Every week as SmallBizLady, I conduct interviews with experts on my Twitter talk show #SmallBizChat. The show takes place every Wednesday on Twitter from 8-9 pm ET. This is excerpted from my recent interview with Dr. Aikyna Finch, @DrADFinch.
Dr. Aikyna Finch is a Forbes Coaches Council Member, coaching in the areas of Empowerment, Life and Social Media through my company Finch and Associates LLC. She is a speaker, podcaster and host livestreams on the topics of Motivation, Education, and Social Media. Dr. Finch has contributed to Huffington Post, Goalcast, Forbes and Thrive Global. She has also been interviewed and featured on Huffington Post, Hello Beautiful, Women Speakers Association, and many others. Find out more here: http://aikynafinch.com
SmallBizLady: Why is it important to have audience engagement on Social Media?
Dr. Aikyna Finch: It is important to have engagement because it lets you know how your audience feels about your content. It will also let you know if you have an audience that is interested in your content versus your opt-in. It will let you know how to tailor your paid products and services for better conversions. It is important to know what the audience wants so you can tailor your content to their needs.
SmallBizLady: What are the different types of engagements?
Dr. Aikyna Finch: The first type is a like or double tap; these require the least amount of effort from the engager. The next type is commenting, this requires the engager to stop and type before moving on. The next type is sharing or reposting, this requires the engager to add your content to their page via button or third party app. The final is a testimonial post or video, this is when the engager is touched by your content and does a post of video promoting you.
SmallBizLady: What should you consider when posting for engagements?
Dr. Aikyna Finch: First, you should consider the vision. Make sure the content speaks to your business. Next, you should consider the audience you want to service. What would they like to see? Next, you should consider consistency. Make sure that the feel of your social media is the same on your platforms. Finally, consider how you want to post, organic/real-time or scheduled/automated and then work on the strategy that works for you.
SmallBizLady: What are some of the types of content you should post?
Dr. Aikyna Finch: The first type of post is a comment. These are usually words only and quickly posted. The next type of post is the picture or image. The clearer and more dynamic it is the more engagement it will receive. The next type of post is a quote card. These usually get high engagement because they relate to any situation. The next type is the video. This can be pre-recorded or a livestream and this will help people connect with you on a deeper level and comment more.
SmallBizLady: What are some misused parts of a post?
Dr. Aikyna Finch: If posting on Instagram, overusing hashtags can cause what is called shadowban. This makes the hashtags only visible to people that follow you. If posting on Facebook, putting links in the post from your profile will hinder the amount it is seen in the newsfeed. If posting on YouTube, not using the correct keywords before you post the video affects how it shows up in the searches. If posting quotes on any platform, posting them on a branded card or a background add to the post and the handle as a whole.
SmallBizLady: What are some ways to take advantage of trends on the different platforms?
Dr. Aikyna Finch: If you have a product-based business, posting vibrant pictures of your pictures with descriptive captions on Instagram will help engagement. If you have a blog, posting a catchy headline, a picture and a link on twitter will increase the engagement. Tagging major players on the tweet will help as well. Posting a powerful quote that you give the contributor credit for and put on a branded quote card on Facebook can produce engagement. Posting moments of inspiration or training videos will peak people’s interest and get them to share or comment. When the pictures and graphics are poor quality. Most people are visual so if the content is not eye catching then it will be passed by.
SmallBizLady: What are some things that hinder engagement?
Dr. Aikyna Finch: When your social media has no theme or relation to your brand. When your posts are incomplete. If a person has to guest what it is they will pass it up every time. When your posts don’t relate to the audience. If they don’t connect to the post they will not engage.
SmallBizLady: What are some of the tools on the platforms that can use to learn about your audience?
Dr. Aikyna Finch: You can utilize your analytics to enhance your awareness of your audience. You can monitor the engagement of the types of posts to see what the audience is more interested. You can monitor the amounts of shares and reposts to see what content is share worthy to your audience. You can get tools like Iconosquare and Tube Buddy to enhance the power of the tools that come with the platforms.
SmallBizLady: What are some of the ways you can use the platform analytics to improve engagement?
Dr. Aikyna Finch: You can find out what gender you attract most so you can craft content to them. You can find out what industries you attract and craft content for them. You can find out what locations you attract and possibly translate and craft content for them. You can find out what time people are viewing your content so you can know when to post for engagement
SmallBizLady: Why should you tailor your posts to the audience you want?
Dr. Aikyna Finch: You want an engaged audience not just numbers. You want the people on your social media to want your products and services. You want the people to support your programs and events.
SmallBizLady: What are some of the things you can do to start engagement?
Dr. Aikyna Finch: You want an engaged audience not just numbers. You want the people on your social media to want your products and services. You want the people to support your programs and events.
SmallBizLady: What are some tools that I use for engagement?
Dr. Aikyna Finch: I use the reposting apps for Instagram called Get Repost and Repost Whiz. I use the Friendly app to download Facebook lives so I can repurpose the videos on other platforms. I use Coschedule to take wordpress posts and schedule posts on social media platforms. I use Canva to create branded graphics and quote cards for social media engagement.
If you found this interview helpful, join us on Wednesdays 8-9 pm ET; follow @SmallBizChat on Twitter.
Here’s how to participate in #SmallBizChat: http://bit.ly/1hZeIlz
For more tips on how to start or grow your small business subscribe to Melinda Emerson’s blog http://www.succeedasyourownboss.com.
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