15 pro tips: Turbo boost your social media engagement
Not getting any comments on your social media posts? We know the feeling. Here’s a list of critical things your brand should do to really drive engagement.
As a content marketer or social media manager, your probably already know that on Facebook and Instagram, engagement is everything.
In a previous article, we discussed some basic tips in order to boost engagement on your social media accounts. Let’s take it one step further and look at some more advanced techniques and tactics worth trying.
1. Infotainment — the perfect balance
Infotainment is the perfect crossover of information of entertainment, where your content is not too lighthearted but not too heavy either. Especially on Facebook, content that is both educational and entertaining at the same time often works best. Think shareable!
2. Join and start your own groups
Being active in Facebook groups is often a great way to increase engagement and interest in your brand and business. But avoid selling too hard and talking only about your products or services. Encourage members to discuss a variety of topics related to your niche or industry.
3. Quality above quantity
Due to tough algorithms, it’s all about quality. Your followers won’t engage in your posts if they are not well-made. Don’t focus too much on how often you post, but rather on what you post. Spend some extra time on crafting content that is unique, well-made and conveys an interesting message, and don’t feel bad if you can’t publish something every day.
3. Curate content
Not every content piece must be self-made. If you find something great, don’t be afraid of sharing it (and of course, credit the original source). It shows that your brand is keeping tabs on what is trending in your industry. If the content is valuable to your audience, they will still come back to your brand, knowing that your brand is a great source of knowledge.
4. Video when possible
Often, video generates higher engagement that images or text. This is especially true for Facebook, where the organic reach is better for video and live video than images. Producing and editing a video can be a little more time consuming than posting a regular article, but there are a lot of tools and apps that simplify many steps in the process.
5. Optimize for each platform
Check what size, format and text length works best for each social media platform and optimize accordingly. And when it comes to the visual experience, remember “mobile first”.
6. Dare to be challenging
Stick to your brand and communication guidelines, but don’t be too plain. On social media, what drives engagement is the type of content that is a little bit challenging and thought-provoking. To get your followers to comment on your posts, you need to address a topic that is worth discussing or present your information in a way that makes them want to actually reply.
7. Don’t sell too much — only include a call to action sometimes
Include a call-to-action, not whenever possible, but whenever suitable. Don’t be too pushy, it can get the opposite effect and cause your readers or viewers to question your motives. Conversion is one goal with content marketing, but backlinks are also important.
8. Use emojis and GIFs
Think about how your target audience would communicate in social media and try to stay on a similar level. By using emojis or GIFs for example when replying to a comment, you’re showing that you are human, making it more welcoming for your followers to stay engaged. However, be aware of copyright restrictions when using GIFs for commercial purposes. If you have time and resources, make your own GIFs.
9. It’s about how you say it
It is not always about what you say, but rather about how you say it. Finding something to say that hasn’t already been said can be very difficult, and it is not always bad to address something that has already been addressed by someone else — if you do it in a unique way. One way to do it can for example be to make an entertaining video out of a more traditional topic, or present existing information in a new, eye-catching way.
10. Ask for feedback — both your followers and yourself
Asking your community for feedback is something you should do on a regular basis. But before you post something, ask yourself also if this is something you would like or find engaging if you weren’t working at this company. If you’re not getting inspired or engaged yourself, your audience probably won’t engage either.
11. Use user-generated content (causes more engagement?)
Several studies show that UGC tend to drive higher engagement. In Mavrcks report “Facebook User-Generated Content Benchmark Report” from 2016, it was found that UGC led to a 6.9x higher engagement level than brand-generated content. There are several tools and apps that can help you collect content relevant to your brand, based on @mentions or hashtags.
12. Always reply to @mentions (and do it as fast as possible)
Social media is about conversation. Make sure you always reply when someone comments on your posts, and do it as fast as possible. Online reputation management is about replying in a good manner to all kind of comments, even negative comments. Avoid deleting unwanted comments, as it will often fuel the fire.
13. Think “internet language”
As already mentioned, GIFs and emojis can be great way to humanize your brand. But it’s not just about emojis, there are a lot of internet related jokes and commonly used abbreviations that you can make use of (if it suits your brand identity) when communicating in social channels or even when creating new online ads. If your followers can relate to your communication style or feel a connection to your ads, chances of higher engagement will likely increase.
14. Use the less common hashtags
Try using some of the less commonly used hashtags when posting your content, to increase chances of having your content trending within that particular hashtag. Don’t stick to only the most generic and widely used hashtags, as your content will probably drown in the flood of posts. This is true especially if you have a rather small following on for example Instagram.
15. Engage in others’ content too (they will engage in yours)
Think of engagement as doing someone a favour. By helping someone else, chances are they will help you some other time. Keep tabs on the most important hashtags for your brand and continuously follow what’s trending in each topic. And try to engage in the content by commenting and liking relevant posts. But don’t comment if you don’t have anything to say, as it might be perceived as spammy. Try to use at least 4–5 words and be specific.
By focusing on real, quality content you can increase engagement and conversions on your site and social media platforms.
Want to know more about how you can get improve your stats through great content and get a free demo of Flowbox? Feel free to reach out, we’d love to hear from you.
