What’s Social Media About in 2019?

Not surprisingly, the key to unlocking the potential of social media can be found right in front of us. Social media is about being social. The whole purpose of having a social media presence for your business is to communicate your news, ideas, and ways of helping out to as many relevant individuals as possible. Pausing to examine the basics of your online presence will help you to better address the problems that may be preventing your digital growth.

We will use this blog to help you make the most of your social media platforms by discussing the following: 

• Social Media Basics

• Being Social

• Providing Value

• 2019 Trends

Social Media Basics

Messaging 101

One of the biggest mistakes you can make with social media is using the same messaging for all social media outlets. While it’s a step in the right direction to utilize Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, it’s very important that we acknowledge that each platform is different, serves a different purpose, and can be optimized in its own unique way.

LinkedIn, for example, is great for professional discussion, for connecting with other businesses or sharing information about awards or certifications. Twitter is best for quick, timely posts and rapid interaction, like news updates. Facebook has the most potential for circulating information for a certain number of days, or making posts that target a specific segment of your audience.

It’s highly recommended that you shape your messages by understanding how your audience interacts with each platform and then create (and schedule) your posts according to what you know. Sometimes this can take a bit of trial and error. Don’t be afraid to schedule content on different days at different times and see how you audience engages.

Growing and Sustaining

While you are always looking to grow your following, you should also remember the followers you already have. In order to retain your following, start by asking yourself one question: Is my social media presence adding a value to my audience? In this instance, value can be defined as anything that makes users want to engage, or offers them something without asking anything in return. Are you creating helpful and original content? Or are you demanding that users interact with you?

Take a step back from your focus on selling. Instead of trying to make outright sales in one step, use your energy to connect with your audience in a way that presents your business as friendly and casual. Think about it this way: Who are you more likely to interact with, someone who shares updates about their business, or someone who shares updates about their business that includes a fun meme or interesting piece of trivia? If you were a customer, would you want to continue to follow your business on social media?

Being Social

The best way to be social is by keeping the conversation going. You’ve already made the effort to create and schedule posts on your Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn. Now the next step is to respond to your comments, engagements, and interactions. By doing so, you demonstrate that your company is engaging, mindful, and considerate of others. Answering questions and showing a genuine concern with your social media responses builds credibility for your business.

Ensure that you are receiving the proper notifications for your Facebook messages and engagements, your shout-outs and retweets on Twitter, and your kudos and acknowledgements on LinkedIn. Be sure to respond to all comments and engagement whether or not it’s positive or negative. If you can’t make an effort to respond to your audience, then they don’t have any reason to reach out to you in the first place. After all, what could be better than turning an interaction with an unsatisfied customer into a digital advocate for your business?

Providing Value

With data breaches, phishing scams, fake news, privacy issues, and spam everywhere, take some time to focus on regaining the trust of your users.

This may seem like an overwhelming task, but refocusing your messaging may be enough to make a significant shift in the way your audience sees your business. Adding a human side to your social media presence will do amazing things for your brand, loyalty, and eventually growing your following.

How do you make that shift? Start focusing your messaging efforts on creating content that is naturally engaging, with custom images, infographics, and other insights (or even humor). Make sure that your business will be seen, be seen in a positive way, and be seen as a positive source of original and helpful information.  

Begging for attention is as taxing on your business as it is on your audience. Everyone is happier when you have something to offer without asking for something in return.  

2019 Trends

1:1 Communication

When it comes to social media, every person is important to your business. Now we see that 1:1 interactions are becoming more of the norm for the success to your bottom line. That means your business will have to do more to engage with those who reach out to you. That’s by no means a bad thing.

1:1 interactions allow you to cater your message towards the moods and attitudes of that individual so that no effort is wasted. After all, what better audience could you hope for than to communicate directly to an individual who you know is somewhere along the path to completing a sales goal?

Content Creation

Are your employees engaged in content creation? If not, the time is now. Employee-created content receives eight times more engagement than content shared from the company itself. Employee generated content can help to increase the reach of your message by almost 500 percent, according to social media expert Ted Rubin.

While creating your social media messaging, it’s important to keep in mind that individuals are drowning in ads, messages, posts, and media of all types all of the time. In order to make sure your message is heard, you have to put yourself in the mindset of those you are trying to communicate with.

Sharing and Caring

Show you understand your audience by:

• Providing answers to questions

• Addressing concerns or offering solutions

• Being empathetic and listening to customers’ needs

Answering questions that might be on the minds of your readership and audience has several benefits for your business. Demonstrate your relevance. Let your audience know that your business is at the forefront of your industry. Show them that you are aware of trends and adapting to changes that impact your market. Being proactive and offering a value is a great way to show that you care.  

Helping your business maintain a professional, engaging social media presence is now a cornerstone of a sound, effective, and long-term marketing strategy. If you have a question about this article or about your social media plan, Global Reach is happy to help!