Be more visual
First of all, no one ever stopped on a photo that was blurry or out of focus. Images need to be sharp, crisp, and clear if you have any chance of grabbing the follower’s attention. Make full use of things like Instagram filters and photo-editing tools. Even if your image looks great, you can make it more appealing by adding graphics or emojis. The point is to make it stand out from all the other posts. In a world where there are many posts that look the same, making yours look different can generate more clicks, likes, and comments.
Incorporate video posts
For younger social media users video posts and live feeds are just a way of life. For others, the thought of creating videos and posting to social platforms can be cringe-worthy. But in the world of TikTok, Reels, and other video features, it could well be something that just has to be mastered. Video is on the rise and studies show that more internet and social media users are consuming information by video than ever before. The bottom line is that without adopting video posts, small businesses could be missing a trick. Especially if your product or service something targeted toward younger users.
Solve a problem
Thinking from the customer’s perspective can help you to generate great content that attracts attention. Solving a problem or answering common questions can be information that potential customers or clients are seeking. Carousel posts work especially well for this with short digestible pieces of information that spreads across 6 or 10 slides. As well as helping people and providing helpful information you can make these look really visually appealing too.
Speak to your audience
Making content will only be effective if you are creating it for the right people. It can help to know who your buyer is, what their concerns are, and the type of challenges they are facing. Positioning your business or brand in this well can help you to stand out as an authority or expert in the industry. Building a good reputation as a valuable resource can help you to gain more followers and potentially, more clients.
Add some fun
Even though you are creating content for business accounts, that doesn’t mean that you can’t add a bit of fun. Humorous posts and lighthearted content is usually appreciated by followers and can help to drive more engagement with your channels. Fun quotes or amusing things that happened at the office can be a way to connect with your audience on a more human level. Funny gifts, humorous polls, and other comedic features all work well. However, it is best to stay away from emotive topics like politics or religion.
Reward your followers
A proven method for obtaining more likes, follow, and shares is to run a competition or giveaway. Part of human nature is that everyone likes to think that they are getting something for free, so give it to them. Hosting giveaways can encourage followers to share your posts to a wider group, effectively expanding your reach, and competitions can create real interest around your brand. If the product you are giving away happens to be your own you may gain a customer for life too, if they really love the prize.
Be Responsive
You may be surprised to learn that one of the top actions a small business can take to drive a sale, is being responsive. So make sure that you are monitoring engagement across all of your social channels and make a real effort to respond to any comments or questions. It’s a great way to demonstrate to your audience that you care what they have to say, plus show them that you are always available and ready to help.
Balance your posts
Make sure to balance your posts between competitions, video, promotional content, and the other things mentioned in this article. For example, now we know that competitions or giveaways work well, don’t fall into the trap of posting only this type of content. It soon gets repetitive and boring and your audience will quickly lose interest. Instead, it’s best to keep your feeds fresh by mixing up your content and posting different types of content.
Use a posting schedule
People are creatures of habit so try and post consistently on a schedule. You will also need to find the posting times that work best for you. Depending on the type of company you run, evenings or weekends may work best, or if you provide B2B services lunchtimes and evenings may be the sweet spot. Experiment with your posting times until you find the slots that work best for you. It can be helpful to use a scheduler so you don’t miss posting at the highest engagement times during the day.
Outsource your social marketing
All the good advice in the world won’t help you to grow your social accounts if you don’t have time to sit and actually create posts. For this reason, many small businesses choose to outsource their social media management to an external service. Using a content provider can generate professional, on-brand content on your behalf so you don’t have to worry about it.