7 Tricks for Engaging Social Media Posts | Simplemachine
The prudent use of social media has the potential to be the gift that keeps on giving. Make strategic use of your social media pages and you’ll bring new clients into the fold who remain loyal customers over time. These satisfied customers will refer your business to others, pass on links to your social media pages to those in their social/professional circles and help keep your company in the black for years to come. The challenge lies in figuring out how to engage your social media audience so they don’t simply scroll right by your Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter posts. Here’s how to do it:
1. Provide More Than Text
Social media posts featuring photos, embedded videos, infographics or other visual features aside from plain text are comparably impactful. Though text posts can certainly generate goodwill with your target audience, social media posts featuring a photo or video in addition to text are almost always more popular than posts strictly limited to words. However, it’s a mistake to use a low-quality photo or a video lacking relevancy. The image/video you select should be consistent with your company and reinforce branded elements. Otherwise, the audience will think less of your business or ignore your social media posts altogether. When in doubt, float out a couple of trial balloons. Add a few different photos and videos to your social media posts, gauge the audience’s response to each and proceed accordingly.
2. Tailor Social Media Content to Your Unique Audience
No two companies have exactly the same target audience. Therefore, each business’s social media should be highly unique. Perhaps your company’s target audience responds positively to comedic posts. Another company’s audience might respond best to serious posts. Do some research to determine if your audience tends to be casual, uber-serious, comparably relaxed, overly-formal, highly receptive to humor, etc. Once you understand who is most inclined to purchase your products/services, generating social media posts that inspire meaningful engagement will prove that much easier. The moral of this story is you cannot please every single social media user. Zero in on your target audience, tailor your social media posts to their tastes/characteristics and the results will eventually show in your bottom line.
3. Brevity is Key
Attention spans are rapidly shrinking as technology improves. We live in an on-demand society in which people are unwilling to wait for the products and services they covet. The sad truth is people are likely to either skim or scroll right past lengthy social media posts. Social media is not designed for lengthy posts as extended text cuts off, forcing the reader to click his or her mouse in order to read more. Don’t lose sight of the fact that social media users’ attention span is down to mere seconds. If your post takes more than half a minute to read, few will even consider reading it. The first couple of words of your social media posts are particularly important. Think long and hard about how you would like to present the information in question before clicking the “post” button. If necessary, rewrite your initial sentence several times to “hook” the reader. Above all, your social media post should be limited to 250 characters or less. Anything longer will prompt your audience to scroll right on through your post to the next one on their social media feed.
4. Prompt Your Audience to Take Action
There is nothing wrong with encouraging your audience to take action. Use the final sentence of your social media posts to recommend the audience reach out to your team for more information, schedule an appointment or make a purchase. The mere suggestion of taking action really is enough to convince some social media users to take the next step in the buyer journey.
5. Encourage Feedback
Social media is a dialogue rather than a monologue. It’s imperative to interact with your audience on every social media platform you participate in. If anyone responds to your posts, don’t leave them hanging. Promptly answer questions, “like” supportive comments and address complaints posted to your social media pages. If you’re struggling to generate responses from your audience, consider posing questions. People love to share their opinions, even on the most trivial matters. After all, we all want our voices to be heard. Prompt your audience to respond to a “this or that?” or “agree or disagree?” question and you’ll immediately kick-start a dialogue rather than deliver a comparably monotonous monologue.
6. Mix in Some Line Breaks
The addition of line breaks makes it that much easier for your audience to read your social media posts. Otherwise, your posts will look like a wall of text that does nothing but intimidate the reader. Line breaks also serve the purpose of boosting the vertical height of your posts to enhance its visual prominence in users’ content-laden social media feeds.
7. Focus on Legitimizing Your Expertise
No one wants to buy products or pay for services from an individual or company lacking experience, knowledge and/or skill. Use your social media posts as an avenue to reinforce your authority in your niche and your audience will be that much more likely to engage with your online content. Once you succeed in convincing your audience that your business thrives in its niche, social media users will be that much more inclined to recognize your company’s merits and ultimately pay for your products or services.
Simplemachine is at Your Service
Simplemachine social media specialists are here to ensure you get the most out of your company’s presence on social media platforms. Our content marketing, SEO and web design experts will spearhead your quest for successful online interactions with prospective customers as well as those already in the fold. Contact us today to learn more about our services and schedule an initial consultation.
