Feel like your social media page is in a vacuum? Ever wonder why no one stops by your blog, or why you have so few comments on your social media posts? The answer is probably that you need to both engage and foster an atmosphere of engagement.
I don’t think it can be stressed enough. You need to involve yourself in conversations online if you want to attract people to your social media page, your blog, website, or landing page. People love interaction and to feel that they belong. Online platforms present a great opportunity to give people a sense that they play a part in your brand.
You want people to have a strong connection with your brand not only to establish them as clients, but also to create advocates who will champion your products and services.
Unfortunately, you can’t just slap up a cute kitten photo or ask people how they felt about the big game. That is unless you run a pet store or promote a professional sports team. You need to make your interactions part of an overall strategy.
*Inject your personality into what you share and keep your messaging positive. Negativity will turn people away. Share your successes and help lead others to their own success as well.
*Put yourself in your client’s shoes and truly come to understand them. Seek out the answers to their questions and provide them in forums and group discussions. Establish yourself as a trustworthy expert in your field.
*Stay away from overly promotional language. Focus on the value you provide versus blanketing forums with what you are selling. It’s not about making sales offers, but how knowing you will benefit them.
*Keep the material you share relevant to your business and your target market. Demonstrate your knowledge so when those in contact with you need your goods and services, you will be the one they come to first.
John — This is a really timely piece for me. As recently as a year ago, I disdained the social media world. Then I had a book idea and was advised to start a blog as part of my platform building effort. Facebook pages and Twitter accounts were also prescribed . I’m 49, which is the excuse I use as to why this was so hard for me to swallow.
And as the mother of two teenagers, always telling them to reduce their screen time, I felt hypocritical spending more and more time online myself. I’m also an introvert, would much rather be outdoors or exercising, so the notion of sitting in front of my computer composing tweets and liking Facebook pages wears me down.
But the truth is, I have come to LOVE the blog format. It’s been a great help in hashing out book ideas, honing my message, strengthening my writing. So now I’ve got to step up the effort to drive traffic to my blog. Guess I’ll have to actually start responding to other peoples’ tweets along with putting my own out there! Thanks for the push. Martha
Thanks, Martha! I appreciate your response. We sound a lot alike. I tend to be a bit introverted myself and love exercise and the outdoors. Before the advent of Facebook and Twitter, I maintained a personal blog for a long time and found great satisfaction being able to write and express myself in ways that I was unable to in “real life.” That blog is long gone, but I still very much enjoy expressing my thoughts online whether it’s through blogging or on social networks.
I hear you regarding the guilt telling your children to limit their screen time but yet being online yourself. We have two daughters who love their electronic devices and need reminding time to time to “power off.” However, at the same time, I have trouble sometimes powering off myself. To help, I write out my posts ahead of time and then limit my surfing to designated times each day. It definitely helps. Best of luck with your online adventures and please don’t hesitate to ask Tara and I for any advice. We are here to help! 🙂
I really appreciated your tips on engagement. They make so much sense. I really enjoy interacting in social media but it is so easy to get caught up with information and lose time. I recently started blogging more and I feel that has helped me to connect in a deeper way. I really enjoy being part of the Soul Woman Circle since it is an ideal way to engage with like -minded women. Thanks for sharing, Judy
Thank you, Judy, for stopping by. I appreciate your kind words. I agree, that belonging to an online group or virtual network is great. It not only provides you with purpose and allows you to make great connections, but they can be a lot of fun, too!