How to Increase Your Social Media Engagement

“Engagement” is probably a word you hear get thrown around a lot when it comes to marketing, and for good reason. These days, most social channels require engagement in order for your audience to see what you’re sharing. What does that mean exactly? Well between your 500+ friends, the businesses, blogs, brands, and celebrities that you follow on Facebook or Instagram or Twitter, there is way too much information for one pwerons to absorb when they look at their feed. So algorithms help decide what is most important for users to see, and they make that decision based on engagement. If you’ve liked a photo or commented on someones’ post recently, you’re likely to see more from them.

Not only does engagement increase your visibility, it also increases the overall success of your page or brand’s social presence. A page with 500K followers and zero engagement is not a good sign.

Get to know your paying customers, keep the doors of communication open and improve your engagement rate with these tips:

1. Ask Questions

Asking questions is a great way for you to learn more about customers and start identifying potential clients who may benefit from your product or service. Facebook or Twitter are great social media channels to engage in question sessions with your target market audience. Ask questions about your industry, your product, or even what your customers want to be seeing you post!

2. Organize Contests

Everyone loves a challenge and your target audience is no different. Do a fun giveaway with your followers that encourages them to comment, share, like or tag a friend. Keep your prizes within your niche or as a discount of some kind to your own product (a landscaping company giving away an iPad doesn’t make much sense. Think lawnmower, a free consultation, 25% off, and so on).

3. Hold a Question and Answer Session

Customers love to go behind the scenes of their favorite companies. Conduct a question and answer session on Google Hangouts or Twitter chats using a particular hashtag. Make an open invitation so that potential new customers may take part as well. Do you best to answer each question that your audience asks and see where the conversations lead.

4. Chat for a Cause

One of the greatest benefits of social media is the chance to help those in need. Find a social cause of importance to your business, promote the cause across your social media channels and start talking. It works to promote brand awareness as well.

5. Focus on Current Events

The primary objective to social media is interaction. Use headlines in the news to start a conversation with your audience. Find out what they think about particular topics and share your thoughts as well. Celebrate a local sports team that made it to the big game or organize a charity event for a family in need.

And as always be sure to reply to all your wonderful new commenters! Always respond or say thanks or answer questions- that’s just good PR.