The rise of social media has brought with it a new way of contacting brands, and social media engagement is more important than ever for every type of customer interaction. Customers make use of social media to review your brand, make a complaint and express their praise, among so much more.
If you want to engage with your customers and keep them happy in the long term, interacting with them on social media is essential. Consumers nowadays expect brands to interact with them over social media in a meaningful way, and they will interact right back. The ways in which customers interact with you on social media vary and can all have a significant impact on your business. Let’s take a look at some of the most common ways that customers will interact with your brand on social media and how this can affect your customer engagement strategy.
Which posts do your customers like
The most popular form of social media engagement in 2022 is simply liking posts. Likes are a way for customers to engage for free and show brands that they are interested in their content, product or service, providing businesses with a wealth of information and data to work with. The ability to keep a track of the things that your audience is most interested in is a great way to not only learn more about your consumers but also to tailor any future social media content to be of interest to your audiences. Take a look at which of your posts are generating the most likes as well as the ones with the least likes to better understand the likes and dislikes of your audience and what kinds of posts are generating the most social media engagement across your platforms. This allows your business to create stronger and more effective campaigns in the future, and influence much more than just your social media strategy. This data can help inform decisions around email campaigns, paid advertisements and so much more.
Who your consumers follow
If you want a consumer to become a more active member of your community, one of the first steps to achieving this is to successfully get customers to follow your brand on social media. This will allow them to see all of your posts on their feed and stay up to date on all the latest things that you as a brand are up to. The wider an audience you can create, the more opportunities you have to not only make sales but also to understand your consumers on a deeper level.
Keep track of how your audience grows and if particular posts or actions are driving more growth than others. Look into the data regarding who your followers are, the kinds of posts they interact with most and what channels are working best. Test these analytics and work out how you can optimise your social media channels best.
Timely response to private messages
Messages and questions from a customer, whether public or private, are a great opportunity for brands to engage with customers and create a positive reputation for their business. Make sure you are replying to social media messages in a timely manner, ideally within 24 hours maximum, to best engage with customers and create a positive impression. Keeping your customer service to a high standard is essential in creating a positive brand image and also in encouraging repeat sales from your consumers.
Affiliate partners
Influencer and affiliate marketing is on the rise, with a 57% increase in reach between 2019 and 2020. The right affiliate partners can help businesses to make a connection to their audiences and really boost not just brand awareness but also increase conversions and engagement. If you’re looking for your next affiliate partner, take time to not just look for influencers with high levels of social media engagement, but look for those who have a connection to your brand. This connection can be in terms of mutual followers or even just influencers who identify with your brand and connect to your core values. This will help boost audience engagement and make all of your campaigns more successful, as you will directly be interacting with your customers on a much more personal level.
Use your tagged posts
Don’t ignore your tagged posts! Customers who have shared their own social media posts and tagged your brand are a gold mine for marketers. Look for customers who are celebrating your products or brands on their social media posts and share these as much as you can. This will help to build social proof for your brand and increase trust as well as provide great opportunities for you to show off how much your customers love your product!
Social media engagement is essential for your brand, and you should be sure to look out for some of the most valuable types and make as much use of them as you can. The different ways in which customers interact with your brand is an essential resource for brands looking to investigate their marketing campaigns, expand their reach and increase sales and conversions across a variety of platforms.
