Many brands struggle in this digital world for their own space on social media.
In most cases, building a social media following is almost as important as the actual products and services that you’re selling.
You may already be on social media in your personal life, but creating a digital marketing strategy around social media is much more complicated. It’s a way to bring your brand to life as a tangible thing.
So, you want to know how to gain a social media following? Keep on reading because there’s a lot to learn!
Building a Social Media Following is a Process
Social media following is often considered a vanity metric. A vanity metric is an impressive number that doesn’t contribute to your bottom line. In other words, you can have over 100,000 followers on social media, but no increase in profits.
That’s why most companies don’t put too much effort into their social media game past the point of brand awareness. But when done correctly, a social media following can have a huge impact on customer acquisitions. Creating brand awareness and getting your followers to respond to your content is an art.
In this case, it’s paint-by-numbers. The paint would be your marketing strategy and the numbers being your followers. If your goal is to drive more traffic to your website, then you’re going to want to build a strong following.
Here are some simple ways to get a bigger following and how to gain social media followers. Pump up those numbers!
Be More Human
Social media is where people come together to share ideas, tips, inspiration, laughter, awareness, and more. It’s how we connect with one another.
If you’re not making a connection, then you’re doing it wrong.
It’s time to get interactive and personal. People like transparency and they enjoy a good repertoire.
Your best bet is to crack jokes and post photos of your team—in and out of the office. Believe us when we say that it looks good if you have a team that actually likes hanging out together.
Nobody likes a faceless corporation. Showing that you are human and have a good personality to match is a magnet for followers!
Own Your Mistakes
Nobody is perfect.
But if you make a mistake—and you will—don’t pretend like it never happened. There’s nothing worse than being attacked on your social media page. If a good personality is a magnet for more followers, imagine what negativity will do to you.
Negativity is a magnet for brand bashing and what all the cool kids are referring to as canceling. Trust us, it’s not just for celebrities.
If you make a mistake, acknowledge it and do what you can to fix it. People will respect you for it, and incidentally, you’ll gain more followers.
Remember, it’s all about making connections and that means showing your support for those who support you!
Create and Share Better Content
It really is quality over quantity.
Don’t just schedule social media posts to clog up your followers’ feeds. Figure out how to tailor your posts specifically to your audience to get a reaction. Curating content is about reaching your audience on an emotional level—not just to get “likes”.
Use high-quality imagery and writing that really captures the essence of your brand. Mention a current event if one applies to make your campaign more meaningful. It helps to get to know your audience and the things they like and support, so figure out what those things are—and then make them pretty.
Pro Tip: Green is the new black. Caring about the environment will automatically get you on everyone’s good side. And yes, you should actually care about the environment.
Put on a Show
People love live videos. It makes them feel like they’re a part of the action. It also turns you into an “instant celebrity”—if you have enough followers, that is.
Create a live channel that your followers can subscribe to. Just make sure your live videos are sharing something valuable to your followers (and potential customers). Demonstrating a solution to your audience’s problem is a surefire way to have an impact on your followers and attract new ones.
Give ‘Em Something to Talk About
Going viral is the epitome of how to gain social media followers.
The great minds that are called they say that even bad publicity is good publicity. This may have been true for Britney Spears when she flashed the cameras back in 2006, but that’s not going to work for you.
You want to go viral for a good reason, not a bad one. You want to get people talking about your brand in a way that piques the interest of others. This is another reason to get to know your audience and what they care about.
Find out what people expect from your brand and use it to your viral campaigning advantage.
Do Contests and Giveaways
Let’s be honest—people love free stuff.
This is absolutely something you should take advantage of! When you’re building a social media following, you may hit a plateau in numbers.
Doing a contest or giveaway is a great way to get people to spread the word. And by the word, we mean your company.
You can even bend the rules to your advantage. Have your existing followers share a hashtag, tag friends and family in a specific post, leave a comment on a blog post—the sky is the limit.
Just don’t forget the “free stuff” part. Offer up something that will entice your followers to participate.
This could be anything from a free book to a trip somewhere. Once again, the key to building a social media following is knowing your audience!
Offer Free Consultations
One-on-one time with your followers is unique in that it’s a personal and personable experience.
Giveaways and contests may bring in new followers, but interacting with people on a personal level will get them further down your sales funnel. How many people you take in for a free consultation is up to you. But of course, you can bend the rules in your favor.
You can have them do something specific in order to get some face time with you. Sharing a post on their social media about your business is great—that’s free advertisement right there!
Just make sure the consultation is going to help them in some way, otherwise, they won’t be interested and you won’t have anything to talk about. Awkward…
Answer Some Questions
Have a Q and A session with your followers.
It’s a great way to keep everyone engaged and interested in your next move as a brand. This can be done over a live video, your stories, or in post-by-post sessions.
By answering your followers’ questions and shedding light on their concerns, it will put you in an authoritative position.
Don’t just wait for them to ask questions—make a list of questions that surround your products or services. You’ll also want to include a list of things outside the realm of those specifics.
For example, a lot of people are interested to know if you support a cause or have a social obligation. Be prepared to talk about these things! Anticipating your follower’s questions and needs is key.
Start a Conversation
Aside from just answering questions, you can ask your followers for their opinions as well.
It’s all about starting a conversation. Make a list of interesting facts that you come across each day, and post them, asking what your followers think. This is a strong and fundamental strategy for building a social media following.
This list should include a healthy mixture of thought-provoking elements as well as relatable memes. Of course, you don’t want to stray from your brand too much, so keep it simple yet engaging.
People want to feel as if their thoughts and opinions are valuable. Show them that they are, and don’t forget to join in on the conversation.
It’s Time to Get Social
Building a social media following is definitely a process, but if you do it right you’ll see a lot of success for your business.
In this digital world, people crave a human-like connection more than anything else. Don’t be afraid to connect with them on a more personal level.
If you found this article helpful, you should see some of our other articles on digital marketing strategy. Feel free to leave a comment as well!