Why Do We Even “Do” Social Media?

The answer: to build relationships.

There are a lot of elements about social media, both positive and negative, that can be analyzed. Today, I am addressing the professional or business owner who is staring at their screen, with no idea what to post or why even bother.

We build relationships offline all the time. We meet someone, see if there is a chemistry or connection, and then we start doing various activities to get to know this person better: time together, conversations, sharing of ideas and dreams, and so on. We might even follow each other on social media as part of this process.

Social media is really the same thing; we are building relationships. Of course, there is a completely different dynamic. The curated reality that we put out there can be difficult to untangle, but you really do have to give people credit… people crave authenticity and reject a fake persona with a quickness.

I’m going to share three keys to running social media successfully, and in this case, successfully does not mean more followers. I genuinely believe, if you have 20 people who love you, engage with you, and buy from you… who cares about the 10,000 fake followers you bought.

So, how do we build relationships using social media?

• Be Authentic: I catch myself doing it all the time, I start writing a caption and I turn into this completely different person. I’m trying to be upbeat, politically correct and seem a little less crazy than I am. When I do that, I check myself, and go back to the beginning. If I build relationships built on lack of authenticity, then it simply won’t last. Whether we are face-to-face, I’m on a stage or on a video, there isn’t a lot of variation. Social media is always going to portray the best version of us though, because if you think about it, if I am feeling low-energy/low-vibe I won’t post at all because I don’t feel like it.

• Be Consistent: We all hear about the big old ‘algorithms’ that companies use to decide what shows up in someones newsfeed — to make this super simple, I want you to put yourself in the shoes of Facebook. You want to show people what they would find most valuable, so you are going to curate that based on: what they engage with, what sites they go to, and what videos they watch. Facebook awards those who are consistent, and taking a lot of ‘breaks’ or only posting sporadically will drastically affect how often you get shown in someones newsfeed. Post as consistently as possible, and use a scheduler when you can so you aren’t wasting energy daily trying to think of what to post.

  Example: If I post Instagram stories that are engaging enough to keep people coming back again and again, Instagram will award me by showing it to even more people the next day. Post consistently and you will see your engagement grow — 10 people one day, 20 the next, and so on. If you stop posting consistently, you might not have to start all the way at 10 people again, but your numbers will go down and you will have to build up again.

• Give Value, It’s Not About You And What YOU Like: Some of the biggest traps in content creation are using the platforms and types of content we like, but not using the platforms and sharing the content our audience wants. If we have created the business of our dreams, there will be a lot overflow between passion and value-driven content, but we still need to be selective and create content and use hashtags that our audience would use.

  Example: I love makeup, I wear makeup, it’s legit part of my branding… but, my target market is more interested in business, social media and mindset. So what do I post about? Business, social media, and mindset.

• Share Your Experiences And Opinions: People buy from people they know and like. In order to know and like someone, there has to be something there to even form an opinion. Share about your experiences, successes, failures, processes, systems, the whole 9-yards. In this blog, I am sharing a shit ton of value, because I know it can make a drastic difference for someone who is getting things going. Does sharing free content, especially in small bite-sized pieces affect your bottom line? No. People hire you for the customization, and putting all the pieces together.

  Example: If you are a CPA, and you are constantly sharing tax tips and accounting tips, people will learn that you are proficient at your job. You have certain areas of expertise, specific types of clients you love, etc. That doesn’t mean they are going to take all of your free content and be able to do what you do.

• Actually Show Up: Then show up again. And again. And again. Stop going into your weird sales pitchy thing and think about yourself and how you consume social media. Yesterday, one of my clients was telling me how she has this sand-free beach blanket in her online shopping cart, that she can’t stop thinking about buying… but she doesn’t even live near a beach!

  That’s marketing. She saw an ad, clicked on it, added on to her cart and then hasn’t stopped seeing ads for the exact product, in her cart for days. She even got an email with a discount code! It wasn’t one post that made her purchase, it was an entire process that took her from a cold-buyer, with no need or awareness for that product, to someone who was obsessed with something she didn’t even need!

  In order to even create some interest in what you are doing, you’ve got to put yourself out there.

   

  Bringing It All Together

You can go out and hustle for clients, or you can strategically share your journey online and attract the people who want to work with you! You need to do all the things though, if you are authentic but not consistent, it just won’t work the same.

Besos,

Sharon

Tag me @sharonegutierrez and let me know what you come up with!