How to Increase Engagement on Social Media

You often hear that it’s “not all about the numbers” on social media, and that is true, but then what, exactly, makes for a successful social media presence? The number one way to show you are making an impact online is by meaningful engagement. Relationship-building is critical when it comes to building a loyal following on social media. That means consistent communication is not only essential but vital to the digital longevity of your brand.

When social media marketers say the word “engagement,” we’re not talking about diamond rings (although, wouldn’t that be nice?). We are talking about interactions, such as likes, shares, mentions, and comments on your brand posts’ content on their accounts.

If your notifications are running low, don’t worry – there are tons of ways you can increase your engagement on your social media accounts.

Check Your Insights

Each social media platform comes with its native analytics feature that allows you to look at your “insights”. Social media insights will enable the user to know more about their audience and followers. Staying up-to-date with these insights will allow you to hone in on your engagement strategy by understanding:

• Your current engagement data (likes, shares, comments, clicks, mentions)

• The type of content that resonates with them the most

• The times and days they are online

• Your overall growth over a specific measurement of time

• Where your followers are coming from

• What actions they are taking from your account

Knowing this information is essential for crafting a strategy that will nurture engagement and conversation with your community, so make it a habit to keep a close eye on your insights.

Identify Your Target Audience

If you want to generate conversations on social media, it’s important to know who you are talking to. Pinpointing your target audience and ideal client is what determines your choice of platform(s), your content, your message, your voice, and how you present your services and campaigns. There are four segmentations of determining your target audience:

• Demographic segmentation – Factors such as age, gender, family situation, and income.

• Psychographic segmentation – Characteristics like beliefs, values, goals, and motivations.

• Behavioral segmentation – Purchasing habits such as shopping and spending activity, how they interact with companies/brands, and where they are on their Buyer’s Journey.

• Geographic segmentation – Where they are located, including city (and surrounding areas, country, zip code, urban/rural.

Knowing your community inside and out will help you speak their language and appeal to their pain points, which will help get your audience actively involved with your content. FREE GIFT: Download your ideal client workbook here >>

Determine a Strategy

“Social media strategy” is a term that get thrown around a lot. Here is an official definition: A social media strategy is a concise summary of all actions you and your team plan to implement to achieve your business goals. If your strategy is air-tight, you will be more likely to have engaged followers because your brand will appear confident and professional.

• Objective: Why are you on social media?

• SMART Goals: Make sure your goals are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, time-bound

• Social Media Audit: Review your current social media presence to see what is working and what needs attention. (Book your audit here >>)

• Metrics: How you will measure your success.

• Target Audience: Who is it you are marketing to?

• Industry Research: What is going on in the market today?

• Competitor Analysis: What is working for similar brands?

• Profile Optimization: Are your social media profiles set up correctly to reflect your brand?

• Social Media Calendar: Set up a content calendar for you or your team members to follow.

Create Content

Content is what encourages your audience to know, like, and trust your business. Whether it be photos, graphics, videos, blog posts, or podcast audio, you need to make sure that it is on-brand, high-quality, and reflective of your goals and objective. Some questions to ask yourself before you publish:

• Does it have a purpose?

• Is it on-brand with voice, visuals, and values?

• Are you providing value?

• Does it ask your audience to do something (Call-To-Action)?

• Is it driving your business forward?

Be Present

You could have beautiful content and a foolproof strategy, but if you are not showing up for your audience consistently, then you will not stay fresh in the minds. Being present every day will keep you recognizable and trust-worthy, which will entice your audience to want to interact with you, your content, and your business. So step up, show up, and watch your engagement rate soar!