Using social media to market your business is almost a no-brainer these days. Social media platforms are, for the most part, free to use, massive in their reach, and easy to integrate into your marketing plan. Unlike traditional advertisements, social media marketing is immediate and interactive, making it important for businesses to have a clear social media strategy in place.

Here are four steps to take if you’re ready to optimize your social media game plan:

Build out your presence: Whether you’re an established company or a new business, your social media presence (or lack thereof) affects how potential customers perceive your brand. A thoughtful, sustained social media output across two or three major platforms will, over time, project internal stability, an ongoing interest in the industry, and a sense of transparency. This means posting quality, professional content with a consistent voice on a reliable schedule.

Set a smart schedule: When you post to social media is almost as important as what you post. The day of the week and the time of day at which a post goes live can have a huge impact on its reception, but predicting that impact in advance can be tricky. You may find that posting during high-traffic times will garner more views and interest overall, even if your message is more likely to get lost in the crowd. On the other hand, posting during low-traffic times means getting fewer views but it may foster a higher rate of interaction. Your industry space and marketing strategy will determine which approach works best for your business, so it’s important to experiment and observe before you commit to a posting schedule.

Interact with other accounts: Social media is, of course, meant to be a social activity. Where traditional marketing relies on launching a message into the world and hoping potential customers see it, social media offers companies the rare opportunity to reach out and interact with customers directly. Responding to questions and comments directed at your business’s accounts is a good start, and the faster the better. But beyond direct comments, look for mentions of your company or products that might warrant a reply. Look for opportunities to casually interact with other business accounts in your industry space. Better yet, keep track of mentions of your competitors’ names and products, so that you can potentially respond to their customers’ comments, as well.

Cross-post and follow-up: It may seem obvious, but not every Facebook user is a Twitter user, and not every Twitter user checks LinkedIn… If you post unique content to one platform, but you don’t cross-post it (or a link to it) on other platforms, you may be missing a sizeable chunk of your audience. Similarly, reposting old (but still relevant) content will garner extra views and make it easier for small marketing teams to post consistently by relieving some of the pressure to churn out new content.