Social media is a great way for brands of all sizes to connect with their audience. But does this sound like you:

You've created your social media accounts. You get a few followers. You post your content.

Nothing.

What can you do to encourage your followers to interact with your posts, and how can you get more followers?

I am a marketer. My job is to convince people to like my company and buy the awesome technology we create. It is challenging to avoid using marketing language on social media, but that language can also be a turn-off to those who view my content.

I’ve seen some marketers do this very well, like the team at Social Media Examiner. 

Marketing language is great for marketing materials and campaigns, but it doesn’t work as well on social media. Your audience expects a more personal connection, and that means you have to be genuine and a REAL PERSON. Try posting on your page using the same type of humorous or conversational tone you use on your personal social media. It will be much easier for your fan to relate to you if you appear authentic, and show them there is a real person behind the posts.

This can be another struggle for marketers. We get so used to our industry and the terminology we use every day within our company, that it can sometimes slip out when we’re posting on social media. As I describe in more detail in my post 5 Critical Tips for Better Copy, use the language of your audience, NOT your company.

I try to keep my personal life just that – personal. But it is growing more difficult for people who are the public face of the company to keep their personal social media separated from their business social media.

Should you connect your personal accounts to your professional one? This is a decision only you can make. However, if you aren’t comfortable doing this, try posting some personal things on the accounts you manage. Mention your colleagues, create inside jokes (or share company inside jokes with your audience), and post images of you / your colleagues at work (or at play). Get personal with your followers, whether or not you choose to connect with your own social accounts.

I’ve said this many times before: Be the friend you want to have. 

Do you want others to engage with your content? Then start engaging with theirs! Like, share, retweet, mention, or message others online. Comment on their blogs and share that comment on your page. It will make others look more favorably at you and your company, and it may also make them more likely to return the favor. 

On some social sites, like Twitter, your typical follower will be following hundreds if not thousands of other people. To stand out from all the noise, use hashtags to connect with people specifically looking for your topic. 

Another purpose that hashtags can serve? They can add an element of humor or satire to your post, as well as being a simple description of your content. 

Don’t get too wordy or clever with your posts. The average person prefers to read at a 6th grade level. (Naturally, you should consider your audience at this point.) If they are skimming through their feed, they don’t want something difficult to read or comprehend.  They also probably don’t want to read through several paragraphs. Keep it short and simple.  

Images are the most shared content online. If you can include an image with your message, it will help people connect with your content better. Some sites require images, such as Instagram or Pinterest, so be sure you keep that in mind when creating your content.

Here are a few things to keep in mind when choosing your social media marketing images.

If someone does take the time to comment or share your content, be sure to thank them. It can be as simple as “favoriting” a retweet of your post, “liking” a share, or even commenting on your content when it is reblogged / shared / tweeted. Just recognizing that they’ve taken the time to share your content is valuable to others. Don’t you feel good when someone notices you sharing or mentioning them? Most people use social media to be seen; to be validated. Give your fans the validation they want, and they will love you even more.

Positive or happy posts – posts which inspire joy or awe – are more likely to be shared than any other type. Keep your message happy, humorous, optimistic, or inspiring to get the most response from your audience.

Some studies of this topic found:

Responding to your audience is important. But there are some (we’ve all come in contact with them) who just like to be negative, rude, or just spammy. It is great to get constructive feedback as a business, and you should thank everyone for taking the time to share their opinions, even conflicting opinions. 

Then there are trolls: people who sows discord on the Internet by starting arguments or upsetting people, by posting inflammatory or off-topic message with the intent of inciting an emotional response.

The best way to deal with trolls is to ignore them. If you can, delete their comments and block them. I DON’T mean block people who have a complaint or disagree. Real feedback deserves a real response. You should be able to tell the difference between someone who has an opinion and someone who is just trying to inflame others.

If you've read this far, you might as well take a second and share what you thought.