How to increase engagement on social media: 5 strategies for companies and influencers
Social media is vital for any brand, but for small businesses and influencers, they become incredibly crucial tools. These channels offer a low-cost way to promote your products, services, and ideas. Additionally, they provide an excellent opportunity for brands to interact with their customers, establishing personal relationships and building a solid base of loyal customers.
However, it's easy to become underutilized when it comes to getting the proper engagement on social media. And, for small businesses, getting significant attention is even more challenging. Therefore, it's essential to discover effective ways to increase engagement on social media.
How to increase engagement on social media in five steps
Below are some basic ways to increase engagement on social media that I apply to my mentoring clients, whether they are small businesses or influencers:
1. Engage with your audience
Engaging with your followers is the key to increasing engagement on social media. They like to feel heard and valued, and that means they want to be involved in the discussions happening on social media. One way to do this is through polls, questions, and other types of surveys. The more engaged your customers are, the more committed they will be to your personal or corporate brand. Another way to engage your followers is to respond to customer questions and comments in a unique and customized manner as quickly as possible.
Here are some practical tips and case studies to help illustrate this strategy:
Share user-generated content (UGC)
User-generated content is one of the most effective ways to engage your followers. By sharing photos, comments, and customer reviews, you show other people that your followers love your products, services, or ideas. This increases trust in your brand and encourages other customers to engage with you on social media.
An example of how this can be done is the Starbucks campaign, #RedCupContest, which invited customers to share creative photos of their Christmas cups. The campaign generated over 40,000 posts on Instagram in just a few weeks.
Practical tip: Encourage your followers to share photos of your products and services or apply some tips you gave on Instagram, for example. Use a specific hashtag for your brand or campaign. Consider creating a contest to encourage your audience's participation further.
Ask questions and opinions
Another way to engage your followers is to ask for opinions or create question boxes. This shows that you care about what your followers think and helps start meaningful conversations on social media. And conversations generate closeness and, consequently, engagement!
The cosmetics brand Sephora is an excellent example of this. They often post questions on their social media to encourage customer participation. For example, one of the latest ones I saw was "What is your favorite summer lipstick?" and "What are you most excited to try this season?" These questions generate many responses and help to create a sense of community around the brand.
Practical tip: Think of questions your customers may want to answer and post them on social media. You can also ask for opinions on new products or services you are considering launching.
Respond to comments and messages
One of the simplest ways to engage your customers on social media is to respond to their comments and messages. This shows that you value your customers and care about what they say. It can also help build stronger customer relationships and increase brand loyalty.
The workout clothes brand Athleta is an excellent example of this. They respond to virtually every comment and message they receive on social media, which helps to build stronger relationships with their customers.
Practical tip:
Regularly monitor social media profiles to respond quickly to comments and messages.
Consider hiring a dedicated person to manage your social media if you don't have time to do it yourself.
Contact me if that's the case. I can help you!
Share behind-the-scenes
Sharing the behind-the-scenes of your company on social media is a great way to engage your customers and create a stronger connection with them. Customers love to see what goes on behind the scenes of their favorite brands and feel like they are behind the scenes with you.
Here are some practical tips and case studies on sharing your company's behind-the-scenes on social media.
Share photos and videos of behind-the-scenes of your company, such as the production process, warehouse, office, or team's routine at events.
Show the personality of your company and employees, such as photos of celebrations, meetings, and office activities.
Create stories on Instagram and Facebook to show the day-to-day of your company.
Take a virtual tour of your facilities and post it on social media.
Share your employees' work routines.
Here are some case studies that illustrate how some brands are exploring this engagement tactic:
Tastemade
Tastemade is a media company that focuses on sharing food and travel recipes. They frequently share behind-the-scenes of their shoots on Instagram, showing how recipe videos are made. This helps to show the process behind the final videos and gives viewers a behind-the-scenes look at their company.
Tesla
Tesla is known for sharing behind-the-scenes glimpses of its production process, showcasing how their electric cars are made. They share photos and videos of robots and employees assembling the cars, as well as driving tests on roads and testing tracks. This helps to demonstrate the production process and technology behind their electric vehicles.
Glossier
Glossier is a beauty company that frequently shares behind-the-scenes photos of its product production, such as formula tests and packaging. They also showcase pictures of their office and company events. This helps to show how their products are made and the company's personality.
Share the human side of your brand
Sharing the human side of your brand, even if the brand is yourself, is another effective way to engage your social media followers. This means showing that there are real people behind your brand or influencer profile and telling exciting stories about them. This can include things like photos of employees, stories about how your products are made, or how your company was founded. For influencers, there is nothing more human than sharing your daily life. But always remember to offer relevant content to your audience while maintaining the purpose of your brand or profile.
A good example of this is the clothing brand Patagonia. They frequently share photos and stories of their employees and environmental initiatives on social media. This helps to create an emotional connection with their customers and shows that they care about more than just selling clothes.
Another great example of how sharing daily life can humanize a personal brand is the Brazilian influencer, Virgínia Fonseca. With over 43 million followers on Instagram, Virginia is known for sharing many intimate moments with her audience, from her exercise routine to her family life.
Virgínia is a mother to a little girl named Maria Alice, and she shared her pregnancy with her followers on social media. She documented everything from the pregnancy announcement to the birth of her daughter. This created a strong bond with her audience, who could follow along with her entire motherhood journey. Virginia also shares moments with her husband, singer Zé Felipe, and her family. This shows that she is a regular person who also has relationships and memorable moments with the people she loves.
Sharing these moments helped humanize Virginia's brand and create a stronger connection with her audience. This made her one of the top digital influencers in Brazil, with significant partnerships and contracts with big Brazilian brands.
Practical tip: Identify interesting and exciting aspects of your brand or life that can be shared on social media. Share these stories on your social media channels to help humanize your brand and create an emotional connection with your customers.
2. Be Authentic
Being authentic on social media is essential to engage your customers. Customers want to connect with brands that are honest and transparent. When your personal profile or your company is authentic on social media, they build trust with their followers and create a stronger emotional connection.
Here are some practical tips and case studies to help you be more authentic on social media.
Practical tips:
Use authentic language that reflects your personality or that of your brand.
Share your vision and mission with your followers.
Show the mistakes and failures of your company or personal life and how they are overcome. This can bring connection and help many followers going through a similar situation or find the solution to this common problem in your brand.
Respond quickly to customer comments authentically and honestly.
Show the diversity of your company and its employees.
Here are some companies that use authentic language on social media:
Ben & Jerry's
Ben & Jerry's is a brand known for its authenticity on social media. They use their accounts to share their opinions on social and political issues and are transparent about their beliefs and values. They also use their online channels to share photos of employees and company events. All of this helps to build a stronger emotional connection with their customers.
Innocent Drinks
Innocent Drinks is a brand that uses authentic and fun language on its social media accounts. They share funny stories and photos of employees to show the company's personality. They are also transparent about what goes on behind the scenes, sharing pictures of their facilities and production process.
Buffer
Buffer is a software company known for its transparency on social media. They regularly share information about their financial results, employee feedback, and company culture. They are also honest about their mistakes and failures and how they work to correct them.
Use authentic language that reflects your brand's personality, share your vision and mission, show the errors and failures of your company, respond to customer comments authentically and honestly, and show the diversity of your company and your employees. These case studies show how authenticity can be successfully applied in different sectors and company sizes.
3. Provide useful and valuable content
One of the best ways to engage your followers is to create valuable and informative content that is relevant to them. For example, you can share news, advice, and valuable information for your target audience. This will make your followers want to share and discuss your content, increasing your reach and engagement on social media.
Here are some practical tips and case studies on providing useful social media content.
Practical tips:
Share tips and tricks related to your market niche.
Create video tutorials or images that show how your products or services can be used.
Share news and trends related to your industry.
Use infographics and charts to present complex information in an easy-to-understand way.
Here are some case studies for your reference:
Home Depot