Increase Engagement with 3 Surprisingly Simple Tips
If a marketer creates great content, but no one engages with it, does it have any impact at all? This spin on the classic tree-falls-in-a-forest question is the reason marketers don’t just measure output, but engagement, too. Engagement is crucial because it creates a conversation between you and your audience. There are some simple things you can do to increase engagement with your content and connect with your audience.
Encourage Your Audience to Comment
Does your content spark a dialogue? Or are you closing the door on conversation as soon as you’ve made your point? You can’t increase engagement in a one-sided conversation. Conclude every blog post, podcast episode, video and email with a CTA that asks your audience to comment. You can pose a question or simply request feedback. Ask your audience what they think about the story or insight you’ve shared and what they want to learn about next.
If you don’t have a dedicated email address or comment section on your website to collect responses, use your social channels to facilitate conversations. Designate a team member to monitor for audience feedback and respond to comments. From these conversations, you can get a clear understanding of what interests your audience, and you may even develop new ideas for future content.
Share More User-Generated Content
User-generated content (or UGC) is any content that has been shared by your consumers that you have permission to re-share. When you share a user’s content, you increase your reach by tapping into that user’s audience. The bigger your audience, the greater your chance to increase engagement.
It’s a great resource-neutral way to add to your content. UGC also improves brand trustworthiness and reputation because, like a testimonial, it carries the endorsement of a neutral third party. Hootsuite says that “UGC holds untapped potential for marketers and helps brands take authenticity to the next level.”
Check out our post on UGC ideas for some inspiration.
Share Your Content Multiple Times
If you’re only posting your content once, you’re limiting your engagement potential. Each additional time you share your content, you give more of your audience an opportunity to engage. You may be a bit nervous about cluttering your followers’ timelines or annoying your subscribers, but don’t be. Each social platform is constantly changing its algorithm, so posting multiple times will actually be to your advantage as organic reach has changed dramatically. Draft two to three unique captions and use multiple visuals for each piece of content to avoid repetition. Test different language, imagery and CTAs in your posts to verify what techniques are most popular with your audience.