Most businesses recognise they should have a social media presence, yet many have trouble coming up with social media content ideas that really engage their audiences.
There’s little point in spending precious manpower posting content if it’s not actually doing anything to help boost your business.
With that in mind, here are some of our top social media content ideas to help boost engagement.
1. Video is king
Over the last few years, social media channels have made it easy for even the most technically challenged among us to create and post videos online – and made it impossible for users to ignore them.
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram all have functions that allow any business to post a video in one easy click, and you’d be missing a trick to ignore that capability.
Videos are a perfect way to grab users’ attention, and the days of having to hire a professional to shoot footage are long gone.
Keep your content short and snappy – most people are unlikely to have the time (or the attention span) to focus on a video for longer than a minute or so.
Include captions – even on a 30-second clip. According to Digiday, 85% of people watch videos with the sound off, so you need to make sure you’re getting your message across even if the volume is on mute.
2. Think about using live video
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram all now give you the option to record and share live video, and this is certainly one of the best social media content ideas to boost engagement at the moment.
Live broadcasting gives your followers a glimpse of something that’s happening right now, meaning they feel closer to the action even if they’re in a completely different part of the world.
Whether it’s a live Q&A with a new member of staff or a behind-the-scenes look at a project you’re working on, it seems live video is the new big thing on social media.
According to Facebook, users watch live videos for three times longer than they watch videos that are no longer live.
3. Show you’re human
Yes, the primary reason for any business to run a social media account is to help with growth, but adding a personal element to your feed is a great way to get people interested and keep them following you.
Try posting images of what the staff get up to at lunchtime or behind-the-scenes clips of office life – and you can never go wrong with a cute animal doing something funny.
These small touches all make your business seem more personable and will increase audience engagement.
Of course, these ‘human’ touches may not suit every business. It will depend on your sector and how you want to portray yourself, so think carefully about what will work best for you.
If you decide to add a personal element, don’t go overboard – keep the balance right, remain corporate when necessary and don’t let basic things like grammar and spelling slide for the sake of fun.
One great example of how well this can work was when Southern Rail let 15-year-old work experience student Eddie take over their Twitter feed earlier this year.
His answers to questions like ‘would you rather fight one horse-sized duck or 100 duck-sized horses?’ proved so popular that he was later credited by some as having saved the company’s reputation.
4. Run competitions
One of the most popular social media content ideas to boost engagement is to run a competition.
You don’t necessarily have to give away anything of significant value, but the thought of getting a freebie without having to do much is often enough to get people on your side.
Asking people to like and share your post and/or page in order to be in with a chance of winning will encourage people to follow you, and make you more visible on people’s timelines and feeds.
5. Have a conversation
One of the best ways to boost engagement on social media is to interact with people who want to speak to you. Remember, they’re potential customers.
Replying to people’s comments on Facebook and Twitter will make them feel valued and keep the conversation going.
You can start your own conversations by posting open-ended questions, either about your products or services or to gauge their opinion on something you’re working on.
You can also muscle your way into wider conversations by using hashtags like #tuesdaytreat or #throwbackthursday on Instagram.
Social media content ideas – stay tuned for more!
We hope our first five social media content ideas have given you some inspiration for connecting with your audience.
All these tactics are designed to help you create a recognisable brand identity and form relationships with your followers – key steps in boosting engagement on social media.
Stay tuned for the second part of this blog post, when we’ll have another five top social media content ideas for you.
As a leading social media agency, feel free to contact us if you have any questions about your social media presence.