Why is no one clicking on my social posts?
-
Jayson Tomlin
You’ve done the work and are starting to be active on social, but no one seems interested in your social posts.
Why? If you’re just starting out on social media like most new businesses, there is an initial period of excitement as you attempt to inhale every bit of knowledge available. You use all of the resources at your disposal, consuming all the requisite YouTube videos on hacking algorithms, researching best practices for the platform, and the like.
Next, you use social media tools to set up every social platform you can think of, proud to see your logo displayed in the social media universe. You’re part of the club now! You dial in that first post, agonizing over every word, hanging on each punctuation mark, obsessing over imagery, and carefully curating hashtags. You hit the Post button and…drum roll please…crickets. No one seems to care.
Is there anybody out there?
Why? Is my product or service unlikable? In many cases, sales indicate people do want your product or service, but social media indicates a lack of interest. How can these two things vary so drastically?
It’s not that you didn’t set up your platform right or your logo is boring. It’s not that your hashtags are ill-conceived. If we had to venture a guess, it’s likely that your content is simply not something people want to engage with, despite how hard you worked on the post.
Krissy and I are not the first to address it. However, we’ve found that blogs on this topic fail to address the most important factor in social media engagement—the actual content of the post! You can read all you want about the mechanics of each social media platform or how to make flashy images that pass the “scroll test.” But when it’s all said and done, your social media content is either engaging or it’s not.
Here, we step through five questions most companies should be asking when writing social posts, along with suggestions to help meet your goals and propel your social media into engagement overdrive. That’s right! I said to meet your goals—as in, business goals—to . So let’s start with that very question….
What are your goals for social media?
Goals. We have to have them in order to set a target for what we consider success. It is true that social media isn’t something that you’ll automatically ‘get right’ out of the gate. It takes testing and measuring. However, your goal as a business should be set before you engage. For example, are you interested in lead generation? Brand awareness? Thought leadership? Community building?
You can’t do it all and should focus on one goal to start. Your goal will drive your social media posting strategy and make your feed seem less random and haphazard. Too many companies fall into the falsehood that just being part of the social media universe is enough. A strategy derived from your business goals will ensure social content speaks to your audience, while allowing you to refine your message by diligently reviewing results. What makes content compelling? Let’s find out.
"Too many companies fall into the falsehood that just being part of the social media universe is enough. A strategy derived from your business goals will ensure social content speaks to your audience, while allowing you to refine your message by diligently reviewing results."
Are you being helpful?
Are you caught up in your own marketing hype? One way to get rid of that bad habit is to stop thinking like a business and start thinking like your customer. People search online for answers, and the easiest way to get engagement on your social feed is to give them. Do your social posts contain helpful information? Are they delivered with honesty that allows your customer to educate themselves on the problem they have? If someone engages with your post with a comment or question, how long does it take you to answer?
If the questions you’re answering are from your perspective, you’re probably not being helpful. If you wait too long to address a direct reply, you’re not being helpful. Try not to answer questions you want your customers to ask. In other words, the questions that allow you to brag about your product or service. Instead, answer the questions they’re actually asking even if it’s not directly about what you’re selling . . . and yes, even if it’s a bit uncomfortable.
We are practicing what we preach in the title of this blog, for example. “Top 5 Ways RISE Can Help You Increase Your Social Media Engagement” is not the right title for this blog, because it’s not about us. The title that is more helpful to our customer is “Why is no one clicking on my social posts?”
In the end, if you aren’t helping, you’re hurting. Are you ready to help? If so, how much do you really know about your customer?
Do you know your customer and are you using the right tone?
How well do you know your customer? You should be completely preoccupied with learning every nuance about them! Do you understand your customer’s tone? Some audiences require language that is slightly more formal. Others appreciate a more approachable tone. Social media tools make it easy to gather deep insight into your customer and allow you to test your messages to get them right. When your customers feel that you understand them and actually answer the questions they’re asking using the right tone, you build immediate trust and reduce any potential barrier to your call to action. No one wants to feel misunderstood. Get to know your audience. Once you have their attention, you can ask them to take action.
"When your customers feel that you understand them and actually answer the questions they're asking using the right tone, you build immediate trust and reduce any potential barrier to your call to action. No one wants to feel misunderstood."
Are you leading them somewhere to take the next step?
OK, you have their attention. Now what? It’s imperative that appropriate social media posts have some expected outcome in mind. Yes, even the reposts from other sites or channels that you follow. Give that repost an interesting twist and use it as an opportunity to answer questions. Don’t be timid about asking them to subscribe to your newsletter, reach out to sales, comment below, share their own stories, or whatever you think is appropriate for that post.
What are good calls to action? Try to avoid tawdry expressions like “Learn More,” or “Click to Download.” Try thinking of the CTA in a way that actually describes the result of clicking on the link, such as “Choose the plan that fits your budget.” In other words, be clear about your next steps and tell your prospects what to do. If your posts are insightful and helpful with a clear and engaging CTA, they will engage! Still wondering how? Read on.
Do you need help?
We understand that social media can also be overwhelming. You spent all of your time and energy creating an amazing product or service and you just wanna get it out and build audiences the right way without having to learn new tools. If you need help, you should ask for it! Our goal isn’t to just contract with you to provide social media services for your company. We want you to understand the value of these tools and actively participate in the cultivation of the right messaging and tone with insightful educational material and other content that your audience wants. We’re not interested in getting you more clicks. We’re interested in helping you produce content that will get your product or service a yes in the marketplace.
So did it work? Were we helpful with this blog? Do you need help? If so…