No matter what niche you love to write on, your business should have a social media presence. Several institutions, organizations, and brands utilize various social media platforms to connect with their viewers.
According to Oberlo.com, social media statistics from 2019 reveal that there are 3.5 billion social media users worldwide, and the number of users is only growing. This equates to about 45 percent of the current population.
If you like your social media marketing to work, obviously, you need an audience; otherwise, people will disregard your work, and it will be like talking to a brick wall.
The growth of your viewers will not happen overnight, but do not fret. As audiences have become more content-savvy than ever, we have compiled the best tips for you that will help you build an active and engaging audience.
1. Plan and strategize
If you want social media marketing success to kiss your feet, then the very first thing you might want to do is to develop a social media strategy.
Publishing something aimlessly will not get you anywhere, as it will be engaging the viewers randomly. Click To TweetAs stated in a research conducted in 2019, mentioned in Oberlo.com, 73 percent of the marketers think that their efforts, through social media marketing, have been somewhat effective or very useful for their business.
The better plan is to target your audience and capture their attention. Due to this, standing out on social media will be very straightforward.
2. Ascertain your target audience
Determining your target audience should be your first step in a social media strategy. Your business must have a demographic identity and unique followers.
You also need to understand each social media platform. What does it do and how many people use it? Can you claim confidently that your target consumer is using every social media platform there is? The answer to this question will probably be “no.” Keeping this in mind, your brand should be on the platform(s) your consumers are using.
3. Set your social media goals
To sustain your social media growth, firstly, you need to set your social media goals.
Setting goals is an excellent way to stay on top of your progress. Track your progress, and this will help you think of newer tactics that will eventually aid you in achieving your social media goals.
Staying committed is the motto for achieving your social media goals. The most conventional goal setting technique is called S-M-A-R-T:
S for specific: These are goals that are clearly defined.
M for measurable: These are the goals that can be analyzed and monitored.
A for achievable: Will you be able to achieve your goals with the resources at hand?
R for realistic: Helps to decide whether your goals are realistic or not.
T for time-sensitive: You will need to determine the exact time frame for your goals.
4. Develop a content plan is crucial
You won’t be able to attract and keep your followers if you are unable to create content. Therefore, a content marketing strategy is essential. It will work as a blueprint, and will give all details about the content that you have to create for your social media strategies.
For this, analyze all the social media channels. Find out which platform you are the most active and receive the most engagement. After that, perform an analysis to review your competitors’ strategies and tactics.
Targeting a specific audience requires defining your brand voice. If you want to stay consistently recognizable, then the brand voice is vital.
5. Develop social calendar and post at the right time
Use a calendar spreadsheet to be organized for posting your content. Posting content when your target audience sleeps will not make your content viral.
As stated by SproutSocial, these are the best times to post content on any social media platforms:
Facebook: On Wednesday at noon and 2 pm, and Thursday at one and two pm.
Instagram: On Wednesday at 3 pm, 5 am, 11 am and three to four pm, and Friday at 5 am.
Twitter: On Friday, 9 to 10 am.
Tips for growing your Facebook Audience
Facebook is still superior in the social media space, and it has 2.5 billion active users. It should not startle you as its top priority is to keep the users on the platform longer.
Facebook may not have the attention of the younger viewers, but 79 percent of the viewers still log in. These social platforms also allow you to choose specific regions to locate users by country, city, or region and market your content. According to statista.com, the top countries that use Facebook are:
1. Grow your Facebook reach by teaching the right stuff:
Growing the number of followers is difficult, but it is not impossible. If you wish to stand out among brands and groups, then you must post the right content for your audience.
2. Balance your sales with the help of storytelling
You need to use your storytelling skill with such finesse so that you can convince people “you are more than just a mundane business.”
3. Educate and amuse
In order to obtain a good social media reputation, you need to teach your followers on how they can fulfill their objectives that are related to your niche. For this, you need those posts that are entertaining and knowledgeable at the same time.
4. Less is often more
People have an average attention span of about eight seconds, and they mostly read 20 to 28 percent of the words in your posts. When writing, emphasize the first three to four words.
5. Utilize links
Since you cannot convey the entire message in one or two lines, you might want to use links to create awesome content.
6. Utilize call-to-actions (CTAs)
Be mindful that your Facebook posts call-to-actions (CTAs) are aligned with the content you are offering. You have to make it conspicuous for your audience on what you really want from them.
7. Maintain originality
Post original content that has a personal and organic touch to it.
8. Advertise
The two most common options to use are power editor and Facebook ads.
Make use of social media scheduler: Schedule your posts ahead of time to refrain from inconsistency.
9. Achieve mastery on Instagram
Instagram is one of the top-notch social platforms that brands focus on these days. Instagram has 1 billion active users since July 2018. With the use of hashtags, advertising, and stories, Instagram has become a stellar platform for businesses that want to be in the limelight and grow their social presence.
The social media statistic (2019) shows us that stories have become a great deal on Instagram. It reveals that Instagram story users had increased from 150 million in January 2017 to 500 million in January 2019.
Younger audiences mainly use Instagram, but newer statistics showed older generations have started to embrace this platform too. The dominant gender that uses Instagram the most are women, with 50.3 percent.
According to statistica.com, the USA has the highest number of Instagram users.
How to get more engaging followers
Nobody likes a dull audience; you should have followers that engage with your account. Some tips are as follows:
- Get your account optimized: Use the bio as it is the only spot where you can insert a link. Make sure to keep your username recognizable and search-friendly.
- Try to stay consistent: Try to maintain a regular posting schedule. You should not post more than a few times a day, but whatever floats your boat, try to remain consistent.
- Promote by spreading the word about your account: How will people get to know about your account? Reshare by reaching out to large Instagram accounts and do marketing collaborations.
- Post what your followers desire: You must learn what your audience wants to see on your page and post according to it.
- Stand out, visually: Use good quality images and put your products and services in the best light.
- Sprinkle hashtags like confetti: To increase your post reach, hashtags are the main currency on Instagram. It helps people discover your content and bring new followers. Use hashtags strategically to make them work for your business.
Utilize Twitter to grow your reach
Millennials mostly use twitter. Twitter is one of the most useful platforms for sharing content, customer service, and engagement of target users. Seventy-two percent of Twitter users are from the US.
Succeed by having a Twitter strategy
Beating others in this cut-throat competition is harder, so in order to succeed, you will need a strategy.
- Profile optimization: Place a nice profile photo, a bio with pertinent keywords, and a brand voice.
- Have a CTAs: Write a short description to let people know why they should click the link mentioned in your bio.
- Publicize your brand hashtag: To spread awareness about your campaign, insert your branded hashtag in your bio.
- Add a pinch of humor dust: Being funny can intrigue people and catch their interest.
- Tweet frequently: As claimed by CoSchedule, it is best to post three or seven tweets per day to maximize your engagement rate.
- Use the correct hashtags: Twitter invented hashtags, and they are also the currency here just like Instagram. Sprinkling one to two hashtags per tweet will raise the chances for new followers to find your account.
Build a social media empire today!
Increasing social media audiences and followers is not easy peasy lemon squeezy.
Although you may think it is a simple task, unfortunately, no, because you are competing with other brands and competitors in your industry and you might want to stand out online.
With the knowledge mentioned above, you can become a social media giant in no time.
Interested in taking your business to the next level? Reach out to us through the form below and let’s help transform your business into a sales machine!