You’ve most likely heard, or even used, at least one of the five buzzwords in today’s post. But, what do these five words really mean and how can knowing them benefit your business? Here’s our breakdown of the five most popular social media buzzwords:
1) Viral: In a nutshell, content reaches viral status when it has been shared by a large number of people in a short period of time. Every business hopes their content will go viral. In fact, reaching viral status is considered the “Holy Grail” of social media. Most people think of the Old Spice YouTube campaign or trending hashtags when the word “viral” is used. It’s extremely difficult for social campaigns to actually go viral. If your efforts don’t gain the same traction as campaigns like Old Spice or your hashtag doesn’t become a trending topic, don’t fret! If you are aiming for virality there are a few simple tips that can increase your likelihood of success.
- Design campaigns that evoke a desire to share.
- Keep content fresh, interesting and always share-worthy.
- Incentives can help: don’t be afraid to put a few dollars behind your campaign to increase visibility.
2) Organic: Organic search engine optimization (SEO) is highly sought-after. Businesses of all shapes and sizes hope to increase their search engine rankings, and organic SEO is currently the best solution. What exactly does “organic” mean in relation to social media and search engines? Organic results refer to un-paidsearch engine results. Ranking high on search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo has always been a high priority for businesses. Now, if content is to appear “organically”, it must be considered highly relevant to those search companies’ algorithms. To increase your business’ organic search results:
- Create and publish original content as often as possible.
- Your content should be on topics important to your audience and relevant to your business.
- The more original and relevant content produced, the higher the chances you’ll appear as an organic search result.
3) Authentic: Social communities exist because people want to connect with businesses, brands, and organizations they care about. People build connections with entities online because of a desire to build a relationship. It’s for this reason that authentic has reached buzz-worthy status. Those who conduct themselves authentically online are able to build stronger, more relevant relationships with their communities. To ensure maximum authenticity:
- Understand your business, build a consistent voice and then start engaging with online communities.
- Trickery, manipulation and isolation on social platforms will absolutely limit any success.
4) Engage: The most exciting aspect of social media is its ability to take passive advertising and marketing and turn it into an active experience. While the word engage is thrown around a lot, it continues to play a very important role in social media. Engaging content encourages communities to participate by commenting, clicking “Like”, sharing, retweeting and so on. Content that evokes a desire to take an action is engaging.
- Craft highly engaging content for all social platforms and you’ll see engagement increase.
- Ask your community questions, seek their input, share behind-the-scenes and involve them in business decisions.
5) Influence: Social influence and influencers have the capability to drastically impact your business’ social presence. Social platform users rely heavily on the opinions of influencers. In fact, a 2010 Forrester study found that influencers are responsible for 80% of the influence posts about products and services on social platforms. Influencers can come in many shapes and sizes. To identify your industry’s top influencers:
- Pay close attention to your communities.
- Watch, listen and engage on a daily basis. You’ll find influencers are often involved in many conversations, provide feedback and input and aren’t afraid to voice their opinions.
- Once you’ve identified influencers, reach out and engage with them. If you can get influencers on your side, the social media world is your oyster!
What buzzwords would you add to this list?
Source – [RingCentral]
