It’s not a coincidence that the term ‘social media’ contains the word ‘social’. Social media is all about a conversation with your followers, interaction between you and those that follow you. At least that’s what social media management done well is all about.

Some accounts however, particularly some brands, seem to think social media is a monologue, a one-way conversation all about them. They only post about their own products and services, they don’t engage with their followers in a meaningful, positive way and they shouldn’t be surprised when their followers unfollow their account in one of the periodic culls we all hold to get rid of boring parts of our social media feed. If you don’t want your brand to be a victim of the cull, above all, avoid being boring!

Your recipe for social media done well

Engagement

The first rule of social media done well is to engage, engage, engage. Answer questions, pass the time of day, give compliments. (And most definitely, if customer service is a feature of your social media channels, make sure that is dealt with promptly and effectively). A follower who feels connected to you is going to stick with you. A follower who feels like they have a relationship with you might even share your interesting posts with their own followers, thus instantly increasing the number of people/potential customers who see your post.

Make it visual

With very few exceptions, pretty much all of your social media posts should contain some kind of visual. This could be a header image for a blog, a product photo, another still image or a gif or video, but an eye-catching visual is a must when people are bombarded with posts on fast-moving social media feeds.

Make it fun

Unless you are running a particularly sombre business where humour is inappropriate, bring a little fun into your social media feed even if it is only occasionally. Lighten things up a little and either share some fun curated content (content that you have found elsewhere, with the appropriate credit of course) or create some of your own. If you are engaging with someone a fun gif is always good to share.

Make it an eye-opener

There’s a wealth of content available online so why do people want to read your content? Because it’s helpful, it’s educational or it’s amazing. Try to fall into one of those categories, and people will want to keep reading.

Keep listening

Social media is a two way conversation, so you want to keep talking but it’s equally important to keep listening. This means not only monitoring your own social media feeds and any interaction on them but also monitoring internet chat for mention of your brand and any important keywords for your business, such as Google Alerts. Keeping up with all of this is time-consuming, but important if you want the full picture.

Add a bit of cuteness

If all else fails, Facebook and Twitter love a cute animal! If you can find a way to get a bit of cuteness into your social media feed without looking incongruous, go for it. Your engagement rate will thank you for it.

If you’d like to read more about social done better check out our other blogs here.

And if you would love your business to be doing social better, but just don’t have the time, we’d love to talk to you about it.