How many times have you been to a company's page on Facebook only to find post after post of sales ads with zero engagement from visitors? This is a prime example of ineffective social media interaction with your audience. It's frustration for the business and their customers, and it doesn't do anything to bring the two together.
If a customer wants to only learn more about your product or services, they can go to your website for that. There you have an About Us page, a list of your offerings, maybe information about your prices or how to get the ball rolling. Your social media pages should offer a spattering of that type of information, but it shouldn't be the primary focus.
Here are some things that a few of the best social media business pages do to increase engagement.
- The understand their audience uniquely. They know who wants their products or services, and they know more about them than just age and gender. Take the time to understand your audience. The only way you can do this is with data. Use customer surveys, reviews, learn about their families, jobs, and hobbies. What do they do when they aren't online? Once you have a good understanding of your target audience, you will be able to effectively communicate to them.
This is an ideal time to hire a social media expert to help. It can be overwhelming to compile this data on your own, and certain specialists can make the process quicker. One social media expert in Australia, Brad Russell, routinely helps companies identify their audience and target market teaches business owners as he goes through the process. This allows them to replicate the process on their own as its needed. Learn more about Brad Russell and his effective methods for social media engagement, SEO, and increasing traffic to your website.
- Stop selling on social media pages. The best companies on social media platforms have pages full of employees interacting in the office, having birthdays, playing with pets, volunteering at a local non-profit, and interacting with customers. Help your customers see the people and culture behind the business. This is what drives engagement.
- Stop being so stuffy. It's OK to be funny and be in business! It's ok to talk to people like a real person. Not everything has to sound like a press release or a college thesis. Relax. It's even ok to have the occasional typo or two on your page. People will know you are real. Be conversational and people will be more likely to want to talk back. See a funny dog video you know your customers would love? Share away!
- Use emojis, stickers, and photos. You don't want a blah page of just text. Emojis and stickers can help to get reactions on your posts which helps more people to see them.
- Don't be afraid to ask. Ask for a review. Ask for a reaction to something you post. Use these mini call-to-actions to get your customers used to interacting on your page. Offer a contest with a winner to be drawn from everyone who likes or shares a certain post.
These are some good places to start with increasing your social media engagement. Find companies that do it well, and implement their techniques into your pages. Remember, it is a continuous process that needs to be managed over time in order to have great results.
