One of the biggest challenges people and companies face in social media is how to stand out in the crowded marketplace. Social media can seem like a raucous parade, but here at Media Connect Partners, we think of it is as one large street festival. You have an opportunity to meet people, interact with them, and make new friends – only if you’re willing to venture out, try new things, and think boldly about the world around you. Let’s explore 7 ways you can stand out in social media.
1. Be Social
You might think this one could go without saying. Even today though, on occasion, we work with people who don’t understand the social nature of social media. Early in their exposure to social media, some people think it’s just another marketing vehicle, when it is actually an opportunity to be social and connect with people. The first step to standing out in social media is to be social, interact with people, and find common things to talk about.
2. Be Interested in Those Around You
One quick and easy way to stand out in social media: be more interested in those around you then you are in yourself. Find topics that interest other people and get them talking about their interests. Be genuinely interested in others and they will be genuinely interested in you.
3. People Like Video
For some people, this might the most difficult thing on the list: how do I produce video people would be interested in that reflects well on my brand? For personal branding, this is actually an easy thing to do as is demonstrated by my video above. People love video online and producing high quality and interesting videos is a key way to stand out in social media.
4. Create Compelling Content
Content is still king in social media and creating high quality valuable content is a key way to generate a big following online. This is a subjective measure that is really key to the audience you’re targeting. High quality content for an audience of physical therapists is completely different from valuable content targeting technology professionals. As you create your content, make sure it’s targeted to your audience.
5. Find Ways to Get Others Involved
Social media is a great opportunity to involve others in creating content. One of our clients is a TV network and when they relaunched a highly popular series they reached out to the most fervent fans and found several very popular bloggers. By connecting with one of the bloggers, the TV network was able to produce very high quality and original content targeted for the audience of this television series. What an awesome way to promote an older TV series with brand new content! Find others that are interested in your niche and partner with them to produce something complementary to both your efforts.
6. Connect With Relevant, Timely, and Interesting Updates
The people that amass tens of thousands of followers and fans are ones who produce timely, interesting, and relevant updates. Create a vision for your social media efforts: what do you want your social media to look like a year from now? 3 years? 5 years? By creating a vision of what your “end goal” looks like, you will form the core of your messaging. Now, build your messaging efforts to meet this vision.
7. Excel in the Visual
Prentice Hall recently completed a survey and found that 65% of the population are visual learners. When you create content or update your social media, don’t discount the visual aspects – great photography, well produced video, lots of white space. A majority of your audience will appreciate your design, colors, and photos more than the text on the page.
Following these tips will help move you from being a “follower” of social media trends and into being a leader in the social media marketplace.
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