In the ever-evolving realm of social media, staying ahead of the curve is crucial for both B2C and B2B businesses aiming to make meaningful connections and drive results. As we step into 2024, understanding social media best practices, optimal posting times, and demographic trends can help you maximize your social media efforts. Let’s dive in and explore new changes you should embrace this Spring!
1. Authenticity Reigns Supreme
One of the top strategies we recommend you focus on that’s shaping the social media landscape this year is authenticity. Prioritize capturing genuine content that showcases your organization and the people behind it.
In addition, ensure that content still resonates with your audience’s values and aspirations. Authenticity can help you build trust and foster a stronger connection with your followers.
2. Video Content Dominates
Video continues to be a powerhouse on social media, driving higher engagement and retention rates. Leverage short-form videos, YouTube Shorts as an example, to capture your audience’s attention.
Experiment with how to record and edit videos in-house to save time and money. Here’s some tips from our latest blog, How to Create Videos for YouTube and Social Media.
Including your Instagram handle allows visitors to easily know how to find you on social and tag you in a post.
3. Build Community and Engagement
Social media is not just about broadcasting messages; it’s about building a community around your brand or organization. Actively engage with your audience by responding to comments and DMs promptly, and seek out user-generated content (UGC).
Engagement is worth more than likes or follows! By engagement, we mean your readers or followers are:
- Clicking on your links
- Adding a comment
- Sharing your post with others
In addition, engagement also means that you need to be liking, commenting, and sharing like-minded posts or curated content from respected brands and leaders in your industry.
How do you figure out which of your posts are getting the most engagement so you can replicate them? Take a look at your Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook Analytics, or Instagram Insights to see which posts not only have good reach but also good engagement.
Other ways to foster engagement and build community are to share testimonials and product reviews, and recount one-in-a-lifetime experiences! If you’re not already doing so, encourage past customers or clients to share their experiences, photos, and videos through social media and with a review on your site or through Google. See how we’ve done this for Maui Snorkeling!
In addition, make it easy for someone to leave a review. On our last trip to Sayulita, we booked a boat tour with Chica Locca and their staff had QR codes on the backs of the shirts! You could easily scan and leave a review or submit a photo or video during the tour. Leverage your social media platforms to amplify these authentic stories and testimonials!
Foster a sense of belonging and make followers feel heard and valued.
4. Run Paid Ads Along with Organic Posts
Don’t rely solely on organic posts to move the needle in your social marketing campaigns. While we frown upon buying followers, a better use of your marketing budget is to run ads through Facebook or Meta Business Manager. This allows you to run ads across all Meta-owned properties- Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, and other networks.
Start with a small budget, $8-10 a day, and ensure you have your Facebook Pixel and Event Pixel set up correctly so you can properly track conversions. In addition, both LinkedIn and X (Twitter) allow you to run ads to direct traffic back to your website. Need help with paid social ads? Give us a shout!
5. Strategically Use Hashtags and Emojis
Hashtags remain essential for increasing your discoverability and reach on platforms like Instagram and X (Twitter). However, it’s crucial to use relevant and targeted hashtags rather than relying on generic ones. Research trending hashtags in your industry by using tools like Hootsuite! Everything can’t be #instagood
For emojis, go lightly. Use them to break up copy, 2-3 in a post is plenty! A runner emoji with the wind behind them or a monkey covering his eyes could catch your reader’s eye more than just text.
