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Likes and Hearts Aren’t Enough
It can be a great feeling when you get that notification on your phone that someone has liked your latest business social media post. Unfortunately, likes and hearts just aren’t enough. Most likes and hearts don’t translate into revenue. What you really need is real engagement.
Real engagement is not likes and hearts.Real engagement is:
• Comments
• Shares
• Clicks
Makes sense, right? These three types of actions are clear signals that they either already are or definitely want to be more connected to your business. Let’s take a look at each one in more depth.Comments
Comments give you the perfect opportunity to directly communicate with a potential customer or current client. When someone takes the time to make a statement about something you’ve shared then their interest in what you are doing is more than just a passing fancy. These comments (even one that might be negative) give you an opportunity to deepen the relationship through your response.
Shares
Shares are a special type of engagement. When someone shares your content, they like the message well enough to pass it along to their own private group of friends and followers. This means that your message is going to be seen by an entirely fresh group of eyes which could potentially lead to new people to build relationships with. When someone shares a post you’ve made, you get to leverage their relationships for your own benefit.
Clicks
Clicking through is really ramping up the relationship to the next level. They’ve now felt like something you’ve posted was interesting enough to them to follow through and read more. You might be having them click through to read a blog post, take a survey or check out a sales page. No matter what type of destination that click gets them to, the click through is a win. It gives you the opportunity to continue the conversation or deepen the relationship with them on the next page they get to.
Creating Posts for Engagement
Obviously, the goal of social media is not to just flood your feed with your own activity. It’s to engage your community. It’s to inspire them to take an action (comment, share or click). So, posting the right things to inspire action is where you need to focus.
Here are a few ideas of posts that inspire true engagement:
• Questions – Ask your community simple questions that only require one or two words to answer.
• Behind the Scenes – Share photos and videos of activities happening behind the scenes in your business. Letting them see “behind the curtain” let’s them feel more connected to you
• Inspiring Quotes – Choose a quote that inspires you or even one that makes you laugh and create an image with that quote on it. Be sure to include your website and/or logo and then share that image. Quotes are effective because people can relate to them and when they start to relate to you then you are building trust. These quotes are an easy way to build a positive relationship.
• Articles/News from Trusted Sources – Sharing articles or news from a trusted source about a topic that relates to your brand can be great for your business. You get to leverage the credibility of the trusted source and provide value to your community at the same time.
• Videos – Over 500 million people are watching video on Facebook every day (according to Forbes). Tap into the video craze and start sharing! You can use any of the types of posts mentioned above and convert them into a video format to share and have great results.
No matter what type of content you choose, your goal should always be to continue to build the relationship with your online community. The more they get to know, like and trust you, the more likely they are to not only buy from you once but to keep coming back AND to tell others about you. That’s the true value of social media for your business – not the cute little thumb or heart that only provides fleeting satisfaction.
Please take a moment to like, share, and tell us your thoughts about this topic. Thank you.
Written By
Holly Kile – Marketing Assistant