Diving headfirst into the world of social media marketing is a dizzying and oftentimes overwhelming experience. You’re slammed with words and terms such as total reach, post reach, page likes, visits, engagement and boost…even for a savvy social media user, it can make your head spin! And that’s before we’ve added hard numbers and data into the mix. So what does it mean to get your client base engaging with your profile and posts? And how can you increase that activity?
Let’s start with the basics. What is reach? What is engagement?
Reach is a measurement of how many people have laid eyes on your post. That is to say, how many people it has reached. This number is great and extremely useful, especially if you are looking to increase the visibility of your business. Now, you might be tempted to think that establishing a high reach is simple, but like most things online it’s not that straightforward. With recent changes to Facebook’s algorithms, reach has become harder to influence and increase. But don’t get too concerned! There is an answer. But first, let’s talk engagement.
Once you’ve established your reach, engagement comes in. Engagement is the amount of views, clicks, comments, likes, and shares that happen with your posts. It’s the important metric to consider when you are looking to further brand loyalty and build a lasting relationship with your customers. Reach is good—engagement is better. Just because someone has seen your post doesn’t mean they’ve engaged with it and retained it.
So how can you influence your reach and engagement to be the best social media marketer possible? Consider the following 3 tips:
1. Handcrafted Posts. Make sure when you’re posting, you’re creating a post that is specific to your customers—not your business. Address what they find the most important, and share information they’re likely to pass along. Be visual! Posts containing pictures or videos are more likely to end with engagement from your user base. Check out the demographics of people who are “liking” your page. Ask yourself: is this the base I was hoping to reach? Do I need to adjust my methods, or maybe my concept of my target audience?
2. Engage, engage, engage. Once you have a customer engage with a post, don’t be afraid to respond. One of the biggest plusses of social media is the direct line of communication with your client base. Say hey, ask them questions, and get a conversation going. Due to recent updates, to how Facebook functions, the website tries to keep the platform relevant. Stay up-to-date and in the loop so you don’t get buried in your clients’ newsfeed.
3. Cash in, cash out. Again, Facebook has made some algorithm changes to how its newsfeed functions. If you want to grow your reach, which is necessary to increasing engagement, it’s worth exploring your options and considering a paid campaign. It’s the unwritten rule of all business: sometimes you need to spend some money to make some money.
