THE NOT-SO-SECRET SAUCE OF SOCIAL MEDIA
One of the common themes about social media that I hear constantly is that to “crack the code,” you need super-secret “insider-only” info that only a select few marketing gurus know. I regularly see videos about the SECRET TO SOCIAL MEDIA.
Is it really that secretive?
THE TRUTH ABOUT SOCIAL MEDIA ALGORITHMS
While most lament the evil algorithm, the truth is we all love it and need it more than we realize. How do I know? If you want to know what life was like before algorithms, back when social media feeds were chronological and showed everyone you followed, look no further than the social media platform VERO.
VERO is a social media platform that photographers have latched onto. Quite a few jumped over from Instagram and mumbled about algorithms while on the way. While VERO has around 6 million monthly users, I decided to hop on about a year and a half ago and see what the tiny buzz was about.
I admit that there are a lot of features of the platform that I really enjoy. Once I heard there were no algorithms and the feed was chronological, I could hardly wait to spend time on it daily. I started following people and posting content. I eagerly hopped on the next day, only to realize that my feed hadn’t changed. Since none of the people I follow posted anything new, there was nothing new on the feed. I quickly left. After a couple more days of this, I began forgetting about VERO. Why? There were no algorithms mixing things up and showing me content that it assumed or knew I was interested in. Days off of VERO turned into weeks.
WHY SOCIAL MEDIA ALGORITHMS PRIORITIZE ENGAGING CONTENT
Social media algorithms are there to show us exciting and engaging content. Period. That’s it. No conspiracy theories. For users, that is great! For brands with underwhelming content, well, it sucks. The point is not that the algorithm is “ruining” your account. It’s just your stuff is probably lackluster, which is code for it’s not engaging, and that’s why you hardly receive any engagement.
THE REAL SECRET TO SOCIAL MEDIA ENGAGEMENT
You see, there are no mysteries. There’s no secret sauce.
It‘s either our stuff is engaging or it isn’t. It’s pretty cut and dry. The follow-up question is what is essential. How do you create content that is engaging?
HOW TO CREATE A SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY THAT DRIVES ENGAGEMENT
It all depends on what you hope to accomplish on social media. Do you use social media to drive most of the marketing for your brand? Or is social media supplemental to what happens offline or to strengthen other marketing efforts like your newsletter?
Notice I keep saying “our.” I’m in this with you. This is a daily challenge with my own brands and the social media channels that I manage. Each brand is different. Some target audiences are highly engaged and passionate. For others, it’s very challenging to earn and drive engagement.
ALIGNING SOCIAL MEDIA WITH YOUR MARKETING OBJECTIVES
How does social media fit into your marketing objectives? The core function of marketing is to connect the right people to the right product by surfacing the right messages at the right time. This essentially boils down to following a potential buyer on their path to purchase and communicating the right ideas based on their interests.
The consumer journey traditionally follows four stages … awareness, consideration, sales, and leads.
Where does your brand’s use of social media fit into the consumer journey of your target audience?
