13 Apr The Value of Social Media Engagement
Engagement is not dead.
I repeat, engagement is not dead.
Despite what you may hear from media buying agencies or even your Facebook rep, there’s still value for brands in garnering Likes (or Reactions), Comments, and Shares. While there is no concrete way to show the monetary value of social media engagements, there are many studies and articles that speak to the importance of engaging your customers. Relationship marketing builds loyalty and loyalty builds advocacy. Don’t get me wrong, a Reach & Frequency campaign centered around generating impressions or driving online sales is okay from time to time, but it shouldn’t be your only social strategy.
As this Simply Measured article states, “…the difference between an impression and an engagement is brand consideration. Engagements mark the beginning of a consumer relationship, beyond the impression.” You can’t tell me that isn’t valuable. Using the McKinsey Loop, I’ve demonstrated where engagement-driving posts fall in the consumer decision journey. As you can see, they play an important role. They are so much more than a fun post to entertain or connect with your fans.
Constantly pushing a commerce message limits the relationship the brand has with customers. If the brand is only providing a one-way conversation by asking for users to purchase, consumers will lose interest and content will lose effectiveness. By posting informative and engagement posts, the brand offers value to the customer, staying top of mind and building a loyal relationship.
Gallup said it best when they said, “Social media sites are highly personal and conversational … consumers who use these sites do not want to hear sales pitches. They are more likely to listen and respond to companies that seem genuine and personable. They want to interact with a human, not a brand. Companies should back away from the hard sell and focus on creating more of an open dialogue with consumers.” Engagement posts accomplish all of this.
The moral of the story is to never forget why your brand is on social media – to be social. Create advocates by posting content that helps or entertains fans, don’t just put ads in front of them.
Tell us below: Does your brand use engagement-driving posts as part of their ongoing content mix?
