By Maria Harutyunyan
Digitization comes with a lot of benefits, especially for entrepreneurs. You can build hype around your product on your own, without leaving your house … although you may need a skilled designer to help you out. Social media gives one-of-a-kind opportunity for endless targeted promotion. But the question is: what kind of posts work the best when it comes to keeping users engaged and interested.
Social media is not steady at all; it constantly changes the rules of the game. However, there are tips and tricks that are always applicable. Let’s take a close look at social media tips you can use to create a buzz.
1. Build Anticipation
If you are a Red Hot Chili Peppers fan, you understand exactly what I am talking about. These dudes know how to keep the tension and you should be like them. This technique is particularly helpful during launches. It could be a teaser banner or video, a countdown or a series of photos that will reveal “the big secret.”
Office Direct Interiors has employed this technique for their special offer. It is a simple countdown with the images of what’s being sold and the remaining time. Not so hard to do and it does engage people!
2. Keep an Eye on the Internet Trends
The web is more interconnected than you think. A video that goes viral on YouTube momentarily makes its way to Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Spy on every trend that you notice and use your creativity to somehow use that existing buzz in showcasing your product/service. For instance, last year the slime challenge made a big boom on the Internet or the various games such as Try Not to Laugh or The Whisper Challenge. You can play around to make them suit your product or service.
However, be careful with what you post and what kind of challenges you accept. There might be some not so serious activities that might harm your brand reputation.
3. Use Influencer Marketing
I assume you know who your target market is and you also know whose opinion matters to them. Get in touch with the influencers of the respective field and ask them to feature your product/service on their social media. This is an amazing way to reach people and increase the conversion rates.
People love reading reviews but they love watching them even more. And if the reviewer is their favorite blogger or YouTuber than your chance to not pass through their cognitive filter is high. You can either pay the influencer or offer them a special deal. *Hint* sending PR packages work, try that first.
4. Hold Competitions and Contests
Who does not want to get the new iPhone X or a $100 gift card? Engage your followers by organizing competitions and contests. Try not to make them too cheesy like, “if your photo gets the most likes, you win.” You want to work on the shares through competitions and contests. At the end of the day, your ultimate goal is to expose your business to as many people as possible.
Giveaways work miracles! The prize should ideally be connected to your product, but if you think other items will work better with your target demographic then add it to the prize. Sephora, for example, asked its followers to fill in a form to enter the contest and the prize was a five-day all-inclusive trip to Costa Rica, and a year worth of Surf products.
Just imagine how many people entered the contest. As a result, Sephora gained valuable information – data and contact information.
5. Create a Unique Hashtag
Not so much on Facebook, but on Twitter and Instagram, hashtags are searchable and work like a crazy. You may think any word or expression with the # will do the work but I’m sorry, it won’t. The hashtag needs to be product-related and catchy. You could either play with the words, make it funny or the exact opposite, make it really serious (sometimes it’s the best choice).
Essentially, your goal with hashtags is to start a series of user generated content that will be associated with your brand. Take the example of Red Bull. Their 2015’s #PutACanOnIt campaign was a success. The web was full of photos of Red Bull can on “it” and that “it” could be anything, from waterfalls to fingers. It was fun and people joined in.
There you go! These five tips that will help you generate a buzz around your product. Try each of these ideas and you’ll soon see the results. And don’t forget to be creative!