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Follow our simple guide as to which kind of content belongs on which social networking site to optimise engagement for your brand.
With over 1 billion users Facebook is the most used social network in the world.
Facebook allows for your business to post several types of content. However, the most popular content posted to Facebook is image/video content. Your run of the mill update is a status. Status’ are updates or posts which can contain media, links and emojis, they can be promotional or informative and appear in the Facebook timeline of users who have liked or followed your company page.
You can tag other people and companies in your images and videos on Facebook that when clicked link to their profiles. This boosts post engagement.
Polls, check ins and feelings can be added to status’ or added as individual posts.
The best Facebook posts utilise all the options given to Facebook’s users. It is reported that in 2018 the most engaging Facebook content was video, out performing photo and giveaway content. An engaging video is not cheap to produce as the quality of social content is increasing; however, it is worth the return if executed properly.
Everyday millions of hours are spent scrolling through Instagram. But what are people looking at and engaging with the most?
In 2018 it was reported that content from brands on Instagram receive 10 times the engagement rate that the same content receives on Facebook. However, Instagram specialises in photo and video content so posts should be focussed less on copy and more on visual content.
Utilise the tools provided by the Instagram app, but do not over edit your photos. Before uploading your first Instagram post familiarise yourself with the filters and adjust all settings. Remember: the best Instagram photo edits are those which look like they haven’t been edited at all.
Instagram stories are important for brands that have flash sales or limited edition products. Advertise promotions on the stories feature or upload a “Product of The Day” feature, aiming to post updates 3 times a day. There is a “swipe up” option on Instagram stories too, here you can link to your company’s website or another social media profile.
Images of your products, the team or recent campaigns are a great place to start. Avoid simply posting words on a background as this is likely to be scrolled past and unread by Instagram users as this is not the type of content the platform was designed to share. When posting video content bear in mind that all videos must be 3-60 seconds long to post on your feed. The Instagram app allows you chose a still video cover image which is how the video will appear statically on your company profile. If your video requires sound mention that in the copy section of your post and remember to tag contributors.
Check out our Instagram page for Insta-piration!
On average 6,000 tweets are uploaded to Twitter every second. That’s 500 million tweets a day. Yeah, a lot.
So make yours stand out!
The best way to think of Twitter is as a space to share your brand’s story over time. Share old and new blog posts, retweet campaigns and industry news, and use it as a direct channel of communication between your brand its audience. Respond to mentions, asking any customers with negative feedback to DM you with further details.
Track content across the site with hashtag’s and participate in Twitter trends, such as #MotivationMonday and #ThrowbackThursday. This helps keep your Twitter content relevant and more users are likely to find your profile through hashtags. Relevant content engages with other media, such as customers live tweeting from watching a television programme. Join the conversation, stay relevant.
The best tweets are those which are snappy and well thought out. Gifs are a popular form of media on Twitter for they emphasise the emotion behind a tweet without using any of the 280 characters. Twitter has its own Gif library which is categorised by emotive response. Alternatively, Gifs can be used to display products or campaigns by your brand. Your brand can make its own gifs, here is an example of how Gifs can be customised effectively by your brand.
Twitter is the place to interact. Place yourself in the shoes of your customer: use their language, follow their favourite stars, use their hashtags and interact with tweets where they mention your brand.
Tweets with hashtags and images receive higher engagement so do not be afraid to utilise what makes Twitter an important network. A 2016 study revealed that 10% of young people use Twitter as their number one news source, so ensure your Twitter content is relevant and is kept up to date.
LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network, as of 2018 the site had over 575 million users.
LinkedIn is a great place to do business to business connecting, therefore how you categorise your business is very important. Indicating the right industry, company size and web address is paramount for any enterprise joining LinkedIn as this will affect the types of people who follow your account. Your “About Us” section should also be compelling, make your brand stand out as you never know what kind of professional will be viewing your profile, they could be someone seeking an opportunity or a potential investor. Your brand needs to make a lasting impression.
The “Jobs” tab in every brand profile is a place for you to post job adverts for specific roles on behalf on your company. LinkedIn will also display relevant jobs to potential candidates as personal profiles have the option to “Let Recruiters Know Your Open”.
Professional content with long term value. Think along the lines of articles, videos, slide presentations and links to specific pages on your website. Celebrate company successes and share blogs, but be careful not to clutter the professional sphere with social trends or television talk.
LinkedIn is a professional space, and you want your brand to be perceived as just that.
YouTube was launched in 2005 as a video creation and sharing platform. Today, it has 30 million daily visitors with over 2,400 YouTube channels boasting over 1 million subscribers. Your enterprise needs some of this video action!
YouTube is best utilised by brands that assign a sizable budget to their video content: production, voiceover/presenter and well thought out content receive the best reception on the world’s number one video site. However, without relatable, relevant content the production will be wasted. Ensure the content of your video is relevant to your audience, be it a Look Book Video for your brand’s new range, an explainer video of how to use your product or simply an interview with your CEO.
The term “influencer” – love it or hate – first came from YouTube personalities who act as an online best friend to their audience. YouTube influencers are a valuable asset to marketing your brand as they have the ability to reach a large audience and be trusted by their followers in the same way you might be recommended something by a friend. Firstly, discuss if your brand needs an influencer to help market your product and then do some research. Each YouTube channel specialises in something specific and the chances are that your brand fits into these categories, be it technology, fashion, fitness, gaming, food, beauty…the list is endless.
Remember: Influencer marketing is not just limited to YouTube, in recent years Instagram and new apps such as Twitch have been gaining attention from marketers, looking for online personalities to promote their products.
Relevant video content that compliments your brand. For example, post webinars your team have been involved in or create a video displaying how to navigate your webiste. As long as you’re creative, the possibilities of how YouTube should be utilised by your enterprise are endless: create a vox-pop style video about what customers think of your product in comparison to other products on the market, animate a typical scene in which your company’s service would be of help, film a tutorial of how to use your product…and so on.
The overall piece of advice to take from us is to make the most of the features each of the social media platform hosts. Don’t forget you can advertise on social media too so more people see your content, see more on how to use paid social here.
