Ask not what social media can do for you...

The world of social is rapidly becoming more about creating positive user experiences than bombarding people with advertising.

Facebook and Instagram have adapted their algorithms to increasingly reflect the interests of their users. The algorithms ensure only a small number of followers are shown a post and from there, if they engage, it will be shared to more users. This ensures only the best content will be seen.

To guarantee your content is engaged with, you must not only create content that is likeable and sharable, but ensure your organisation has a good relationship with its followers and followers-to-be. Below is a list of tips re best practice when sharing content.

Know your audience and generate relevant content

From your organisation’s brand, you should have an idea of the type of interests your followers have. As well as this, the often in-built analytics will tell you about the age, gender and other interests of your demographic—and if you’re unsure, ask the audience. Start conversations via social channels to get to know your followers, and if all else fails, try an email survey or a poll via Instagram Stories or Twitter.

Ensure relevance and functionality

Make sure you social channels are instantly recognisable to your followers; that your logo is identifiable when in avatar form, the short description is up to date and your tone of voice is consistent across all channels. Also, if you want to refer users to the link in bio, make sure it is updated before uploading a new post so you’re not misdirecting people.

Honesty is the best policy

It’s no secret that people value authenticity and honesty in an organisation or product—so make sure you’re treating them as equals. Answer their questions (even the tough ones) and talk like a human, not an automaton. Also, if you’re doing a sponsored post, tell your audience it’s a paid partnership or explain your relationship—your audience will appreciate the transparency.

Create a strong sense of community

Social media is about connecting, and not necessarily selling. So make sure not to bore your audience with too many sales pitches. For every single promotional post you do, there should be five posts that are just designed to entertain. Your social channels offer a great opportunity to show appreciation to your community: run competitions, offer rewards, do shout-outs, like comments and share user-generated content (if it’s on brand).

The experts at ALHAUS can help you grow a community and create engaging content. Contact us today to learn more.