Have You Forgotten the Social Part of Social Media?

Social media has become an integral part of businesses marketing strategies. However, many companies have focused solely on broadcasting messages and have forgotten the social aspect that makes these platforms so powerful. This is our well-meaning attempt to remind you of the importance of interaction, outreach, and other key elements that can truly elevate your social media strategy. 

Engage with your audience. 

It sounds obvious, but it is often forgotten, time-consuming, and generally not included in a lot of social media marketing packages. Social media platforms are designed to foster connections and interactions. Engaging with your audience is vital for creating long-lasting relationships and showing that your brand is human, approachable, and genuinely cares about its customers. To engage with your audience, ensure that you respond to comments, messages, and mentions promptly. Encourage content from your followers and share it on your feed, and always remember to ask questions, create polls, or conduct surveys to involve your followers. The more you engage, the more your audience will feel connected to your brand, leading to increased trust and loyalty. 

Build relationships with influencers, other brands and loyal clients.

Another crucial aspect of the social side of social media is networking with influencers and other businesses. These relationships can help you reach new audiences, create mutually beneficial partnerships, and improve your brand’s credibility. To build relationships, identify influencers and brands that align with your values and target audience. Engage with their content by liking, commenting, and sharing, and explore whether you can collaborate on projects, giveaways, or even co-host events to strengthen your connections. Building relationships takes time and effort, but the rewards are well worth it in the long run. 

Utilise user-generated content 

User-generated content is a powerful way to showcase your brand’s impact on real people. By sharing content created by your customers or followers, you can strengthen your brand’s authenticity, increase trust, and encourage more engagement. Why not run contests or campaigns that encourage your audience to create and share content related to your brand? You should always feature user-generated content to give proper credit to the creators. It’s important to also use this content as social proof in your marketing campaigns to show potential customers the positive experiences others have had with your brand. 

Participate in social media trends and challenges. 

Joining trending topics and challenges is an effective way to showcase your brand’s personality and connect with your audience in a more lighthearted and relatable manner. Stay updated on popular challenges, hashtags, or discussions relevant to your industry, and if relevant, create content that aligns with your brand identity and the trend, ensuring it remains authentic. If you do participate, engage with other participants, influencers, and followers participating in the trend. 

Monitor and analyse your social performance. 

Keeping track of your varying platforms performance is essential to understanding the effectiveness of your strategy. Regularly monitoring and analysing your performance will help you identify what’s working and what’s not and how you can improve your approach. To effectively monitor and analyse your performance, set clear and measurable goals for your social media strategy. Always use analytics tools to track your key performance indicators (KPIs), such as engagement, reach, and conversions, and regularly review your data and adjust your strategy accordingly to ensure continuous growth and improvement. 

The Long Story Short

Don’t fall into the trap of just broadcasting messages across your channels. It’s a powerful tool for building genuine connections, fostering relationships, and growing your brand’s presence. By incorporating the social aspect of social media into your marketing strategy, you’ll create a more authentic, engaging, and successful brand image. 

Don’t forget to engage with your audience, build relationships with influencers and other brands, utilise user-generated content, participate in social media trends, and continuously monitor and analyse your performance. With these elements in place, you’ll be well on your way to a more effective and dynamic social media strategy. For more guidance and assistance with your social media, drop us a line – we’d love to chat more.