The 5 Best Ways to Grow Your Social Media in 2022
Social Media Trends are fleeting - “here today, gone tomorrow” they just come and go so fast! If you want to stay on top of it all, you have to learn not only how to ride the wave, but how to create one.
To that end, we’ve created the ultimate guide of the top 5 things you can do TODAY to attract your ideal audience. Through our experience running the Lifeinnoco Instagram page we have sifted through the top trends and have boiled it down to the top 5. Hope you enjoy and can benefit from our mistakes and successes!
1. You MUST Add Value
Digital consumption rates are at all time highs. People often enter the space and talk themselves up, never putting in any effort to actually connect with their audience.
So, that audience leaves.
If you want your target audience to stick around, you need to be providing value in every piece of content you drop. Before you press “submit,” ask yourself:
“How am I providing value?”
Marketing guru Gary Vaynerchuk promotes an idea of “Jab Jab Jab Right Hook.” Jabs are the value you provide via your regular content. The right hook is that “ask,” – the sale, subscription, or donation you are seeking.
But you have to jab three times before you hook.
So how do you provide that value? You make yourself an expert on a specific topic so that you can strike at the heart of what concerns your audience.
Who is your target audience?
What are their problems?
How can you guide them to success?
Do your competitive research and take note of what success would look like for a potential customer. Then, create a framework to guide them towards that end.
Keeping those 3 questions in mind with every post you share is how you add value and win over your audience.
What Does Value Look Like?
It varies depending on industry and audience. It could be motivation, it could be connection, it could be hope. This all goes back to audience and competitive research, but once you’ve figured this out, you can adopt methods such as using unique language or turning to tutorial videos (more on this later) to build an even quicker and stronger connection.
Don’t overthink it! Sharing relevant content like local news, your favorite recipe, or something like ‘best places to eat in Windsor’ can also add a ton of value to the lives of your audience.
Brady Clayton is a Dallas based video story teller. He does an amazing job of giving his followers basic tips and tricks on iPhone video proudction- so much value!
2. Collaborate!
Collaborating with a like-minded brand can be mutually beneficial for both sides. The most crucial aspect is finding a brand that shares the same values as yours, and potentially setting a reachable goal for the collaboration.
If you’re going down this road, make sure to pick brands your audience resonates with (based on value). Introducing the brand you’re collaborating with to your audience is super simple:
Hi (audience), I’d like to introduce you to a brand I love (collaborating brand), I have known them for some time and I think you will love what they have to offer.
In these LifeinNoco Giveaways below I collaborated with a number of businesses that I deemed like-minded to my business.
A giveaway can be very effective because there is a prize to be won. The reach of the post can have exponential reach if there is high engagement. They key to engagement is for maximum likes, comments, shares, and reposts. The way these giveaways were launched was to ask participants to engage with the post- thus attracting a ton of attention and generating huge reach.
After the giveaways each collaborator walked away with hundreds of new followers. And follows that are local and already have interest because all the businesses were hand picked from the beginning for shared values and audience.
3. Be Authentic and Accountable
Incidents of Injustice and corruption are growing more and more common. People have grown disillusioned with public figures and politicians. It is no longer enough to say, you must do. Your brand might not be on the national spotlight but this mindset has trickled all the way down and that pressure to prove authenticity now rests on your shoulders.
The easiest way to avoid any PR misconception issues is to be your genuine, authentic self – or as much as it is possible. People are smart and personal; they can easily detect if you really care about them.
TIP: Telling stories is a powerful way to be genuine about yourself AND form a connection with your audience. Win-win! When hearing a story, people are 22 times more likely to remember it than other types of posts. The human brain gravitates toward a good story – let’s tell more of them!
4. Use More Videos
We touched on this briefly, but let’s make it clear – video is king. Photo and blog consumption are still massive but video is rapidly taking over. According to Hubspot, 54% of people want to see more video content from the brands they support. Additionally, 72% of customers said they would rather learn about a product or service via video and 84% say they’ve been convinced to buy a product or service by watching a brand’s video. (according to Optinmonster)
When you’re done hitting with the jabs, maybe you should make the right hook a video. Your customers WANT to watch them!
You have a couple of different options for video hosting, such as YouTube, Facebook, Instagram reels, Instagram stories and tiktok.
Speaking of TikTok, they now have over a billion users with an average of 89 minutes spent on the platform each day. According to Pew Research, 40% of Gen Z says they are influenced by products they see on TikTok.
One more thing to note. With the rise of YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels, and TikTok, vertical video is here to stay. 90% of vertical videos have a higher watch completion rate compared to horizontal ones, and you can reach 58% more people with vertical branded video content.
5. Memes + Trending Audio
TikTok and Instagram Reels make it particularly easy to get in front of a trend. Trending Audio makes this possible for anyone to do. This sort of freewheeling “collaboration” between personalities and brands are easy and allow you to create unique videos that catch people’s eyes.
Then there’s memes themselves, which are creative outlets that let you highlight your brand’s personality. Consider them a casual and informal version of you.
You’re not just professional, you’re personably, funny and relatable. Using trending memes also shows your audience that you’re “plugged-in” and can better understand them while keeping up with trends.
