) is all about sharing. The more entertaining or useful information you share with others, the more likely your content will be shared.
20. Use Facebook Insights to determine the best days and times to reach your followers.
21. You can increase your reach by using appropriate hashtags.

Crushing It with LinkedIn

22. Update your profile once a month.
23. Including relevant keywords in your profile headline will improve your searchability within the LinkedIn community.
24. Keep your content specific to the topic and aimed at a specific audience.
25. Be sure to perform status updates on a regular basis – once a day is ideal.
26. Join and actively participate in relevant LinkedIn groups.
27. Remember that LinkedIn works best when used as a forum for discussion as opposed to a link share.
28. Don’t be too pushy with your self-promotional efforts.
29. Consider creating your own LinkedIn community.

Far too many business owners continue to think of social media as a “set it and forget it” solution that begins and ends with creating a social profile or account. Implementing just a handful of these power tips will help propel the social signals of your brand over and above those of your competitors. Just remember to keep your social channels alive and flourishing with regular posting of fresh content and ideas.