I work with a lot of small business owners who are juggling, running their businesses, and managing their social marketing efforts. Writing great content is no easy task for anyone, but many business owners, tend to either have poor writing skills or they write with more of a sales-pitchy, come-and-buy-my-stuff, kind of tone, and people don’t usually respond well to that type of content.
This morning I had a phone call from someone looking for help with their social marketing, but one of his questions made me laugh (inside my head). He was explaining how he took the time to write posts for Facebook, Twitter and even Google Plus several times a week. Then he asked, “Why aren’t people commenting, liking or sharing my content?” The first thought that came to my head was, “He’s just not that into you!” I did self-edit and reword it a bit, but that is the truth. If you are not connecting or engaging the social community that you have gathered, perhaps it’s time to change things up.
Here are 3 tips you need to get your Social Media Community More INTO You:
1. Be sure you talking to the right social audience
So many people sign onto Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus, or any other social platform for that matter, and their number one goal is to get a thousand followers, circles, likes, etc. The problem with that is, if you have a thousand people who will never hire you (a local Colorado realtor who has followers from Taiwan, Brazil, and New Jersey), your content might be falling on ears that are too far away to hear it. If you are not getting people to interact, try adding some new people into your targeted audiences. Follow them, circle them and engage in their conversations to get their attention and they will hopefully connect back with you. (read: How to Build Your Twitter Strategically)
2. Hang out in the right social space
If I join a corporate controllers group on LinkedIn or I connect with the Tweeting Quilters group on Twitter, I can post the best content in my industry , and 98% of them will not be interested and 99.9% would not feel compelled to share the content with their community of friends and peers.(I might be able to convince my mom to like my posts in there.)
Just because everyone else has a Facebook Page doesn’t necessarily mean you should spend 3 hours a day on there trying to get two more likes on your page. Perhaps a Google Plus Community or LinkedIn group would connect you to the audience who just might hire you or buy from you. I know many people who connect with all of their peer/friends on Twitter and Facebook only to spend hours in mutual lovefest each day, liking and commenting on so-and-so’s airport check-in. WHO CARES! They will never hire you. Spend your time in the social communities where you can add value and share solutions and hang out on Facebook on the weekends.
3. Be more….INTERESTING in your social media posts
Not everyone can run an ice-cream shop or an online shoe store that posts fabulous photos of their products or ask a question and have 500 people comment on their favorite flavor or color of boots. Some businesses are just a little less glamorous, but that doesn’t mean you can’t be interesting. If you focus on being helpful instead of salesy, you will find a lot more to post that is interesting to your audience. Think beyond just your own products or services. Who are the people in your social audience? What are some of their challenges that you might know something about? If your goal is to help them or provide value to them, you will be able to write or source content that they find interesting.
Fill in these blanks: Our (social media platform) page will be a place for our target customers/members to come for (what resources you will share). Now make a list of these resources–things you can share. Here are some examples:
Hotels: (Go beyond just posting sales promos) A list of hiking or biking trails near the hotel for guests; Tips for packing light; Apps for travel; Tips for eating and staying healthy while on the road.
Realtors: (Go beyond just posting listings) Tips to add curb appeal; Staging tips; List of home sale turn-offs; Maps and resources for your neighborhoods.
Local restaurant or store: (Go beyond coupons) Local school or community events; Recipes for “make this at home”; Neighbor highlight.
National consultant: (Go beyond your webinars, books and events) Top apps for your audience; List of top things NOT to do; Your favorite resources; Interviews with other experts that will add value.
Don’t forget or be afraid to show some personality, to weave that human element or humor element into your posts for better connections.