Show Your Fans Some Love on Social!

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It goes without saying that we here at Sociality Squared love social media. It is always changing–nay, evolving– and as such, those of us that consider ourselves to be social media pros need to be continuously evolving too. You can find tips for the various ever-changing social media platforms elsewhere on our blog, but today I’m here to discuss the one aspect of social media that never changes: your fans. Unlike many other marketing outlets, social isn’t always about conversions, it’s about retention. Most of your fans like and follow your profiles because they already believe in your brand. The task of proving to your fans that your brand’s social accounts are worthy of that love is up to you; the content creator, the community manager, and the strategist. But how, you say? Well, I’m glad you asked.

Be Human

In our data-driven society, it is far too easy to quantify everything and forget that behind every post, comment, like, or retweet, there is a person.  As a community manager, you need to know this, but it’s even more important to prove to them, your fans, that each post comes from an actual person as well. This is a three step process:

  • Be Personal – A little personality goes a long way. Address as many concerns and comments as you can, and be sure to always use the name of the individuals that you reply to! Ensure that your responses are consistent with your pre-established brand voice.
  • Mix It Up – If you have a big audience, crafting unique responses to comments can be difficult, but it is so important, especially if you’re responding to everyone. If you use the exact same “copy & paste” messaging every time someone raises a complaint on your page, people will start to notice it, and your brand will be labeled as robotic and uncaring. Little things, like rearranging the phrasing of your replies even just a little, can make a positive impact on how your fans perceive your brand. Again, always directly reference your fan’s name in your reply.
  • Be Grateful – Thanking fans for their positive feedback is easy. Everyone loves to be complimented, but the real challenge is thanking people for their negative comments. It may be hard to admit, but sometimes your brand is going to make mistakes. Admitting errors while being grateful for incoming complaints carries a lot of weight when it comes to making your brand feel more human.

Answer Everything

This job gets more difficult as your social following grows, but do your best to respond to every comment and tweet directed at your brand. Whether it’s good or bad feedback, people love to be heard. Thank fans for their positive comments, and apologize to those with complaints. Actually, thank the gripers too; it’ll carry a lot of weight when it comes to how your brand is perceived. Never forget that no response IS a response and that people will remember if you ignore them.

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Show The Love

One easy way to show your fans some extra love is to highlight them via regrams and quote-image posts. Muuna cottage cheese uses it as part of their content strategy.

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This is a quick and easy way to show appreciation for your fans, and it can help you beef up your content calendar as well.

Give, Give, Give!

This one might be a no-brainer, but you know what everyone loves? Free stuff. Give your community plenty of opportunities to win prizes, even if it’s just your product. There are some studies on the effectiveness of giving away prizes that are not affiliated with your brand at all, but that’s a topic for another day. One thing is for certain, though, giveaways are a sure-fire way to engage your audience, and since it’s directly benefiting them, it will help you to appear more generous as a brand.

Got any other tips on showing your fans some love? We’d love to hear your ideas in the comments below!

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