When thinking about what to post it’s tempting to follow the crowd, isn’t it? After all, if everyone is posting about the same thing, it must be of interest, right? This might work to get you views in the short term but this can backfire if it is your only strategy.
People will stop paying attention to your content if it doesn’t stand out, so here are our tips for creating an engaging brand presence on social media.
Get creative with video
If you want to get noticed online, you need to get creative with the way that you promote yourself and your business on social media. Some of the best strategies involve going above and beyond the expected, or approaching your subject matter from a different angle.
Instead of simply posting a link to your latest product or service, why not post a video review or walkthrough? This shows that you’re a real life human with a lot of knowledge and experience to share. Video content is so much more engaging than static images so it often prompts people to find out more about your brand, leading to extra traffic to your website.
The best video content has a structure, so before you hit record, plan out your video with bullet points and have a plan for what you want to show and say. Professional content creators make it look really easy, but be prepared to do a few takes, or edit your clips to produce the final cut. You’re aiming for pulled together and coherent…not perfection.
When getting in front of the camera for social media, you might be tempted to think you need high production value video content. As long as the audio is good and the visuals are clear, you don’t need a whole video production team. These days most of the latest mobile phones have a great camera and audio so you can film yourself.
Don’t hide your face from the camera
Your social media posts need to be thought through – some candid content is great, but if that’s all you post it might seem sloppy. You have to make an effort to be different and interesting if you want to get noticed. That means not being afraid to try new things, and showing a little bit of personality.
You might feel intimidated about trying Reels on Instagram or posting videos on TikTok, but there is a reason why they are so popular. Humans are naturally inquisitive and we love watching other people’s faces and expressions. It’s why people watching is such a common pastime.
What you might think is a less-than-exciting ‘day in the life’ task (DITL, if you want to know the lingo) can actually get your audience hooked and curious to find out more. Haven’t you found yourself watching people pack orders or show a time lapse of an event space being pulled together? #BTS content (behind the scenes) is a whole genre, don’t you know!
Tell a story to build long term brand followers
Social media gets bashed for having bred a generation of people who want instant gratification, however the medium of social media does have an opportunity to create a narrative that tells a story… if we marketers are prepared to find a creative way to tell it.
The lifecycle of a post on social media, particularly Twitter can be short, but we can keep our followers’ attention if we carefully craft our posts with the longer game in mind. Serialised content, or regular consistent instalments can build anticipation for launches or seasonal events.
It can also prove useful for repeated promotion of a call to action, such as gaining subscribers to an email list. People like to be brought along for the journey, and in doing so build an emotional investment in your brand, which helps with brand awareness. This is key to being top of mind when prospective clients are ready to become customers.
Create an experience
Naturally, most people think about using social media to attract new customers, but it has a role to play in retaining and delighting existing customers too.
Social media is an essential part of the marketing mix and to be successful, brands need to think of their marketing campaigns as an experience for their audience. Your social strategy needs to be just as developed as any other strand in your marketing plan, so your posts need to be coherent and make sense when viewed one after the other on the grid, as well as a standalone post on someone’s explore page or ‘for you’ page.
When curating your social content, think about how you can immerse your audience in your world. Can you open their eyes to a new place or activity? Can you teach them something or share information that will make their life easier, happier, or inspire them? Not all your content has to be experiential, but by including this type of content in your calendar you’ll be sure to keep people engaging with you on social media.
We know it can be hard to be creative, especially when you are so close to your brand and focussed on making your business successful. That’s where we come in! Whether you want help with photography, graphic design, or even a done-for-you social media strategy, we’re on hand to help.
To get started get in touch.
