Let’s face it, everyone and anyone is on social media nowadays, me included.
But are people reading about your fitness business or listening to the wonderful things you are saying? Consider that the average person has over 300 friends on Facebook with most having something to say, what will get your messages noticed? How do you cut through the clutter and stand out?
Well here are my top 15 tips guaranteed to boost your social media content to your fans and followers:
1. Use images and videos
A picture tells a thousand words and video is even better! Social media and visual content go hand in hand. Every post, tweet, message should always have an eye catching image or video to go with it.
2. Your chance to win
Everyone loves something for free so think about holding regular games, contests or giveaways to keep people excited about your content.
3. Ask and you shall receive
Regularly ask people what they would like to see or hear from you. Always listen and engage with your fans and followers. Not only will you gain a better idea as to what exactly they want from you but this will make you messages more appealing.
4. Show me your personality
We all have our own personality and this should come through in your social media interactions. This is what often sets you apart – don’t be afraid to let your personality shine through.
5. Timing is Everything
Make sure you are posting at the right times when you target audience are most likely to read or listen to you.
6. Sometimes it’s not what you know
Establishing authentic relationships and connecting with key players in your industry is not only a great way to make new friends and boost credibility, but it also helps you access a wider network of people and amplify your own message. Start following key influencers and share their articles and content with some of your own community.
7. Identify key social media groups
Identify professional networking groups on LinkedIn and industry specific groups on Facebook. Make sure they relate to your business or industry. Before you join, take the time to scan the page to make sure you’re interested in the type of content they share and the type of interactions they have. It’s also a good idea to make sure the group is currently active, with people posting regularly.
Then join up and introduce yourself and actively engage with the group by contributing articles or sharing knowledge. It’s a great environment to informally meet new people, and it these online connections might turn into valuable in-person professional connections down the road.
8. Use #Hashtags
Start using #hashtags to categorise you content, promotion, event or campaign and is an effective way to extend your content reach and increase your brand awareness. #Just #don’t #go #overboard #with #them!
9. Make it Personal
People love attention and when you make them the focus of attention on your social media profiles, they’re more likely to engage with your brand. Show people you really care about them.
Share the photos that fans post when they tag or check-in to your page. Share your employees and member’s achievements and post fun images of them. They’re more likely to repost or share them to their own friends and followers which increases your brand to new audiences.
10. Advertising
Most social media channels have advertising options which are worth checking out. You can finely tune your target audience to get your message out to those outside of your friends and followers network.
11. Keep it short and sweet
Posts that are a certain length are likely to get more likes, shares and retweets. Here’s a guide to the optimal length for content on social media networks:
Tweets: 71 – 100 characters
Facebook Posts: 40 characters
LinkedIn Posts: 25 words
Google+ posts: 60 characters
Hashtag: 6 characters
Title Tags: 55 characters
Blogs: 1600 words
12. Be consistent
If you post 3 to 4 times a day for a few days and then post nothing for days or weeks, your followers will see you as less reliable and consistent and your engagement will drop. Like exercise, you need to be consistent to see real results.
13. Content is King
Being conversational and chatty isn’t always enough. Make sure your discussions are interesting, but be true to your mission and brand and stay real in your conversation. Be thought-provoking. Create a “wow factor” with fresh and relevant content.
14. What do you want me to do now?
Where relevant, have a strong call to action – act now, phone now, email for more details, click here to claim your prize, click there to download, enter here to win – and have a “due date” to motivate them to act fast so they don’t miss out.
15. And finally, remember what social media is all about
Standing out in social media communities simply boils down to being social. It’s not a “build it and they will come” strategy. You can’t throw up a Facebook page or open a Twitter account and simply post sales based content and expect great results. Social implies two-way conversations, not one-way promotional messages. It’s up to you to offer something interesting and relevant that others want to hear. Do that and you will get noticed, remembered, and talked about. Social media is all about the development of relationships; people do business with people they know, like and trust.