Brands do their best to stand out on social media. They wish to attract as many followers as they can with the hopes that these followers will become customers or recommend the brand to their friends or family.
Unfortunately, the market on popular platforms, such as Facebook or Instagram, is quite competitive, particularly if a brand is operating in an oversaturated niche.
One of the best ways to stand out on social media and prove a brand’s worth is getting a lot of engagement on the content. Let’s take a look at some strategies that will make social media users like, share, and comment on posts more frequently.
Offer Giveaways
Starting with giveaways is a good approach. Even when someone does not need a prize you are offering, they are still likely to participate in a contest so long as there are no entry fees. Social media giveaways ask participants to like and share the post to enter, which takes a few seconds.
The more people share the post, the more traction it gets because shared giveaway posts appear on a user’s feed and are visible to their friends.
As for what to give away, it depends. A brand might make a shirt line with their brand elements on the products and give those away. Various gift coupons ought to work as well.
Sell Directly on the SM Platform
One of the latest trends of ecommerce and social media is that you can sell goods or services directly on Facebook and Instagram. The platforms have implemented this feature recently.
In 2021, over 2.14 billion people worldwide are expected to make purchases online, so it is no surprise to see the likes of Facebook add shops directly on its platform.
How does this relate to engagement rates? Well, if a potential customer does not have to take that extra step of clicking on a link to be redirected to a landing page and can purchase directly on social media, they might appreciate it more and express their happiness by leaving a comment on one of a brand’s posts.
Focus on Content Quality and Variety
Lackluster content is bound to attract fewer likes and shares. Instead, a brand should emphasize quality. Instead of publishing random walls of text or sharing irrelevant articles just to fill the necessary quota, it is better to spend more time creating detailed infographics or animated videos.
Some brands hire dedicated content creators who focus on social media and nothing else. If a business is serious about improving their social media content game, they should not hesitate and have someone who can come up with content ideas and publish them regularly.
Stick to a Strict Schedule
Speaking of publishing content regularly, not having a strict schedule could be detrimental, particularly when a brand wishes to create a long-term social media marketing strategy.
After a while, followers get certain expectations. They expect to see new content at the usual hour, and if a new post does not appear, followers might feel a bit unhappy. Some might lose interest and not bother engaging with the content again.
If a brand focuses on quality, it should not have problems sticking to a schedule because the amount of content is not that high. One or two posts every week is quite manageable.
Collaborate With Influencers
Collaboration with influencers is another tested method that is bound to boost engagement rates on social media.
These days, people follow various personalities and celebrities on social media because they like them. If not for fans, influencer marketing would not exist.
Even a simple shoutout from an A-tier influencer will redirect their audience to a brand’s social media page, which will hopefully lead to likes, comments, and shares.
Respond to Comments
If you want engagement from your followers, you should respond to them as well. Now, if a brand has a channel with millions of followers, replying to every comment would be quite difficult as it requires multiple people to scan through the comments and come up with a reply.
On the other hand, if a social media page is relatively small, replying to comments should be easier, but ultimately, a page’s size should not matter. It is worth a brand’s while to respond to as many comments as it can.
Publish Follower Content
Encouraging followers to participate is also a good way to boost engagement rates. If you announce a contest in which you pick the best content ideas from your followers, you are bound to incentivize the community to become more active than it usually is.
In addition to a better overall engagement rate, follower content will also introduce content variety and give a brand’s content creators some breathing room if they are struggling to come up with new ideas.