5 ways to boost engagement on social media

Oct 27, 2017 Robert McMullan Technology 0

Social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook and Instagram can be great for small businesses. Not only do you get to promote your products and services to a new audience, but you get to grow your audience and build your brand by reaching out to people who may not have heard of you before. But sometimes, it isn’t that easy.

The internet is a competitive place, and the days of “tweet it and they’ll come” are over. In 2017, you have to work harder than ever to get customers to engage with your brand and have your content seen by more people. Below, we’ve rounded up five ways to do that.

Post stuff people want to read

Whatever your industry, the chances are that your customers won’t want to be bombarded with news and updates from your company 24/7. But the key to boosting engagement on social media is posting more content – so what are you supposed to do? Tweet stuff that people want to read, instead. Whether it’s a fun GIF, a quote, news about your niche or a picture from the latest office party, there are hundreds of opportunities to post fun content.

Speak to your audience

It’s important to develop a clear brand voice for your business, and learn to speak to your customers rather than at them. To make your brand more approachable, you may want to adopt the same social media persona as your followers – that could mean using emojis, GIFs and memes to attract attention and get people talking about your business, so decide whether that’s the direction you want to go in. Of course, you can remain straight-laced and corporate if your industry allows, but you may struggle to get as much engagement. Oh, and be sure to post on social media at the most optimal times to reach the biggest audience.

Play around with visual content

Social media sites like Instagram and Snapchat have always been about images and videos, but traditional networks like Twitter and Facebook are also following suit. Indeed, tweets with images attract 150% more retweets than those without, and Facebook Live videos are watched three times longer than those that aren’t live. You may not be able to start live streaming overnight, but creating graphics and GIFs in Photoshop should help create more traction and get eyeballs on your content.

Image result for social media marketing

Pay for advertising

Facebook algorithm changes have made it harder than ever to get your content to show up on users’ news feeds, so paying for advertising or “boosts” can be beneficial. You may think it is counterproductive to pay for your content to be promoted, especially if it’s not overly promotional, but doing so can build brand awareness, grow your channel and help your other content be seen by more people. If you’re new to social media advertising, read this.

Run a competition or giveaway

Competitions and giveaways are a great way to get people to engage with your brand, as you are giving them a reason to click through to your profile. Whether you give away a coupon code to one of your products, a free trial or a hamper with goodies, make sure you promote it and get your friends and family to spread the word. Many competitions on social media go viral, so it makes sense to give it a go and see the results for yourself.

Social media can be a powerful tool for small business owners, but it requires hard work and patience. Try some of the techniques that we have mentioned above, and you’ll be well on your way to success. Good luck with your campaign!

About the Author

Max Greene is the Managing Director of Muffin Marketing, a marketing agency specialising in content marketing, social media marketing, and search engine optimisation.

Recommended images

https://www.pexels.com/photo/facebook-instagram-network-notebook-266246/

https://www.pexels.com/photo/apps-business-cellphone-cellular-telephone-533446/