Mari Smith has said it. Gary Vaynerchuk at well. If you know social media than you know that while “content is King, engagement is Queen – and she rules the house!” We can get back to how to create some killer content, but I want to focus on how to actively engage with your audience.
The key word there is ACTIVELY. When you first set up your social media platform you start to post. You create solid content, post some pretty pictures and sit back and wait. And WAIT. That’s all you have to do right? Post things and people will flock to your business, sales will skyrocket and then the world of unicorns and rainbows starts singing as the money pours in. It’s a pretty story. How do you actually make it happen? You need to engage and build relationships with those that you are trying to reach. Here are my top 3 tips to do just that.
- Comment, Like and Share on other people’s pages/feeds/etc
If you want to be noticed by other businesses and customers than you need to go out and seek them. Think about the people that are in your target audience (see my Power of 5 post) and find other pages and accounts that they would like. Comment on their posts, like them and if its solid quality content – share it to your page/feed. That helps people to see that you are in it for them – to help out your customers and not just sell yourself and your business. - Ask Questions on Your Page – Take a Survey
Are you actively seeking to engage your customers? They have the opportunity to give
you immediate feedback – let them! Sometimes businesses will not allow comments to post on their page…then what’s the point of social media? You need to be SOCIAL in order to build relationships. Ask questions, answer questions and respond in a very timely manner. 24 hours is a long time now a days – think minutes when it comes to quickly responding to a customer inquiry. - Run a Contest and better yet, do it for a charity
Looking to get a ton of action on your page rather quickly? Get some prizes together and get a contest rolling. Find a way to promote not only your page but other pages as well – run a joint contest, find a non-profit to partner with and get twice the exposure. Or maybe support a virtual run, do something that people who are in your target market, will want to be a part of. People want to be recognized – give them the opportunity to be a star!
There are other ways to engage – an ad is always a solid way to get traffic quickly to your page. Yet once they are there, you need to continue with some sort of engagement to keep them interested. Post amazing content and talk to your customers, online and off and you will build a community of people who want to refer you and build your business. Just yesterday I heard a self described Millennial saying that she would rather take the word of a complete stranger than the professional themselves. Meaning, if you have an excellent presence online, with solid reviews, you are more likely to get business than someone who is in their own bubble of influence. You are the expert in your field, share your expertise, engage with those who want it, and build a community of like minded people that will help you grow your business. Raving fans and brand ambassadors are the result of excellent engagement and a company that gives their time and attention to those that most deserve it.