Effective Ways to Build Your Social Media Presence

by AJ Agrawal March 12, 2016
March 12, 2016

Social media has an extreme appeal to users of all demographics, as 2.1 billion people have accounts. It provides you with the opportunity to hit the largest audience in the world, something that has never before been a possibility. Building up a social media presence isn’t as simple as making an account, throwing out a few status updates, and hoping for the best.


It takes time and effort. This guide is going to introduce you to some of the most effective ways to build your social media presence.


Make Your Content Have a Goal


You should always know what you want to do with your content before you post it. There must be a point beyond you believe that people will like it. Identify your target audience and figure out what your content is going to achieve with them.


Always think about what impact your written content or videos are going to have. Are they going to help you achieve your short and long-term goals?


Get Involved and Interact


Interaction is the essence of being successful on social media. To do this effectively, you must go out of your way to interact. Naturally, any content you post should be designed to foster this interaction. On the other hand, you can use currently ongoing discussions to connect with your target audience.


If you come across an interesting discussion, go out of your way to join in with it. Don’t just advertise your brand. Genuinely help someone. Speak as you would on any personal social media account. People want genuine they don’t want to be sold to.


Choose Your Group with Care


One benefit of social media is that any group you have control of has a closed door policy. In other words, you can kick someone out of the club if you don’t feel that they are contributing anything meaningful. Rather than making impulsive decisions regarding those members, do some research and figure out who is best for your group.


Many social media managers monitor new members with a phantom probationary period. If they are inactive or unhelpful during the specified period of time, they can remove them if they see fit.


Channel Quality Over Quantity


It may be tempting to go wide in order to increase your range. While this can work from time to time, only larger companies have the resources to target a huge number of social media channels. Smaller companies should opt for the ones that are most relevant to them.


For example, a management consulting firm may decide to target Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. A private art gallery may decide that they want to target Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. By spending more time on a small number of channels, you are increasing the quality of those channels.


No channel should be an afterthought.


Review Your Content


If you are determined to get the best content, you need to be willing to review your own content. The worst thing you can do is post anything you think works and then receive lots of public negative feedback. You can control the flow of negative feedback, but you can’t alter the negative impressions left on your customers, as a result.


Go through regular content reviews and ask your most loyal brand ambassadors what they think of the things you are posting. By asking someone impartial, you are guaranteed to get an honest opinion, even if the truth hurts.


Consider the Competition


The competition will always be an important factor in everything you do. You need to pay attention to them without becoming obsessive. This is one of the best ways to maintain that competitive edge because you can continually counter what they are doing.


The competition will give you ideas for what content is working and what isn’t. For example, if a competitor makes a mistake and they receive a negative backlash, you will learn what not to do.


Just beware of getting carried away with this.


Stay Polite


Nothing destroys a social media presence like coming into conflict with people. You will receive negative feedback, but the answer isn’t to fight back; no matter how justified you may or may not be. You will always come off looking worse.


Always stay polite and endeavor to be helpful at all times.


Conclusion


Building a social media presence is mainly about research and perseverance. If you know what you are doing through research and you are willing to invest the time and the effort, you are going to get the results you want.

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