How can you successfully create a community on social media?
Social media has become its own universe, with a whole world of communities waiting to be engaged. For B2B companies, this is a dream come true because these communities are one giant resource for social selling.
But with millions of connections out there in the socialverse, where does a brand start? How does one find "their people" amongst the vast amounts of social dwellers? And how does that convert to sales? This blog will look closely at social media communities and how to create one to best enhance your business and sales.
If you build it, keep building.
Like a house, your community needs to start with a solid foundation. But this situation isn't a case of "if you build it, they will come" – your efforts need to begin with the intention of getting the desired results.
Change your mindset to "build it, then go get them!" That motto means getting slightly aggressive with your community building. Remember: You can't just sit back and wait for success. You need to consistently invest in your social media networks for things to happen. An intelligently built community comprises people who will get value from your network, and you don't just get them there with your content. You need to put in the outreach work, too.
Who's invited?
Obviously, a community needs members. But how do you know who to invite into your community? As with anything you do in sales, social selling is no different in its need for high alignment. You want to connect with the people who vibrate at your level, have something to learn from you, and are like-minded in their values. Your network should consist of individuals you are uniquely qualified to serve and who resonate with your message. So before sending out any invites, invest time into finding people you know you can help.
Quantity versus quality.
It's important not to judge the growth of your community while you're building it, so be kind to yourself and enjoy the process. You absolutely cannot dive into community building expecting sudden results. It's critical to remember that anyone who has built a large following or community has put in loads of time and effort behind the scenes, and the work you are about to put in will eventually pay off. Yet, it does take time and consistency to start up a community.
Just think about it as one person at a time. We understand if you feel this approach is challenging. After all, we live in a world of metrics and are tempted to count our social media following by quantity, not quality. But if you are looking for your community to convert to sales, you have to appreciate each and every connection for what it is. If you have even one follower, that's one person you can influence. So don't think of success as a number. Think of it as finding one highly aligned person at a time.
How to initiate community engagement?
Once you have people in your community, you might wonder how to engage them. First off, don't overthink it! Connect with people the same way you would in real life. Simply conduct a conversation as you would if you were meeting for drinks. Be authentic, be honest, and be yourself. It's also essential to come from a place of wanting to help others. Your content should be a way for you to share things that tell your story in an impactful way that gives something to the reader without any expectation of return.
But there is more: When posting content to your community, you also want to think about what will convert to sales (without being obvious about it). Emotional posts are a great tool in sales, as sentiment motivates people to buy. You can leverage that emotion by going beyond the analytics to find out what really matters to people and craft a solution.
Ditch the pitch.
It's imperative to remember what you are doing here – crafting a solution. You are not selling a product or service! The biggest turn-off to someone invited into a community is to be pitched on it. Trade pitching for connection and education, and you'll find more meaning within your community. You can't push too hard with people, and you should definitely stay away from any automated tools that could make your account look like a hack. Be authentic and be sincere – know who you are reaching out to and be specific on why you are reaching out.
Get ready to build.
Building a community means committing to something bigger than yourself, and you can't just wait around for it. Building that tight-knit group as a support system for your business is time-consuming, but more importantly, it brings invaluable rewards to your brand. The key to having long-term success is building connections and relationships. Your community does this by making an impact on someone, and they will likely do business with you not just today but well into the future.
Do you agree with our go-to guide for building strong communities? Have you already built your tribe? Let us know in the comment section!
Photos by Monstera, Rodolfo Quirós, and Belle Co on Pexels