As the owner of a small business, the one thing you’ve heard more than once is that you need to digitally engage with your customers. So you’ve invested in a website and set up several social media accounts for your business. You keep sharing posts but you’re not really seeing any positive results. In short, your social media sucks.

Sadly, this is true for many businesses that do not have a clear understanding of social media. Here are five reasons why your social media is not giving you the results you want –

1. Are you on the right channel?

You’ve set up accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and Twitter. You started your social media journey with much zeal but as the months passed your interest has waned. One of the most common mistakes people make when it comes to social media is that they make it about themselves. Social media is not about you, it’s about your audience. Do you know which social media channel your customers are on? Have you done your research? If you have defined your ideal customer for your business, then you will have a rough idea where they like to hang out online. If you’re not talking to your customers on the platform that they prefer, how can you make an impact?

According to Royce Morgan, a market research company, Facebook and YouTube are the top two channels for customers between the ages of 29 – 45 years, if this is your target market, these are the platforms you need to focus on. Similarly, find out which channel is most popular with your customer base and engage with them on it.

2. Unclear about who your customers are and what they want

Do you know who your ideal customer is? Do you know who can benefit the most with your product or service? When you don’t have a clear understanding of your ideal customer, your communication becomes too vague and diluted. If your messages are too vague, chances are your activity on social media is not resonating with anyone.

E.g. – Barb is a 35-year-old experienced cyclist who is looking to buy the best marathon bike. Then there’s Betty a 35-year-old, mother of two who is keen on taking up cycling as a fun family activity and is researching on bicycles with an emphasis on safety. Traditional customer segmentation will categorise Barb and Betty in one group but their needs and interests are vastly different. If you’re in the business of selling bikes, then both Barb and Betty are your ideal clients but their requirements are different. At this point, you might have to take a call on who your ideal customer is out of Barb and Betty and create content to fit in with her interest or come up with ways to engage both personas.

If you’re unclear about who your ideal customer is and you’re looking for a more comprehensive guide, click on Customer Personas 101: How Well Do You Know Your Customer?

3. Too focused on selling

Bombarding followers with too many sales pitches is another reason why most social media accounts suck. No matter how great you may think your product or service is people are not interested in being sold to. It is a big turn off and will result in your audience unfollowing you. So respect the time your audience invests in you and moderate your content.

Action point – Before publishing content on your social media platform, ask yourself if it’s going to add value to your followers. When your audience starts to notice that your platform has interesting, engaging and useful content, chances are engagement will increase and your following will grow.

 

4. Sharing posts that have no value to your audience

Social media is a medium where people come to consume information and learn about what’s happening in their surroundings. If your social media presence is not adding value to your followers’ lives, then they are not going to engage with you. Your social media is a reflection of your brand, so be smart about how you want to be seen. Want to be known as a credible source of information? Then post and share content that is related to your field, e.g. – if you’re in the fitness industry focus on posting content that is valuable and useful to those who are interested in staying healthy and fit and avoid sharing stories that are not relevant such as an opinion piece on politics.

Action point – Come up with a social media strategy to create content that is relevant to your audience in line with the customer journey you want to take them through. This will not only create awareness about your brand but also help you engage with your audience in a more meaningful way.

 

5. Not refining your posts according to data

This is another common mistake that many companies make. Reviewing your social media content and refining it according to data is vital for your business. Unfortunately, there’s no right formula to know what your followers may or may not like. So it’s important to keep regular tabs on your platforms and see what is performing best and then post more of it to see if your followers are still engaging with it. Take a look at what your competitors are doing on their social media accounts. What kind of posts are they sharing? This will help you understand what resonates with your audience and refine your content accordingly.

Action point – Start gathering data on your social media platforms every month. This will help you fine-tune your content and perfect your social media strategy to target the right audience.

We hope you find these tips useful and that you can improve your social media presence with more engaging and valuable content which will have a positive impact on your business.

 

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