Social media has changed the way we do business. Through social media platforms, we can create compelling content, reach new audiences, and boost sales with just one click. It starts with a thorough content creation process, followed by thousands of clicks, likes, mentions, shares, and followers.

For many brands and business owners today, the goal is to establish long-term customer relationships and boost social media engagement. But follower count is not the only metric that impacts social media success. Track social media engagement and gain valuable information that can help you improve your marketing!

What is Social Media Engagement? 

Social media engagement rate is a metric that monitors social media performance through shares, likes, click-throughs, saved items, and comments. Unfortunately, there is no one-size-fits-all formula for calculating engagement, as details depend on the platform.

Engagement can be both active and passive, but the active actions generally create a stronger impact on your strategy as they require more effort and intent. Find the best social media tool that can help you calculate your engagement rate, so you can focus on the most crucial metrics that satisfy your business goals. Most social media management tools (like Buffer) offer analytics. Google Analytics is also a huge help.

Build a long-term, positive relationship with your audience through quality content creation. However, know that this relationship doesn't come automatically after sharing a few posts. You also need to cultivate conversations, maintain communication, and analyze feedback.

Why Social Media Engagement is Important

So, why specifically should you care about your social media engagement?

1. It Expands Your Marketing Reach

Social media sites operate on a global scale, allowing brands to connect with millions of people from anywhere without setting up a single physical store. You have access to far more people than you would otherwise. Organic content can reach hundreds and thousands (and beyond), and paid content can go even further. The challenge here is serving your content to the right platforms, speaking to the right target audience, and regularly monitoring to get helpful information that can drive your campaigns.

As you grow your social media presence, understand how social media algorithms work and ensure you post at the correct times. Moreover, even if you’re not launching new products and services anytime soon, make customer engagement a priority. That way, you can fully understand what appeals to your target audience and boost your ROI.

2. It Doubles as Social Proof 

Social proof is a psychological concept explaining that people are most likely to adapt to something if they see that others are already doing it. In marketing, social proof comes in many forms and has the power to influence consumer behavior. Celebrity endorsements, website reviews, and user-generated content are the most common examples. 

We always look for positive reviews before finalizing purchases online to make sure we get the value we want. This is where the importance of social proof comes along. Study shows that 82% of Americans look for recommendations before finalizing their purchases. Many of them even trust recommendations from people they don't know.

Share the positive reviews you have received from your customers on your social media pages to establish your credibility. These reviews may come in the form of text and video testimonials. Let your happy customers spread the good word about your business.

2. Social Media Engagement Helps You Get Customer Feedback

Social media interactions allow you to create content based on your customers' and prospects' interests and preferences and evaluate how they perceive your posts. You can easily see what people say about your products and services by just reading the comments. Implementing a good listening strategy helps you monitor and analyze conversations better.

Regularly post updates about your business and ask your audience questions. However, since everything in your social media feed can be read by everyone, some may hesitate to leave detailed feedback through the comments section alone. To address this, share online survey forms that allow people to express their feedback anonymously.

3. It Drives Traffic to Your Online Store

Traffic is the lifeline of every eCommerce website. Without traffic, there are no sales. So, to drive more traffic to your online shop, you need to look way beyond the store itself. Thankfully, your social media accounts can serve as the bridge that connects would-be customers to your eCommerce platform. The more you improve your social media engagement rate, the more people you can lead to your site.

For example, your brand's official Facebook page can be the go-to platform for important details like customer testimonials, phone numbers, website links, and customer support information. On this page, you can promote products and share content that links back to your eCommerce site.

4. It Humanizes Your Brand

Increasing social media engagement means responding to all comments, running giveaways, and encouraging people to like and share your content. But, more importantly, it's all about creating content that prompts emotional responses. When done right, these initiatives can help you humanize your brand and build a strong relationship with your audience.

Develop a unique brand identity that people can identify with. Don't hesitate to show happiness, excitement, sympathy, fear, and other human emotions through social media interactions. The goal here is for people to see not just a faceless, robotic logo or brand name but an approachable human being that they can trust.

Start a Campaign that Boosts Social Media Engagement Today

Social media engagement is all about conversations, analyzing data from those conversations, and modifying your current strategy based on the given data to get the desired ROI. Then, with the help of effective tools and strategies, you can eventually turn those likes, comments, and shares into sales. 

If you’re ready to scale your business and unlock the power of social media engagement, let the digital experts help you. Contact LSM to book a free consultation today!