More than half of the world (63%) now uses social media. And 90% of people communicate with brands and businesses on these popular platforms.
These figures highlight the opportunity to reach a wider audience through engaging content.
But there’s an art to this.
If you want to boost engagement, this article is for you. We discuss key social media strategies to help you crush it on every single platform you use.
What Is Engagement on Social Media?
Social media engagement is how people interact with your content and business on different social media platforms. This includes likes, shares, comments, followers, click-throughs, and mentions.
Regarding which social media apps consumers engage with the most, Facebook leads the pack.
But other platforms like YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok aren’t too far behind. Because these social media platforms have a large number of monthly active users (MAU), this increases the chance of more engagements.
Social media engagement matters because when you post on social media and your target audience is dialed in, you know your content is effective and resonates with them.
Social media platforms want people to spend as much time as possible on their apps. It’s what the algorithms look for when determining which content to show.
So, when your audience engages with your content, they spend more time on social platforms, boosting your reach.
In other words, that means you have more eyes on your content. As a result, you can raise more awareness around your brand and increase your follower count.
The more people who know about your business, the more likely you will generate sales.
5 Social Media Strategies to Boost Engagement in 2024
So, how do you post content that stops users mid-scroll and makes them want to join the conversation?
Below, we list some top social media strategies to boost engagement through high-quality content.
1. Use visuals and videos to grab attention
Visually-dominated social platforms like Instagram and Pinterest have set the tone for how social media content should be, as images and videos tend to get more engagement than text.
Now, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), and other platforms are incorporating and encouraging more visual content. Memes, Stories, Reels, and other visuals are becoming increasingly popular on various platforms.
And it makes sense when you think about it. Even though we scroll with our thumbs, we consume content with our eyes.
While text can grab attention, there’s something about visuals that draws the eye. That’s why half of social media users prefer video over other types of content.
It’s also why Facebook and X posts with images get more engagement than those without.
So, experiment with different types of visuals, including images, videos, infographics, memes, and GIFs.
Using a variety of visuals keeps your content fresh and engaging. It also helps your content appeal to a wider range of audience preferences.
Here are some tips for incorporating each type of visual:
Videos:
Attention spans are short on social media, so aim for short, snappy videos that get your message across quickly. 92% of consumers watch videos with the sound off. Add captions to make your content accessible and engage users who may be scrolling silently.
Experiment with different video formats, such as tutorials, interviews, product demos, or user-generated content (UGC) — more on that in a bit.
Memes
Include some memes in your social media content strategy to boost engagement. Memes add humor and keep things lighthearted, which humanizes your brand. Everything doesn’t have to be promotional.
So, your memes can be about any topic. Consider trends, pop culture references, and internet memes — like this clever example from ClickUp.
Infographics
If you’re introducing complex data or concepts, put them in an infographic. Make them shareable by offering tips, insights, or statistics that resonate with your target audience and encourage them to share with others.
For example, here’s an infographic from SoFi that breaks down the cons of inflation into three simple bullet points (emphasized with red flag emojis).
Images
Use high-quality photos as a key part of your social media strategies. Incorporate your brand elements, such as your logo and color scheme, to reinforce your brand identity. Make sure your images are relevant to the message you want to convey.
GIFs
Like memes, GIFs can add personality and flair to your content. Consider using GIFs to convey emotions like humor, excitement, or surprise.
User-Generated Content
User-generated content is another great way to incorporate visuals into your social media content. Encourage past and current customers to share video testimonials and reviews to show your brand and products’ real-world impact.
Here’s a great example from Slack, which shares a UGC video from Fortress about how its team stays in sync with Slack.
2. Leverage authentic storytelling
Companies with compelling brand stories often increase customer loyalty by 20%. What better way to test this out than on social media?
These platforms allow brands to connect with audiences on a personal level, and telling a story can be a big part of this.
Customers can get to know your brand, its purpose, and what it stands for.
Authenticity is key to telling a compelling story and engaging your target audience. Share genuine experiences, anecdotes, or behind-the-scenes insights that humanize your brand and foster a connection with your audience.
Also, master the art of “show, don’t just tell.” Incorporate images and other visuals to complement your story, make it more engaging, evoke emotion, and enhance the storytelling experience.
Create a narrative arc by structuring your story with a beginning, middle, and end. Consider building tension or conflict. Then, provide a resolution and leave your audience with a clear takeaway or call-to-action (CTA).
Invite your audience to engage with your story by asking questions, encouraging comments, or getting them to share their own experience. It helps foster dialogue and makes your audience feel involved.
Most importantly, keep your message clear. Make it obvious what your brand aims to do and how you do it. Check out how Dawn does this:
The post’s text conveys a clear message, succinctly communicating Dawn’s value proposition. No, it’s not a long narrative that gives a series of events as you’d expect with a story.
But it does say exactly what Dawn set out to do — save wildlife and cut grease. That’s a story in and of itself.
The brand also highlights a conflict — the need to clean oil-contaminated wildlife. Then, it introduces its solution — Dawn dish soap to remove grease.
It conveys a powerful message without explicitly saying it. If Dawn can cut through the grease on oil-contaminated ducks, it can easily tackle everyday grease on household dishes.
There’s also a broader message to take away from Dawn’s story: For example, cleaning ducks displays Dawn’s commitment to wildlife conservation and compassion for animals.
This gets people talking in the comments about their own passion for saving animals and the environment. It also inspires those who use Dawn’s products to join in on the conversation.
3. Repurpose blog content
Another way to boost engagement on social media is to repurpose existing blog content into a stream of engaging social media posts.
Let’s say you’re in the men’s fashion niche. Transforming comprehensive guides on semi-casual attire or wardrobe recommendations for various occasions into bite-sized social media snippets can captivate your audience.
By regularly sharing such valuable content, you sustain audience interest and establish credibility.
Now, here’s a real-life example in action. Men’s fashion brand StudioSuits has a large presence on Instagram.
To further engage its current audience, it can share content from its blog on Instagram with a CTA leading to the article. This strategy checks off two major pain points: content creation and user engagement.
How? Content repurposing can go a long way in saving time or resources and filling your content calendar without too much heavy lifting.
Plus, the more high-quality content you publish, the better your chance of boosting engagement with your existing followers. It’s the secret recipe for the most successful social media strategies.
4. Use interactive content formats
Get your audience involved with interactive content formats. These include:
- Interactive Stories (e.g., question stickers) and AR filters
- Contests and challenges
- Quizzes and trivia
- Polls and surveys
- Live Q&As
Here’s a great example from monday.com, which uses a poll to create an interactive Instagram Stories post to engage users on Instagram during a virtual customer conference.
Giving your audience the chance to engage and respond through active participation with your content can do wonders for boosting engagement.
This also fosters deeper connections with your audience and creates memorable experiences that drive brand loyalty and advocacy.
5. Post seasonal content
Nearly every month, there’s something new to celebrate. You have New Year in January, Memorial Day in May, and Independence Day in July. Then, you have winter holidays like Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Valentine’s Day.
You can create a dedicated post for each of these holidays using a social media holiday calendar. For Valentine’s Day in February, you can create a social media post that expresses your love for your audience and include an image that conveys this message, like a graphic with hearts or cupid themes.
A fun way to boost engagement is to run a seasonal contest. Doing so allows you to get more likes and followers and helps you generate awareness about your brand while inspiring immediate action and making people fall in love with it.
Fusion Medical Staff, a staffing company that helps health practitioners find travel nurse jobs, travel OT jobs, and more, gets the job done with this post for Valentine’s Day:
Make Your Social Media Presence Truly Magnetic
We all know that social media is a great way to captivate an audience. But like any other marketing strategy, there are rules to follow.
Rule #1 for all social media strategies: Make sure your content appeals to your audience and their preferences.
It doesn’t matter how creative you get with your posts. If your target audience doesn’t care about your message, your posts may not have the desired impact.
Bottom line? Know your audience and what type of content they’re likely to engage with. Then, follow these strategies and tailor your approach to their pain points, preferences, goals, and motivations.
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