1. Content is King
Twenty years ago, IT visionary Bill Gates declared, “Content is King.” And it still is. You won’t engage your followers on social media without appealing, relevant, and dynamic content.
Thanks to the fabulous algorithms used by platforms like Facebook, the more your followers Like / Comment / Share your posts, the more your page will appear in their newsfeed.
If they don’t like the content, they won’t interact, and you will lose your window to them.
- Keep your content varied and track how the posts go (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and other platforms have built-in tools for this)
- Make the posts visual (use images and video). Check out our inspirational posts and create cool graphics.
- Make your followers feel part of your business, and show them behind-the-scenes pictures and content.
- Encourage sharing by posting timely and inspiring content.
- Include special offers that are relevant to that platform only “Mention this Facebook post to receive a free side with any main” or “Mention this Tweet to receive a free game of pool,” etc.
2. Interact With Your Followers
It is all about getting them to engage with you.
- Ask them quick and easy-to-answer questions.
- Tag a friend and win promotions.
- Respond to their comments on your posts.
- Care about what they say.
- Solve problems and don’t ignore complaints.
- Respond in a timely manner, especially to questions about trading.
3. Perfect Your Timing
There are dozens of theories about the best time to post on various social media platforms. They all depend on who your target audience is. Busy 9-5 workers check during travel time, lunch, and late evening. Stay-at-home parents check during naptime!
Experiment with different types of posts at different times. You should also post at least 3 times a week on each platform.
Apps like Buffer and Hootsuite can also help you pick the optimal time and track engagement.
4. Schedule Your Posts
Social media can be a big mountain to climb (especially if you manage multiple platforms and all your other daily tasks).
We recommend using a scheduling app to plug in all your posts weekly. This doesn’t mean you can’t make additional and newsworthy posts as and when you need to, but batching the content will save you a ton of time.
Both Agorapulse [our tool of choice], and Hootsuite help you to schedule your posts, days, weeks, months, and even years into the future.
5. Dedicate time and resources to Social Media
This might be a pretty obvious one, but social media is an important part of your marketing mix. It can add immediacy and provide a one-on-one connection with your customers. But only if it is managed and nurtured properly.
Sporadic and inconsistent social media activity will result in sporadic and inconsistent engagement.
Think about your content, engage with your followers, and plan your posts.