SMART AUTOMATION
SOCIAL MEDIA & CONTENT CREATION
Building Smart Automation's LinkedIn presence through targeted content, consistent social media management and proactive lead generation
Smart Automation approached Treefrog to help strengthen its presence on social media and communicate the benefits of intelligent automation to the businesses and decision-makers most relevant to its services.
Rather than simply creating posts to keep the company's LinkedIn page active, we developed an ongoing social media management strategy combining audience research, original content creation, branded social graphics, copywriting, scheduled publishing, performance analysis and targeted LinkedIn outreach.
Our team became responsible for managing the process from initial ideas through to publication. We researched Smart Automation's market and competitors, developed content plans, created original graphics in Canva, wrote the accompanying copy and managed client approvals and scheduling through Buffer.
As the campaign developed, we also introduced a proactive LinkedIn lead generation strategy, using targeted outreach to connect Smart Automation directly with relevant decision-makers and turn its growing social presence into real business conversations.
ABOUT SMART AUTOMATION
Smart Automation helps businesses use intelligent automation to improve processes, efficiency and customer and employee experiences.
That creates an interesting marketing challenge.
The benefits of automation can be substantial, but the subject can quickly become technical. Different sectors and decision-makers also experience very different operational challenges, meaning generic messaging about the benefits of "automation" wasn't going to be enough.
Our job was to help Smart Automation communicate its expertise consistently while making its content relevant to the people and industries it wanted to reach.
Social media and LinkedIn in particular became an important part of doing that.
THE CHALLENGE
Smart Automation had the expertise and services, but needed a more structured approach to turning that knowledge into regular digital content.
The objective wasn't simply to increase follower numbers.
We wanted social media to help Smart Automation build awareness, demonstrate expertise, educate potential customers and ultimately create new business opportunities.
That required us to think about who the content was actually for.
Throughout the campaign, particular emphasis was placed on relevant decision-makers within sectors such as retail. Instead of talking broadly about intelligent automation, content could therefore address genuine commercial issues including customer experience, employee satisfaction, operational efficiency and process improvement.
And while organic social content could build credibility and awareness over time, we saw an opportunity to go further.
If we could identify the right decision-makers directly, we could combine content creation with targeted LinkedIn outreach using the social presence we were building to support proactive business development.
RESEARCH AND SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY
Before creating the initial content plan, we carried out research into Smart Automation itself, its services, competitors, target audiences and the wider social media landscape surrounding intelligent automation.
We reviewed how comparable businesses were using social media, the types of content being published within the sector and where there were opportunities for Smart Automation to communicate differently.
We also considered which platforms made the most sense for the audience.
Rather than spreading effort across social channels simply for the sake of being present, LinkedIn became particularly important because of its ability to reach the business owners, senior professionals and decision-makers Smart Automation wanted to engage with.
From that research, we developed an initial content strategy and presented our recommendations to the client.
This established the subjects we wanted to discuss, the audiences we wanted to reach and how different types of content could support Smart Automation's wider commercial objectives.
Once the direction was agreed, we could start creating.
CONTENT CREATION
Each month, Treefrog developed original social media content around Smart Automation's current priorities.
That meant more than filling a calendar with arbitrary posts.
Content was developed around specific themes, campaigns and audience pain points. Throughout the relationship, this included subjects such as intelligent automation in retail, customer experience, employee satisfaction, operational efficiency, case studies, the company's graduate programme and wider thought-leadership content.
Our team handled both the visual design and copywriting.
Graphics were created from scratch in Canva using Smart Automation's existing brand identity, imagery and visual assets. This allowed us to establish a recognisable style across the company's feed while still varying layouts and creative approaches enough to prevent the content becoming repetitive.
Alongside the visuals, we wrote the post copy, taking often technical subjects and turning them into concise social content designed to educate, generate interest and encourage further engagement.
We also introduced more people-focused and topical content where appropriate, helping the feed feel like it belonged to an active business rather than becoming a continuous stream of sales messages.
SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGEMENT
Once the strategy was established, we developed a repeatable workflow for managing Smart Automation's social content.
Posts were generally prepared in bi-weekly batches, giving the client visibility over upcoming content without requiring them to approve individual posts every few days.
Draft graphics and copy were uploaded to Buffer, where Smart Automation could review the proposed content before publication.
Any comments or requested changes were then worked through by our team before the approved posts were scheduled and published.
This gave Smart Automation control over what appeared on its channels without requiring its internal team to manage the day-to-day process of generating ideas, designing graphics, writing copy and maintaining the publishing schedule themselves.
It also allowed us to plan ahead while retaining enough flexibility to adjust the content around new priorities, campaigns and opportunities as they emerged.
LINKEDIN LEAD GENERATION & OUTREACH
As we analysed the early social media results, we identified an opportunity to make LinkedIn work harder for Smart Automation.
Organic content was helping build awareness, but we could also use the platform to actively put the business in front of the types of people it wanted to reach.
We therefore developed a targeted LinkedIn outreach campaign focused initially on decision-makers within the retail sector.
Rather than sending a single generic sales message to a huge database, we created a structured messaging sequence and refined the audience around relevant businesses, roles, sectors and locations.
This worked alongside the organic strategy.
As we connected with more relevant professionals, those people were also more likely to encounter Smart Automation's content in their LinkedIn feeds. The organic posts could demonstrate knowledge and credibility while direct outreach opened the conversation.
The campaign generated a growing pipeline of prospects, including people requesting additional information, expressing future interest, offering introductions and progressing towards calls and partnership discussions.
By March, 133 relevant prospects had already completed the full messaging sequence with another 624 progressing through it, while the campaign had generated a database of 979 relevant leads that could support additional marketing activity.
As the campaign continued, conversations developed with decision-makers across numerous businesses, with some progressing into calls and others creating longer-term opportunities for follow-up.
MONTHLY REPORTS
Social media management shouldn't end when a post is published.
Each month, we produced a detailed performance report covering the results of the campaign and what those results told us about the next stage of the strategy.
We monitored metrics including post impressions, reactions and engagement, page visitors, page views, follower growth and LinkedIn outreach performance.
But the reports weren't simply spreadsheets of numbers.
We compared results against previous months, reviewed which subjects and approaches were performing effectively and made recommendations about where the campaign should go next.
That could mean shifting the content towards a particular industry, increasing the use of case studies, focusing on a particular service or changing the audience targeted through LinkedIn outreach.
The reporting therefore created a continuous cycle:
Research → Create → Publish → Measure → Learn → Refine
Rather than deciding on a social strategy at the beginning of the project and blindly following it for the rest of the year, we could adapt the campaign based on what the data and actual conversations were telling us.
THE RESULTS
The combination of consistent organic content and targeted LinkedIn outreach delivered measurable growth across Smart Automation's social presence while also creating something considerably more valuable: direct conversations with potential customers and partners.
One of the clearest changes came after introducing the LinkedIn outreach campaign.
In March, the first full month of outreach, Smart Automation gained 101 new LinkedIn followers – a 152.5% increase compared with the previous month. Post impressions simultaneously increased by 31.1%, while page views rose by 27.72%.
That wasn't an isolated increase.
By May, Smart Automation had gained 240 followers since the outreach activity began, taking the LinkedIn page to more than 915 followers. In July, the page passed the 1,000-follower milestone.
But follower growth was only part of the objective.
The targeted outreach created conversations with relevant decision-makers, ranging from people asking what Smart Automation could do for their business to prospects requesting additional information and others progressing towards calls.
June became a particularly successful month for outreach, with the campaign generating conversations ranging from requests for further information through to prospects asking to arrange calls. Several other contacts expressed an interest in automation but needed to be nurtured over a longer period.
This was important because intelligent automation isn't necessarily an impulse purchase.
A prospect might not need Smart Automation's services at the exact moment they receive a LinkedIn message. Building awareness and establishing a relationship means the business can remain in consideration when that requirement eventually emerges.
The organic content supported that process by keeping Smart Automation visible to the growing network of relevant professionals.
Individual content metrics also demonstrated sustained reach. Between March and May, monthly post impressions increased from 2,098 to 2,827, while the page continued generating new visitors, reactions and followers.
Perhaps most importantly, the reporting showed us that the two sides of the strategy were working together.
Organic content built authority and gave prospects something meaningful to see when they encountered the brand. Targeted outreach helped make sure more of the right people encountered it in the first place.
Instead of measuring success purely by likes and impressions, Smart Automation was building an audience of relevant professionals alongside a pipeline of real conversations and future opportunities.
MORE THAN SOCIAL MEDIA
Our work with Smart Automation ultimately expanded beyond managing its social channels.
As we developed a better understanding of the business, its services and target audiences, Treefrog was also able to support the team across a wider range of marketing and content requirements.
This included writing content for and designing three pages of the Smart Automation website, creating a corporate pitch deck, producing two professional videos and developing dedicated marketing material for their graduate programme.
While each of those projects had a different format and purpose, they benefited from the knowledge we'd already developed through the social media relationship.
We understood the brand.
We understood the services.
We understood the audiences Smart Automation wanted to reach.
And we understood the language and messages that had already been developed across the wider campaign.
For Smart Automation, that meant having one creative and marketing partner capable of supporting multiple areas of its communications rather than treating social media, website content, sales collateral and video as completely disconnected activities.
DELIVERABLES
SOCIAL STRATEGY
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DESIGN TEMPLATES
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LEAD GEN
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CONTENT CREATION
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COPY WRITING
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MONTHLY REPORTS
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SOCIAL STRATEGY . DESIGN TEMPLATES . LEAD GEN . CONTENT CREATION . COPY WRITING . MONTHLY REPORTS .
SOCIALS THAT DO MORE THAN KEEP YOUR FEED ACTIVE
There's a big difference between posting on social media and having a social media strategy.
For Smart Automation, our work combined the two sides we believe are particularly important for B2B businesses: creating useful content that builds credibility over time and proactively getting that content and business in front of the right people.
At Treefrog, we can manage the complete process from researching your audience and planning what to talk about through to designing posts, writing copy, managing approvals, publishing content and reporting on what actually happened afterwards.
And where LinkedIn is an important part of your sales process, we can look beyond organic posting and explore how targeted outreach and lead generation can support the wider strategy.
If you're spending every other week wondering what your business should post next, we can take that problem off your hands.
Get in touch via the form or our details here