![Social Media Rules of Engagement [Business Guide]](data:image/svg+xml;nitro-empty-id=NTk3OjQ5Mg==-1;base64,PHN2ZyB2aWV3Qm94PSIwIDAgMTA4MCA1MzAiIHdpZHRoPSIxMDgwIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjUzMCIgeG1sbnM9Imh0dHA6Ly93d3cudzMub3JnLzIwMDAvc3ZnIj48L3N2Zz4=)
Forget rules of engagement, when it comes to social media, the rule IS engagement. In fact, engagement is a huge driving force behind most social media activities including business pages. It is often used to measure the success of a post or campaign, as well as gauge overall sentiment. Read on to find out how to make your social media presence more engaging.
Social Media Rules of Engagement Bootcamp
In military terms, “Rules of Engagement” refers to rules soldiers need to follow when out in the field (for example: you are allowed to return fire if someone shoots at you). Well, social media has its own set of rules for interacting with users, and these apply to both the friendly and hostile users that visit your page. To help you navigate the online minefield, here’s our Social Media Rules of Engagement Bootcamp guide:
- Content is the Captain: For content to be engaging, it needs to be useful, interesting and high quality. Dip into your creative artillery and use different media types (such as video, animation and static content). Make sure there is value for the user while still promoting business objectives.
- Game-Plan: Start with a social media strategy. This should include content, scheduling, account management and related processes. Make sure your team members are well trained in their specific tasks, or bring in an expert to assist. For brands besieged with queries, there has to be a plan in place to deal with high message volumes (after all, you can’t go out into the social media field unarmed).
- Going AWOL: Don’t let your social media visibility go AWOL (missing) due to not posting content for long periods. Posts need to be frequent enough to keep users engaged, but not so many that it becomes an annoyance in their newsfeeds.
- Guerrilla Tactics: Using Guerrilla tactics like click-bait is risky. You may get the initial link-click engagement using this technique, but you are likely to lose the person altogether from this kind of method.
- Patrolling: Patrol often by frequently checking your pages for comments or queries. People expect super-fast response times on social media, so make sure you have processes in place to provide it.
- Battlefield: Don’t go into battle with users. Even if you are receiving hostile comments that are unjustified, stay on the high ground. Remain polite, professional and in line with brand tone at all times. Neither defensive nor offensive techniques work – there are no winners if you go into battle with customers.
When it comes to social media engagement, your primary missions are to drive user engagement and engage with users. And yes, sometimes it may seem like a battlefield when users start firing negative comments. But success lies in effective leadership, a strategic approach and professional responses at all time. Quality content and service should be your weapons of choice. And with the right team at your side, you will be on your way to winning on social media.
Need to call in the big guns? Get in touch with Social Media 101 – we can help lead your team to social media victory.
