Spend any length of time on a company’s official Twitter page, and you’re likely to find someone commenting, “Silence, brand!” — usually in response to a joke that fell flat, or content that simply misses the mark. It’s a phrase born from the corporate world’s misguided attempts to align with internet meme culture; a practice that all too often resembles an out-of-touch parent awkwardly repeating slang they overheard from their teenager. Whether it’s Burger King’s “women belong in the kitchen” or Pepsi’s now infamous foray into activism, audiences can smell inauthenticity a mile away.
When it comes to building a social media presence for your business, there are plenty of tenets to abide by. If you’re to avoid the kind of cringe-inducing moments that many other brands have created, authenticity is key, but this is only one of your concerns. To navigate the choppy waters of platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, you’ll need to bring your A-game.
With that in mind, let’s dive into 7 of our top tips for managing your brand’s social media presence.
Tip 1: Embrace Authenticity, Not Imitation
In a landscape awash with trends and imitations, the guiding star that should steer your brand’s ship is authenticity. It’s oh-so-tempting to ride the wave of the latest viral sensation or emulate a competitor’s style, but in this vast sea of content, genuineness reigns supreme.
As we already touched upon, a user scrolling through their social feed can spot a genuine voice from a mile away. They’re instinctively drawn to content that feels real, relatable, and imbued with a human touch. To achieve this, your brand should focus on sharing the raw and candid aspects that make it unique.
Pull back the curtain for your audience – reveal the behind-the-scenes moments, amplify employee stories, and showcase candid instances. By aligning your content with your brand’s core values and identity, you forge a profound connection with your audience that can’t be matched.
Whatever you do, don’t try to hop on a trend that you don’t fully understand — that’s a one-way ticket to cringe city. Focus on showcasing your brand’s personality and interacting with your followers instead.
Tip 2: Master the Art of Consistency
The secret sauce to achieving success in the social media realm is consistency. Just as a symphony’s beauty lies in its harmonious arrangement, your brand’s presence across various platforms thrives on the rhythm of cohesion.
Consistency goes beyond mere frequency; it seeps into the very essence of your brand’s voice and tone. Imagine a well-orchestrated content calendar that outlines your posts well in advance. This strategy guarantees a steady stream of content that captures your audience’s attention and keeps them coming back for more.
Think of it like a captivating TV show that airs on schedule – your consistency becomes the magnet that attracts anticipation and cultivates loyalty.
Tip 3: Engage, Don’t Broadcast
Visualize yourself stepping into a lively party and immediately launching into a monologue about your achievements, without stopping to engage with others. You wouldn’t win any friends with such an approach, would you? It’s the same story on social media. Every conversation needs to be two-way. Each side needs to contribute.
Engagement isn’t just a catchphrase; it’s the heartbeat of your social presence. Authentic interactions are key – reply to comments, offer insightful responses to questions and openly acknowledge feedback. Elevate the interactivity quotient with polls, quizzes, and interactive content that ignites conversations.
Of course, once your page starts to gain traction, you might find it tricky to keep up with all the extra work. If this happens to you, you might consider hiring a dedicated social media manager — they’ll handle content creation and respond to any queries or questions on your behalf.
However, if you’ve not quite got the budget to build a new team just yet, a more affordable option is to use a CRM with a built-in chatbot. For example, Crisp (a leading Zendesk alternative) allows you to centralize and unify all your communications channels, and send automated responses via their Messenger chatbot.
Tip 4: Tailor Content to Each Platform
Just as you wouldn’t wear a tuxedo to a beach party, the same principle applies to crafting content for different social media platforms. Each platform boasts its own unique culture and audience expectations, and your content should resonate harmoniously with these nuances.
On visually-driven platforms like Instagram, your focus should be on crafting visually-arresting imagery and captivating stories — it’s a platform built for showcasing your product in the best possible light. You can also use the platform’s ‘Stories’ function as a behind the scenes gallery. On LinkedIn, the content spotlight shifts to insightful industry articles and professional updates — you’re there to demonstrate the expertise behind the brand, not the product itself.
By tailoring your content in this manner, you demonstrate your respect for the distinct personality of each platform and showcase your understanding of your audience’s preferences.
Tip 5: Prioritize Quality Over Quantity
The journey to social media success is a marathon, not a sprint. It’s not about who can flood their followers’ feeds with the most posts; it’s about who can offer the most value through exceptional content.
Your time is an investment in crafting visually-stunning graphics (whether using Photoshop, or a more beginner-friendly solution such as Canva), meticulously-worded captions, and content that sparks intellectual fires. It’s the high-quality content that resonates deeply, finds its way into shares, and etches an indelible memory in the minds of your audience. Rather than striving to saturate feeds, let your aim be to elevate them.
However, there is one small caveat; while quantity comes second to quality, frequency does matter. Every social media platform is, to some degree, controlled by an algorithm, and these algorithms judge your content based on a wide range of metrics, one of which is how active your account is.
And while how strictly each platform judges your account isn’t fully known (each platform keeps their secret formula, well, a closely guarded secret), it’s generally accepted that TikTok is particularly harsh on accounts that don’t post videos at least once a day. So, for the greatest impact, post quality content regularly — treat your social media accounts like television channels and stick to your schedule. Some people also buy TikTok followers to build a better social media presence.
Tip 6: Analyze and Adapt
Imagine peering into a mirror — a mirror that reflects your social media journey. Staring into it without reflection won’t propel you forward. Regularly gleaning insights from performance metrics — the likes, shares, comments, and click-through rates — fuels your understanding of what’s effective and what’s not.
Imagine these metrics as the compass guiding your ship. Analytics tools provide a treasure map that reveals hidden gems of knowledge. Adaptability is your ship’s sail; it allows you to harness these insights, recalibrate your strategy, and steer your brand toward relevance.
If humor-driven posts generate the most engagement, infuse more humor. If certain themes resonate profoundly, delve deeper into them. The essence of staying pertinent lies in your flexibility and your willingness to evolve.
Tip 7: Leverage Influencer Power
Step into the realm of social media and you’ll find influencers as the reigning modern-day celebrities. Picture this: a partnership forged between your brand and influencers who mirror your core values. This symbiotic relationship offers you a golden ticket to a broader, more engaged audience.
Remember, it’s not merely about the sheer number of followers an influencer boasts; it’s the authenticity and alignment with your brand that truly matter. This collaboration isn’t just a transaction; it’s the infusion of trust and authenticity into your brand. The endorsement of an influencer kindles curiosity in your products or services, potentially sparking a wildfire of interest.
Working with influencers epitomizes the phrase “quality over quantity”, where relevance and authenticity rule the day. That said, if you’re to attract the attention of influencers, you’ll need a significant number of followers. Thankfully, this is where we can help — with our service, you can buy followers on any of the major platforms for as little as $2.99.
By embracing authenticity, consistency, tailored content, and meaningful engagement, your brand can flourish in the ever-evolving social media landscape. So, let your brand’s voice shine through, build connections, and watch your social media presence elevate your business to new heights.
