When it comes to Instagram, the more you post the higher your engagement.
A study by visual marketing tool Tailwind looked at more than 100,000 Instagram profiles in 2017 and found that those posting seven times a week experienced significantly higher follower growth than even those posting six times.
0 Comments
It can be tricky finding free sounds for your social media videos. We talk to lots of clients that have had trouble uploading videos because of copyright restrictions that mean they aren't allowed to use the music they've chosen.
If you've had this problem, you'll be glad to know that there's a great resource within the Facebook website that includes thousands of free-to-use music and sound effect tracks. Check it out at fb.com/sound and make sure you've got the perfect soundtrack to your next social media video. Managing your social media effectively can sometimes feel overwhelming. For many of us, it becomes something that's done just when time allows: in five minutes between meetings, during your lunch break, while you're "relaxing" in the evening. Unfortunately this intermittent approach to social media marketing can cause problems in the long run; affecting your brand consistency and the effectiveness of your marketing efforts. The good news is there are a few simple steps you can take to ensure your social media is in check. A social media audit is a great way to get a big-picture view of your social media efforts and to identify areas that require attention. Ripple Design & PR offers professional audits that take an in-depth look at your social media channels and provide you with a detailed report including a range of recommendations. This is a great idea if you're not sure how to approach social media, or if you're wanting to really up your game, but if you're feeling in the mood for a bit of DIY, we've created a simple, five-step social media audit that you can do yourself. 1. Locate all of your social media profilesStart by making a list of the different social media channels that you use. This is likely to include Facebook and Instagram and maybe Twitter, Linked In, Pinterest or Youtube. Don't forget to also include business profiles on other platforms such as Google, Spotify, and any blogging websites that you may use (including your own website's blog, if you have one). For each social media profile, write down the username and URL (specific web address used to access your profile on that social channel) and check these for consistency. Is it possible to change some of these so that they are all the same? 2. Check all details are completeA half-completed social profile both looks unprofessional and might mean that customers aren't able to find the information they're looking for. Check that you've completed each your social profiles by providing all the information that you can. Obviously contact details such as your website, phone and physical address are very important, but you should also check that other details like opening hours and establishment dates are correct. Most social channels will also give you the ability to include information in a "bio", "about" or "story" section. It can feel tricky writing about yourself and your business, but don't shy away from providing this information. You don't have to write a lot here, but it's important to provide some information about who you are and what you offer. A few sentences is great! 3. Check the visual elementsAll social media channels are highly visual places where lots of brands are competing for customers' attention. It's important to ensure that your branding is consistent and looking its best. Check your profile and cover photos. Are they up to date? Ensure that they are not blurry (especially if they include text). Blurry images do a lot to undermine your professional image and can turn customers away. Do the images use the correct colours and are they sized correctly (so that important parts of the image or text are not cropped/missing)? If there are any problems with images, put a plan in place to get this fixed as soon as possible. 4. Check the regularity of postingWhen it comes to how regularly you should post we make different recommendations to our clients depending on which channels they are using and their individual marketing goals. Generally, posting once a day to each social profile is recommended. That said, there are some clients whose social media we manage and post to once a week, and some for whom we publish content three times each day. It's about finding something that is both manageable and returning good results, whilst also being sustainable in the long term. Take a look at how regularly you're posting to each of your channels. Is this returning the results that you would like? Looking at the statistics or insights that each channel provides you with can help you to understand audience engagement with your page and to make a plan for the best times and days to post. It is also worth identifying some "influencers" to follow. These should be other people or businesses in your industry who are managing their social media successfully. Taking note of their content and how often they post it can be helpful in making your own plan. 5. Set some next stepsBy this point, it's likely that you will have identified some areas for improvement in your social media strategy. Perhaps you need to complete some profile details or maybe creating some sharp, new images will help your brand to shine. Could it be that your posting schedule requires attention? Identify three specific actions you could undertake to improve your social media. For example, one action could be "replace the cover image on my Facebook page with an image that is sharp and uses my brand colours". Once you've decided on these three actions, prioritise them from most important to least and tackle them in that order. If one of your actions is focused on increasing your posting regularity, ensure that you set yourself a manageable goal. Consistency is the most important thing here and posting once a week could be more beneficial than posting every day for a month then giving up because it's getting to hard. If daily posting isn't sustainable for you, choose something that is. If you struggle with knowing what to post, consider setting a schedule that dictates a specific type of post each day of the week. For example, every Monday you could post a behind-the-scenes photo or video, and on Thursdays you could give your followers a tip. There are lots of options for the type of content you choose to publish and what works for you will depend on your business and the resources you have available. Ripple Design & PR offers professional and customised social media services including audits, content and campaign management and creation. If you'd like to get your social media on track, and keep it there, get in touch. If you're creating video content for your audiences, a report from Wista suggests that 1-2 minutes is ideal. After that, engagement starts dropping off.
This doesn't mean you can't create longer videos (some content requires longer screen time and 6-12 minutes is also a good length to work to for longer videos), but it does mean that if your video is just over two minutes long you should try to cut it down a bit. If you're looking for more information about this, check out https://wistia.com/blog/optimal-video-length We know that handling your social media can be difficult and time consuming. Let us take care of it for you with one of our social media management plans. See more here.
Social media is one of the greatest tools you have for building meaningful relationships with your audience. Giving some thought about what, when and where to post; giving back to your audience; and being genuine in your relationships with followers are all important steps in the process of engaging your audience. But how do you know if you’re getting it right? To help you out, we’ve put together five social media tips that you can get started with right now. 1. Create your own contentYou may have heard of the 5-3-2 rule. Developed by TA McCann, this social media adage suggests that for every 10 social media posts, 50 percent should be curated content from other sources, 30 percent should be your own creative content, and 20 percent should be the sorts of posts that bring your brand to life, and humanise your social media presence. What’s important to note here is that half of your social media content should be your own, individual material. I would argue that for solo creatives, you would be wise to increase this percentage if possible. At the end of the day, your audience has chosen to follow you for a reason, and I would hazard a guess that it’s less to do with what you share and far more about what you create. On no platform is this more relevant than Instagram; a channel totally geared towards high-quality, individual content. On other platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter, up-to 50 percent shared content is not a bad way to improve the regularity of your posting; but the key here is relevance. Always ask yourself whether or not the content is relevant to both your brand and your audience before hitting “post”. One channel where you can get away with a higher ratio of shared content is Pinterest. The scrapbook nature of this site means users will follow you because of the way that you curated content from a range of sources alongside your own. 2. Know how often to postMany people believe that simply posting more frequently will increase audience engagement with their content. If more of your posts appear in front of your audience, they’re more likely to take notice, right? Wrong. Knowing how often to post to each social media platform means higher engagement and less time wasted. Producing high-quality content is meaningless if your audience isn’t going to engage with it. Save your posts for the opportune times by following these guidelines: Post once a day on Facebook. A study by Track Social found that there is no significant change in the total audience response as posting to Facebook increases. In fact, they found that there is a decrease in engagement with each post beyond the first. Post up to three times-a-day on Twitter. After three posts, engagement starts to drop, a study by Social Backers found. On Instagram, post at least once a day. The good news for the Insta-obsessed amongst you is that there’s no evidence to suggest that engagement drops off as you post more frequently. Of course, it is worth mentioning that Instagram audiences expect high-quality content, and there are some theories suggesting that audience response drops as posting becomes erratic; so, however often you choose to post to Instagram, keep it consistent. Pinterest, similarly to Instagram, is a channel where you can post to your heart’s content, and at any time of day. In recent yeas, the brands that have seen the strongest growth on Pinterest tend to post in vast quantities. Keeping your posting organised is the best tip we can offer you here. This is especially important for making sure your own content stands out: arrange this to be the first board visitors to your profile see. 3. Choose your platform carefully Similarly to the differences in the number of posts you should make on each platform, the type of content that works best varies also. Facebook audiences love videos; especially live videos. In fitting with the casual nature of the platform, these don’t have to be crafted too carefully. Facebook’s setup means that native videos (videos uploaded directly into Facebook, rather than shared from other platforms such as YouTube) work best. Twitter is great for quick updates: a link to a blog post, a shout out to another creative, or a update-style plain-text message. Instagram is a visual feast, but requires a certain polish to its products. The easy default here is product photos: images of the end-point of your creative efforts. But, Instagram is also a great platform to show your audience a bit of behind-the-scenes action, and this works particularly well in your story. A tip with video content for: choose the orientation of your phone carefully as it changes depending on the platform: stories work in portrait, whereas Facebook videos remain easiest to view in landscape. Pinterest is a great mode through which to share your inspirations and ideas. Along with that, infographics and how-to posts are at home here: nestling comfortably into the platform’s narrow, vertical columns. 4. Share your ideasIt’s easy to associate a risk with sharing too much on social media. We all take so much inspiration from what we see around us; so might other people steal our ideas? There’s a certain flattery in this, don’t forget. Now, I’m definitely not suggesting that you jump online and share all of your creative secrets. But, creating a how-to video, a step-by-step guide or posting a few tips is one way to improve the diversity of your posts, and to give something back to your audience. Sharing your knowledge also establishes you as an expert in your field. That’s not to say that you have to be an expert to create these sorts of posts, but it’s best to play it safe and teach others what you know best. 5. Be socialFinally, it goes without saying that each of the channels mentioned here require not only thoughtfulness in your posting, but a certain sociality as well. It’s in the name, after all.
Replying to messages, commenting on posts, following others and engaging with their content are all parts of the social media game. Engaging with your audience is part-and-parcel when building a relationship, which is where the strength in social media lies. If relationships weren’t important we would have stopped with websites. But, of course, be genuine in your online relationships, and communicate with your audience in the same manner that you would with someone who you were showing around your studio or creative space. To finish, a final note about following others. Engaging followers on social media is in part about establishing your audience’s trust. There is an enormous value in following people and brands that you love, but also a risk to your credibility if the number of people you follow is far greater than the number following you. |