What does the word "follower" means to you? The term usually means a race towards "more people that listens to you". Social media is a great way to build a following, gain exposure and turn visitors into fans. But is more follower always means that your are more appealing? Apparently not.
Social media for some, is a new medium where they can interact with the people they care about; for some others, it's an online portal to share life; while for the rest, it's nothing more than a website where most of their friends spend their time online. Putting those together, social media presents itself as a modern tool of communication that brings the world together to hang out.
While some people can easy grow their social followers on most social networks, while most others are still finding it difficult in attracting others to follow them. And not just people, businesses that are competing with others to get most out of the market, are seeking more and more followers on social media networks.
Getting followers can be difficult for some, but getting them to actually "listen" and become loyal in a long-term relationship is a lot more difficult. Below is a list of some of the most common ways to create a long-lasting followers.
Creating an Identity
Social media channels have different techniques for their users to reach their targeted audience. But on all social media channels, people don't want to interact with those that have no profile that describes them. Most if not all social media have fields where their users can fill their identities and other information to describe themselves on the network. If these fields are left empty, the less reasons people want to know you.
Sharing information about yourself and/or your company on social media networks affects the trust factor and the persuasion factor while interacting. The first and the most important strategy to build a long-lasting follower is to build your social profile in accordance to what you want to convey to your followers.
People won't become a long-lasting follower if they don't know who they are following. Creating an Identity that describes you best is the first thing to do.
Consistent Strategy
Consistency is one of the most important point in building a social following. Consistency is what is keeping your followers engaged. If a social account goes too long without any updates, the targeted audience will forget you.
Different social media networks require different approach. But they have one thing in common: most of the time, more post is better. The more frequent you share with your followers that follow you because they want to hear from you, the more likely they will be a loyal listener to the information you're about to share.
However, flooding your followers' feed with your post is the easiest way to get unfollowed. Consistency also needs you to have a fixed schedule to catch your audience's attention when they expect you the most, keeping them out of information overload.
Tailoring the Interest
As different social media networks require different strategy, there is no one social solution that works, and at the same time, make sense. Different social media networks need different practices. For example, Facebook and Pinterest are more visual mediums. LinkedIn have more long-form and professional content, and Twitter is an instantaneous outlet.
If you're going to share on places that is going to need a long description, posting it on Facebook is better than tweeting it on Twitter. On the other hand, if you need to say a quick tip about something, Twitter is the best place to be.
Mix and Match
Social posts can be at any form, but most people prefer posting text messages because it's easier and a lot faster to share. However, humans are social creatures. And on on the internet, there is nothing more attractive than images and other media interactions. Visual elements draw more attention and interaction from people, and adding these to posts, as well as attaching links to web pages with tempting information can maintain a good balance in content of your posts.
Being active in social media means interacting with customers, and for thatyou need to be "human". Approach your customers by speaking and thinking like them. Try to communicate in a way that your social profile becomes a character on its own. Throw some humor along the road, share jokes and post funny comments in the most human way possible.
Engage in Conversations
Active in social media means being social. And being social is being engaged with one another. Brands and companies that are responsive can create a long-lasting relationship with their customers. Social media can be a great place to hear and respond to customers' concerns and troubleshoot their problems.
By engaging in a conversation with your followers, you can show how open your company deals with issues, and most importantly, creating a relationship that benefits both parties.
Most if not all social media networks provide features to chat or send private messages. This feature can be used to approach your followers individually and tailor the solutions for their problems.
Offers and Promotions
Everyone like promotions. By offering something to you followers, you are engaging them to be closer to you than ever.
Leverage contests, freebies and promotions to engage the audience, convert passive followers into active brand promoter to build even larger following. Free stuffs can create instant goodwill, so use these giveaways wisely to create positive associations with your brand/company.
To have a long-term follower that listens to what you have to say is not an easy task and may takes time. And on social media when almost everything can be viral, having long-term followers is like creating ambassadors that further strengthen your brand, turning them into long-term fans.