MAXIMISING ORGANIC REACH - TIPS & STRATEGIES FOR SOCIAL MEDIA SUCCESS

It can be challenging for businesses to get their content in front of the right people without spending a fortune on advertising. I get it.

That's exactly how I started as an organic marketer - because of budget restrictions. And I am glad I did, because I soon realised how powerful an organic strategy can be....

There are so many ways to maximise your organic reach and grow your social media presence without breaking the bank. In this article, we'll explore the tips and strategies that we use at my marketing agency that will help you reach a wider audience organically.

From optimising your content for each platform's algorithm to leveraging user generated content and influencer partnerships, we'll cover the best practices for driving engagement and building a loyal following.

Organic reach can be tough...but it's not impossible with a clever strategy, knowing the #algorithm and how to use it to your advantage, plus an organic strategy will also bolster any paid campaign you run.

For small businesses, it’s not always feasible to pay for #marketing on #socialmedia . For others, it’s about balancing paid reach with organic (something I can not recommend enough!) The truth is you CAN get great organic reach, but you will need to pay for it with your time or money. It's as simple as that.

The truth is, organic reach is harder to gain nowadays...but not impossible.

Before you can fix it, you need to understand why it happened.

The first thing people will tell you is that social media platforms are all about making money. Yes, they’re businesses. As we all know, businesses have to make money somehow.

And how they make most of their money is from advertising. You scroll on your feed, an ad pops up that someone has paid for.

All platforms are the same.

So, given that this is the case, it will make sense when I tell you that the secret to what the algorithm wants is engagement. Why? Because the longer you keep your audience on a platform, the more money they make.

Social media platforms want to show users only the content that is most engaging, and drop everything else. Known as the News Feed Algorithm, it's similar to Google’s algorithm.

And unfortunately, they don't care (obviously if it doesn't follow community standards) if that engagement is from something great posted or something controversial posted. If it brings traffic and eyes to the account, they're happy - again, if it is still within community guidelines and no one is in danger etc.

This is why I always tell my clients that trolls are good for your account! I get trolled a lot on my #tiktok account when I go live. It is just what it is and TikTok is notorious for this unfortunately (I still love them though!). The good thing is, the more they comment on my live, the more the algorithm thinks something fabulous is going on (hey, I would love to take the credit but....) so they send more people your way.

So you can see that really understanding the algorithm is key for organic marketing. Give the algorithm what it wants and it will reward you.

Building a community and a greta relationship with your audience is also a winning combination. Platforms love community and connecting with your audience, and it will evident even more so in 2023 as they are really pushing the whole interaction with your audience.

So think about ways you can not only engage with your audience but actually interact with them....It will drive your traffic further.

User generated content is another way to push up your organic reach. this is where your audience tells you what they want to see and you then create the content or on the flip side, a follower makes content that's related to your brand or product and you then use that content as your content and tag the creator.

Using USG is a smart move as it builds trust with your audience, shows the connection you have with them and it won't cost you a cent!

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is another key feature for organic traffic (and it's now being pushed out more). Think of social media platforms like a search engine - you can be found via #google searches for your social media posts.

Social media is adopting its own form of SEO in a way that promotes a positive user experience. The algorithm works by putting your posts in a small pool of one percent of your followers. If those people engage with the content, then it gets introduced into a larger pool. Slowly but surely, more and more people see it, but only if it’s engaging.

But what does Facebook and social media consider engaging?

The below tips cover several platforms and will help you define what it means to create shareable content that people will engage with.

• Optimise your social media profiles. Every aspect of your social media profile can be optimised for better visibility. Use an easy to remember username, a recognisable photo/brand logo, keyword-rich descriptions that still sound natural, and a trackable link back to your website. And don't forget to use keywords and SEO in your bio's.

• Post evergreen content. Consider solving common and persistent problems in your industry or posting something educational and funny. Humour, shock, or awe are great emotions to target with evergreen content. Evergreen content is also great because if someone comes across your posts in years to come, you can still generate a lead from it.

• Work smarter, not harder. Posting more isn't necessarily the answer. Focus on posting high-quality, relevant content. In this case, it’s literally quality over quantity. Posting less with higher quality can actually have the same results as someone who is posting more often.

• Post the right balance of promotional/useful content. This one is tough, because you immediately want to promote your product or service on social media. But the truth is, no one goes to social media to buy - not to say they don't buy if something strikes a chord with them, but they are not there to shop. So instead offer value and education instead of a straight sales post with a link. Users expect to find content that’s useful to them, as well.

Interact with and engage your followers. Organic social media reach is never easier than when people come directly to your page. Reply to their comments, ask them a question in the comments and really engage. If you properly engage with people and reply to their comments, you’re going to build a great reputation that will spread. People will look for your posts because they’ll be genuinely interested in what you’re doing.

Sharing valuable content (how-to guides, articles, new posts, etc.) grows a user’s trust in your brand. They come to know you as an authority in the industry and will therefore trust you when you recommend a product or service.

The general rule that I follow for content is 70% should be educational and value based, 15% lifestyle (behind the scenes, meet the team etc) and 15% showing result or testimonials/client wins.

Don’t forget that this variety should also include a mixture of videos, images, and other engaging content types.

Overall, organic reach on social media is declining, but it's not all bad news. Social media platforms want to engage users, and to do that, they show users only the most engaging content. To increase your organic reach, focus on posting high quality, relevant content on the right platforms, engage, engage, engage and show up consistently! Or, hire someone fabulous at organic marketing....

I hope this was of value to you, if you enjoyed this please consider subscribing!

Regards, Melissa

Abundant Life Studio

PS. Find me YouTube too!

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