Increasing engagement using social media is undoubtedly one of the most efficient ways for a business to market its products or services. However, social media will not be an effective tool unless you learn how to gain the attention of your target audience. Fortunately, there are several tactics that a business owner can employ to increase their online engagement.

Read on to discover five ways to effectively market your business on social media. Then You might want to check out Five Statistics Why You Should Invest in a Professional Website.

1. Prompt a Response

Most social media platforms run on algorithms that favor popular content. This means that posts and advertisements with a lot of engagement, such as likes and comments, will be pushed out to more users. This means that one of the keys to social media success is to encourage your users to respond.

Asking a question in your post is a great way to encourage readers to comment. If you run a bakery, for example, you could ask users to comment with their favorite cupcake flavor or to post pictures of themselves eating your treats!

2. Use Hashtags

Most social media platforms support the use of hashtags. Hashtags are basically keywords. Using keywords that are specific to your post will help it to reach the right people. When users search for the hashtags or keywords, your post is more likely to appear for them.

It is important to only include hashtags that are relevant to your post. Including hashtags that have nothing to do with your post, simply because they are popular, is known as “keyword stuffing.“ Social media algorithms can tell if a user is keyword stuffing, and doing so may get your post flagged internally as “spam,” which means it will end up reaching very few people, if any at all.

Social Media Engagement

3. Utilize Paid Advertising

No matter how well you market to your target audience on social media, your posts will always be given an extra boost if you utilize paid advertising. Paid advertising also gives you the means to specifically “tell” the algorithm who you want your post distributed to.

When you pay for advertising on social media, you can select your target audience. You can choose from options like gender, age ranges, location, and interests. This ensures that your ad will be seen by the people who are most likely to engage and respond. We utilize StarkByDesign as our advertising and web design firm and we’re very happy with it! Find a firm you get along with.

4. Host a Give-a-Way

Social media users love contests and give-a-ways! Who doesn’t love free things? You can use the give-a-way to increase your engagement on social media. Have users follow you or comment on a post to enter the contest.

If you are giving away your products or services, there are additional bonuses from holding a give-a-way as well. For example, winners will be given the ability to try out your products and may end up becoming regular customers!

5. Provide Useful Information

Marketing on social media is not just about advertising your product or service. You want to draw your readers in, pique their interest in your brand, and make them trust you. Posting stories or information related to your industry allows readers to get to know you better and develop a sense of trust in your brand.

If you run a children’s clothing store, for example, posting photos or stories about your own life as a parent would be a great way to establish a connection with your readers.

Utilizing social media platforms can be one of the most efficient ways to market your business. However, you need to have an understanding of how social media algorithms work and how to best target your audience. By following the suggestions above, you will increase your engagement on social media and be able to effectively market your products and services to your readers.

This article was originally created for therightpro but has been reproduced with permission at Only One GOAT.

Leave a comment below, we love discussion and feedback!