Social Media: Tips and Tricks I have Learnt

Social media can make or break a brand and as a small business owner myself (www.wonderlandclothing.com) I thought I would give out any advice I have come across along the way! So today I thought I’d cobble together a few of my random social media musings into some kind of coherent form for you all… I’m not sure why, but so often people assume I know what I’m doing. OK, I may have some idea (sometimes) but I certainly don’t have all the answers.  

Quite simply, there is no quick or easy way to get more followers and you don’t get anything in this life for free (or without some hard graft!) This is a point made where you can buy ‘likes’ for your business pages! Instagram has culled many (but you can still buy them, but facebook and twitter it's easy peasy) and how many of you have been spammed on Instagram or any social media platform with 'like for likes' or 100 followers in an hour? I mean come on! Trying to ‘get people to follow you’ is the same as trying to force them to like you (in the real life sense, not the social media sense) If they don’t want to, it just ain’t gonna happen. 

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Obviously the social media platforms I run are for a business, they don't follow me per say they follow my brand, and why? well ultimately because they like the clothes that we sell, although one tip I have to say is don't spam people constantly. Brands to me (or people) who over post on any social network just make me want to unfollow them immediately. “But how do we get people to know that we exist so they follow us and read our whitty repartee and look at our gorgeous clothing/products in the first place?” Honestly? I don’t know. I can’t tell you how to be interesting and I can’t tell you how to be you…however you know what? The very best person to tell you the answer to this elusive question is…YOU.

So by this point you’re probably about to start throwing things at me whilst demanding your money back, but bear with me…I might not be able to give you a quick or simple solution but I am able to analyse some of the things I’ve done or noticed in and around this media we call social.

 Let people in! At the heart of it, social media is a way for your readers/followers/likers/customers to get to know you. Twitter in particular, breaks down the barriers and allows people to get to know the real person behind the blog/camera/shop front etc. People will follow (or unfollow) you because of that simple fact – because they like (or dislike) YOU. There’s no other trick than that. Be yourself and you’ll attract likeminded people who like you for (dum dum dum) who you really are. Instagram is the same, when people say 'ooh I really like this' then reply thanks, answer questions, be a person! There is NOTHING worse than someone who thinks they are too good to answer people (don't get me wrong, when you have 100k+ on any social network this is clearly hard work, and impossible) but a smaller blogger / shop owner? this where you can really sell yourself. I have had people say, I was thinking of buying this/that/the other but it was when you answered my question / liked my photo / said something nice that made me actually do it. 

Use you icon photos to sell yourself also. Show who you are! Wonderland is a bohemian brand, so if we had a photo of a girl in a bandage dress, it's not representing us at all, same with a blog or just a person! Show of what you are about, it will make a difference! 

The best way I can articulate how I’ve found social media success, is that I’m genuinely interested in the people that follow me and what makes them tick. Despite what you might think, your social media is not about you… it’s about them. These people take time out of their day to read your words, look at your pictures and in order to attract (and keep) them you need to share things that will interest them. What things to they like to see/purchase/read?

I don’t think many people want to sit and home and only read about other people’s accomplishments. Instead of just showing off all the time, use your social media to help others. Become a source and people will follow you because the things you’re posting are genuinely interesting and relevant to them. Which leads me on nicely to my next point…

There is nothing more boring than reading the tweets or facebook updates or instagram posts of someone who only bloody writes about how great they are or just shares all the amazing things that they’ve done. The best ‘social media-ers’ are the people that equally share things that fall into the following three categories:

1. Promoting yourself (linking to your blog posts/sharing personal photos)
2. Promote other people (sharing things you love – i.e. being a source) - be it photos people have taken on instagram (reposting, sharing favourite small brands etc) reposting tweets, or blog posts etc
3. Making real connections (having conversations/replying to your tweets, instagram and facebook comments) 

DON'T SPAM PEOPLE! 

Could you imagine walking up to someone and shouting in their face…

“COME AND LOOK AT THIS THING I JUST DID” or “PLEASE TELL ALL YOUR FRIENDS ABOUT THIS CONVERSATION” or “IF YOU COME DOWN THIS DARK ALLEY WITH ME I’LL GIVE YOU SOMETHING AMAZING FOR JUST $15″

If it would be a weird in real life, people will think it’s weird on twitter. Fact.

Don't beg for follows either, it honestly just comes across as a bit weird. People follow because they want to follow. Would you beg someone to be your friend IRL? no, so don't do it online. Organic, that's the best way. 

Also It’s quite an obvious thing to avoid when you think about it, but why do so many people think it’s OK to use their social media to moan moan moan? Moaning about clients, moaning about the weather, moaning about their doctor’s bill… First impressions count and are often lasting. If you constantly complain on social media, people will assume you are a negative person generally…and no one likes a sourpuss. Consider yourself unfollowed.

Learn from others who do you follow and why do you follow them? Thinking about what it is that you like about their instagram photos, tweets (facebook status, pins etc) can help you figure out the kinds of things your followers might like to see from you. Again, it sounds obvious now, but if you like it other people probably will too!

Another tip is knowing your audience! Things I post on facebook won't necessarily work on instagram. Instagram is obviously photo focused, so we post new arrivals (same on snap chat) and mix in some funny photos along with way. I am much more likely to speak to bloggers and people I may collab with on twitter, so we use it for conversational pieces. Facebook in many ways has had its day, but it still drives a lot of traffic to our site, in this respect I often post more sale items on there. 

Sharing different content on each platform will also encourage the people that are really interested in what I have to say to follow me in both places. WIN!

There is no magic answer or quick one-size-fits-all solution to social media success. However being yourself and helping others as much as you can will build a strong and loyal following. Whether you have 250,000 followers or just 25, it’s that loyalty that really counts.

Do you have any tips?