Tip #7 - How often should you really post?
We all have friends and followers who post a hundred times a day, with little or nothing to say. Those people take the “if one post is good, 30 will be awesome” approach to posting. The truth is, your business is not the only reason they are on facebook, linked in or twitter. If you over promote, you run the risk of losing them and getting a dreaded “unlike.” But, make no mistake about it…frequency is key to keeping fan interest, so say something interesting a couple times a day at most and see what happens. If you need to bump up your frequency, then do it, but if your followers are telling you to “cool it” you’d better back off to once a day or every other day.
For now, test and measure to see what works best for your business and you will hit your stride. Again, like I have said before…only post 1 out of 10-15 posts about YOU…make the other posts added value or educational.
Tip #8 - It is ok to peek at
the pros
When you were in kindergarten your teacher told you to never look at your neighbors paper, or it was cheating, right? Well, in the realworld, that is called market research and it is ok to peek at your competitors and other professionals to see what they are doing. When it comes to social media, everyone has a different strategy and it is best to take a look at the experts to gain some insights. Every industry is different, so check out the website wefollow to find influential twitter users within your niche. I would not recommend reposting everything you find, but follow the strategy your industry uses. If original content is king…start there, but if posting links to articles or asking poll questions is your industries favorite strategy, do that. It all boils down to doing what works best for interacting with your target market and if the wheel has already been created, don’t reinvent it.
Tip #9 - Who should be the
one posting?
Social media does not have to be a one person show, in fact I recommend that you enlist the help of many to keep your pages fresh and light. If you hire a professional agency to strategize and post regularly for you, add in some comments or posts yourself to give your page a different flavor and personality. If you decide to have several people in your office share the responsibility of social media management, it is a requirement that all members of the team be knowledgeable about your strategy behind your social media. For example, Suzy from accounting might think your followers would be interested to know she had a bagel for breakfast. Unless you have a bagel store as a client and she mentions the bagel store in her post, that is something your customers are not interested in. Whether you have 1 or 10 people managing your site, make sure everyone is aiming for the same target.
Tip #10 - How can social media be viral?
Viral is only a bad word when you are talking about the flu. In regards to social media, your goal is to make sure that all your posts and updates go viral. Meaning that your followers share, repost, send and retweet your valuable information to their network of friends. This is the equivalent of word of mouth advertising. If someone reposts something, chances are, it is pretty good. A simple tip is to somehow integrate the topic of facebook into your conversation because, believe it or not, facebook is the number one-most shared topic on facebook. Another sure-fire way to make your posts go viral is to host a contest giving away a prize from your company. People will do pretty much anything for a free prize and if you tell them to send the post to three friends, then they can register to win your prize, they will! So when you are planning your social media strategy, don’t forget to throw in ideas to make your message viral.
What works for one brand may not work for another in the social media space. For example, the strategy for a movie store is completely different than that of a tax preparer. Consistency is key when you brand a business, so don’t forget to brand your social media pages as well. Customize your twitter page or use a distinctive avatar on facebook. Branding is not all about the look of your business, but it is also about the tone of voice you use as well so make sure that you remain consistent with your messaging and tone as well as your vocabulary. For example, that movie store I mentioned earlier could use movie quotes and slang, where as the tax preparer would need to be more professional and informative. Needless to say, keep consistent with your brand and don’t confuse your followers with different looks and language than they are already used to.
If you have been in charge of your companies social media management for a while, you may be telling yourself “this used to be fun, but now it is a chore” and you find that you may be lacking in the updates? That is ok. Everyone gets into a rut sometimes. Now is a good time to revisit your strategy to see if you need to make any tweeks to it. Chances are, if you are getting tired of posting, your followers are getting tired of reading it, or they are simply ignoring your updates all together. Ask yourself why you wanted to engage in social media in the first place. To have fun and interact with customers, right? So, your assignment for the next week is go to your followers’ pages and react to their posts and re-energize yourself as to how fun social media can be. You will gain some new ideas and perhaps a fresh perspective on how to manage your social media pages.
Now, it is time to share the wealth and reciprocate those good relationships. You have asked your followers to share your links and retweet your but are you doing the same for them? Take a look at the other side of the coin for a moment and see life from your followers’ perspective. Have you seen a lead or two from friends, but not given any back? Social media is a two-way street where you need to give back as much as you get. So don’t forget to reciprocate your good fortune with your followers, share leads, give testimonials, comment on their links and videos, and your ever-growing network of friends will stick around for a long time.
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