Be More Authentically Social

Gone are the days of questioning whether social media is an effective marketing strategy. We’ve either seen success ourselves or watched as others have created awareness, stayed ‘top of mind’ or increased leads. But with every successful social media success story, there are many others flailing about, wondering why they can’t move the proverbial needle. I’ve pondered this question over the past few years and believe that the answer lies in the way most businesses approach their overall digital strategy. Instead of putting human connection at the forefront of their content strategy, they took an artificial approach with automation and curated content from outside sources.?

Twitter is my favorite example of this massive swing. When it first launched, it was a platform of people connecting with people. Today, it’s dominated by bots, automated direct messages and pre-populated content. There’s very little authentic about it anymore. And thus, it’s lost its luster.?

And it’s happening on all social platforms. LinkedIn has become a spammers paradise and Facebook is filled with brands putting out automated content hoping to stay on the radar of potential prospects. The key word that has been lost on all of these sites is…SOCIAL.?

So…let’s talk about you and your business. If I check out your digital profiles, what will I see? Is it made up of a mix of engaging content that is worthy of your customers and prospects? Or is it a sea of curated content with no connection to your identity? Would you consider yourself to be authentically social??

Here are a few questions I want you to think about:?

1. How would you define your company culture? What makes you and your company unique??
2. What’s your unique value proposition? Are you showcasing this expertise on social?
3. What is your team passionate about? What makes people love being associated with your business or brand??
4. Who are the people behind your brand??Is your social media helping us get to know them better??

Your answers above should be at the heart and soul of your overall digital strategy.

Here are a few examples of how you might make your content more authentically social:?

1. Bring people behind the scenes. Provide a glimpse inside your meetings, events or other company outings.?
2. Ask employees to do a series of episodes using Facebook or Instagram live. Answer questions, discuss current topics or share valuable insights.??
3. Does your business participate in community events? Do a Facebook or Instagram story and provide a highlight reel of the impactful experience.?
4. Go Live during a moment that is showcasing the human side of your business. If you’re in the real estate business, maybe a perfect opportunity would be at a closing for one of your clients.?

If you’ve come to the realization that your social profiles can become more authentically social, then I encourage you to take small steps to improve. Put one idea from above (or something else that you come up with) and implement on a consistent basis. Make it routine. One consistent, episodic video series that you produce on Facebook or Instagram (or both!) can make a world of difference. It can bring your business to life and help you get noticed on the biggest social platforms in the world.?

Here are a couple friendly reminders before you embark on this new initiative of becoming more authentically social:?

• Be consistent. One episode, video or Instagram story won’t do much for you. It’s the sum of a consistent series that will make the difference. Stay the course, people will eventually take notice.?
• Brainstorm. The best ideas will come from within. In your next board meeting, bring this topic up and see what ideas come from the team. No one knows your industry or what matters to your tribe better than you and your employees.?
• Engage with your own stuff! Remind your employees to get on Facebook and Instagram and engage! Likes, comments and shares tend to happen in bunches so give your content a nice start by getting friends, family and colleagues to individually promote.?
• Call to action. This doesn’t need to be overly aggressive, but remind people how to contact you, get to your site or become a customer! At the end of the day, we are a business that thrives on leads and new clients, so it’s important to connect the dots from social follower to paying customer!?

Authenticity matters and in the past it was perfectly acceptable to “pay no attention to what’s going on behind the curtain”, but today that’s exactly what your audience wants to see.

Make it a great week!

Corey