How to Create Engaging Social Media Content that Gets Shared

Social media marketing has become a cornerstone of any digital marketing strategy. What’s not to love? You can speak directly to your audience in a venue they are comfortable with. You can start conversations, be creative, educate, and inspire. Most importantly, you can prove your brand and drive sales. The only difficulty is creating content that achieves these goals again and again!

The most effective organic social media content gets shared. This happens when users enjoy your post so much that they want their community to see the same image or hear the same message. This helps you, of course. With each person who shares or otherwise engages with your content, your reach expands. This then allows you to interact and inspire more and more people who may become your loyal customers.

Social media content that is successful enough to garner shares and engagement is some of the most difficult to develop. With a staff full of talented Social Media Managers, we have the best tips and advice to help you get there!

ATTENTION-GRABBING IMAGERY AND TEXT

It might seem obvious, but the style of your content should grab the attention of your audience. This starts with getting to know them. What kind of aesthetics are they attracted to? What wording will catch their eye? Flashy, brightly colored imagery doesn’t appeal to everyone. Plus, it might not even stand out in their feeds. Try out interesting formats and platforms to find out what works for your audience.

Consider creating a unifying style that represents your brand and jumps out to your audience. Take a look at your competitors and other influencers that your audience enjoys. This will give you an idea of how to effectively?develop your brand aesthetics?and voice on social media.

TELL STORIES AND PLAY TO EMOTIONS

Meaningful content gets shared. Content with a memorable story or that impacts the emotions of your audience will perform best. That’s why it’s important to understand?your story as a brand. What’s your mission? What are you trying to do differently in the world? Demonstrate this to your audience with your content.

Develop a personality for your brand on social media. This may include humor, creativity, or relatability. Your audience wants to feel like they are interacting with humans rather than an amorphous brand that they can’t quite picture. Use that personality to deepen connections and make your audience feel something. When you inspire emotions, you are more likely to be remembered.

TAKE ADVANTAGE OF TRENDS

Trends make your audience feel like they are a part of something. If they are already aware of the trend, they’ll feel in the know when you post your unique version. It also demonstrates your relevancy as a brand. By finding truly creative ways to add to a trend, you can stand out and may even find yourself with a viral post.

Algorithmically, trends also help you get seen by new people. If a user has shown interest in a particular trend, they are more likely to see more content related to that trend. For example, posts with trending sounds or songs on TikTok or Instagram Reels will be shown to users who already interacted with that particular trend.

TIME YOUR POSTS EFFECTIVELY

Depending on the platform, the timing of social media posts can impact their performance. There is no hard and fast rule to determine the best time to post on each platform because it will depend on your unique audience. For example, if your Twitter audience is mostly offline during a certain time during the day, they might miss a post that goes out during that time.?

When your post garners early engagement, algorithms are generally more likely to continue showing it to more members of your audience—meaning timing can be crucial for reach. Use a social media scheduler like Hootsuite that suggests the best times to post. Hootsuite specifically offers recommendations based on factors like when your audience is online and when they are most likely to engage with posts. You can also check your analytics on each individual platform to find out what timing seems to work best.

LEVERAGE INFLUENCERS AND PARTNERSHIPS

Don’t just think about influencers as the pseudo-celebrity, twenty-somethings that have gained large followings online. While these might be the perfect people for you to work with, think more about who is influential to your customer base or audience. Each industry and market has influencers of its own. They don’t necessarily have to have millions of followers as long as a large portion of their audience is your target market.

Once you identify potential influencers or partners to work with, reach out with an offer. Make sure that it’s appealing to them. For example, you can suggest guest blogging on each other’s websites or swapping social media posts about each other’s products. This way you both will benefit from the partnership. By working together, you get access to their audience and more eyes on your own content.

ENGAGING WITH YOUR AUDIENCE

Shareable social media content doesn’t stop with posting. You can’t just leave it to your audience to engage. They need someone to interact with! That means you need?a solid social media engagement strategy. Take the time to comment on, like, and share posts from your audience and other relevant industry members. Also, make sure to always respond promptly to comments, messages, and mentions that you receive.

?Try to inspire engagement with your audience by asking questions and starting conversations. Use interactive features in your posts like polls on Twitter or questions on Instagram stories. This gives your audience easy ways to interact with you. You can also take advantage of user-generated content. For example, if a customer posts a picture with your product, you can ask for permission to share it on your page.

STAYING RELEVANT AND ADAPTING TO CHANGES

As your journey with social media marketing progresses, you’ll find that what works today may not work for you tomorrow. Platforms and trends continue to evolve along with the algorithms that connect your content with your audience. It’s crucial to stay current with trends and platform changes so that you can adapt your strategies and continue posting effective content.

When changes occur, experiment with new features and new content formats. In general, experimentation will keep your content fresh and continue inspiring your audience. Make sure to always?keep a tab on analytics?and audience feedback to ensure your strategies are still effective or to determine when you need to make a change. Use data to guide your strategies moving forward.

GET HELP WITH YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT

Social media is a complex world that takes some dedication and expertise. If you’re already an overwhelmed business owner, you might not have the time or mental space to think through a truly effective social media strategy. That makes sense! You’re a business owner, not a social media manager!

Rather than spending all the time it takes to learn effective social media strategies and to stay up to date with changes, many entrepreneurs find it helpful to hire a social media manager who is already an expert in the area. While you can collaborate with your social media manager on content ideas, they can advise on strategy, develop content calendars, and oversee social media on a day-to-day basis.

To understand how a social media manager can add to your team, schedule a free consultation here.