If you’ve been in the marketing world long enough, you know the importance of engagement. Audience engagement is a crucial part of social media campaigns; the more you engage, the more successful your campaign will be.
Unfortunately, not many brands know how to engage with their target audiences, causing their social media efforts to crumble as a result.
2019 has brought a new wave of effective engagement strategies that help you to make the most of your social media efforts. Here are some strategies brands are using in 2019 to boost up their social engagement:
1. Drive conversations with your audience
The quickest way to engage your audience is to create a conversation with them! Ask questions, create opinion polls on a product, ask your audience for feedback or reviews—all of these options allow you to boost your engagement.
When asking a question or creating polls, make sure to probe your audience’s personality. People love to share their opinions and thoughts so it wouldn’t hurt to invite them to do just that. Driving conversations with your consumers also adds a little flavor to your posts since it combines useful and promotional content together.
2. Encourage content creation with your brand
The popularity of smartphones allows anyone to quickly create and share content online. Take advantage of this fact by encouraging your audience to use your brand in their content. You can do this in a variety of ways including:
- Hashtags. Hashtags are the go-to source for finding other users with the same interests and hobbies. When you create an interesting campaign, be sure to do research on relevant hashtags and/or come up with a unique hashtag that fits your brand.
- Customer highlights and advocacy. Showcasing your customers and employees helps create a sense of community, which, in turn, boosts your overall engagement. It also allows your brand’s message to come across more clearly to a wider audience.
- Reviews. Do not hesitate to use your customer reviews and testimonials in your social media content. Any positive ratings can be used to your advantage, including audience engagement.
- Contests. Online contests, like giveaways are absolute fun for any social media user. Many contests require users to upload a video or a photo of themselves or create content like recipes, poems, art, and more. You can make your brand’s contest however you like, but we recommend tailoring it to your company.
3. Feature incentives with promotions
Many online users have a competitive spirit (a reason why contests are so popular!). You can indulge your audience by using interesting incentives with any promotions. For example, if you hold a promotional contest for a product, you can enter every person’s name in a drawing for a chance to win a free product. This strategy can bring a sizeable crowd to your brand, regardless if it’s a large and small prize.
4. Make valuable offers to your consumers
If there’s anything audiences like, it’s free stuff…and discounts! Make valuable and compelling offers to lure in your audience. This can range from discounts and coupons to club memberships and free shipping. We recommend experimenting with several types of offers to see which your audience responds to the most. Don’t forget to promote these offers on your platforms with engaging photos. And of course, set an expiration date, preferably after 7 days.
5. Treat social media like customer service
When considering your next social media strategies, always remember to treat these platforms like a customer service channel. If a customer praises or complains about your brand’s product or service, you should take the time to create a well-rounded response. These responses will very likely be seen by other members of your target audience, which helps keep your brand’s image clean.
Of course, if the conversation between you and a customer becomes intense, you should drive the exchange over to a private DM or message. That way your brand’s reputation isn’t compromised and your engagement can increase.
What makes up the magic of user engagement on social platforms is time and effort. While placing much of your hard work towards engagement strategies seems pointless, it does pay off. Highly engaged consumers will feel a personal connection to a brand, leading them to pay for products/services and remain loyal.
Have you tried influencer marketing for your strategy? Check out our blog, What is Influencer Marketing? for our helpful tips on this new branch of marketing.