What’s the Difference Between Community Management and Organic Engagement?
Popular Social Media Apps
The Secret to Building a Social Media Audience
It’s a simple formula to build a strong Internet presence:
1. Make Profile
2. ???????
3. Have a Million Followers
Unless you’re receiving floral arrangements on a reality dating show or have a house in Calabasas, that second step might seem like the biggest mystery in the world. While there is no single guaranteed way to go from zero to one million, there are techniques you can use to gain followers. Two of the best ways to build a loyal following are community management and organic engagement.
A Balance of Engagement and Management
Community Management
You’re probably already participating in some community management without even realizing it. Community management is whenever an account interacts with its followers or people commenting on the posts. It may feel like a chore to traverse down into the comment section, but receiving a like or, especially, a reply to a comment is a surefire way for followers to feel seen as a peer. In turn, this will create loyal fans and returning customers.
Another part of community management is responding to messages on Facebook or DMs on Twitter and Instagram. There are pros and cons of Facebook acquiring Instagram, but one significant benefit is how easy they have made community management. If you log in to do community management for an account on Facebook, under the “Messages” section, you will also see any Instagram messages you have received. From there, it is easy to reply to all of your messages without missing a single one.
Organic Engagement
Organic engagement is a bit trickier, as it involves identifying target accounts. Target accounts are people who don’t currently follow you, but fit into your already existing targeted audience. For example, if you’re planning to begin offering brunch at your restaurant, you want to find accounts that post pictures from other dining spots in the area or use breakfast-related hashtags. The goal is to help people discover the account for the first time; this is called the “top of funnel” strategy. “Liking” and commenting on posts will catch peoples’ attention, and potentially result in new follows that will grow your account at an even higher rate.
Be Genuine
Did you even go to brunch if you don’t take a picture of your food?
All of this might seem like a lot of work and you’re certainly thinking right now there’s got to be a shortcut. You have likely heard about purchasing followers or “bots”. This is a waste of money for several reasons. One, it’s never a good idea to give your credit card information to a sketchy website. Two, buying followers does not translate to engagement. The algorithm will recognize this and, even if you have 100,000 followers, push your account down on the “Explore” page and your actual followers’ feeds. Finally, bots are purged every day, meaning you will have spent money on literally nothing.
Balance is key. People can tell if accounts they follow are merely hawking products instead of being genuine. Followers appreciate it when they feel there is a human on the other end of the professional account they’re following. Putting effort into both community management and organic engagement will result in a well-rounded profile that your followers like and trust.
Still Need Help?
Running a business is a lot of work, and often there aren’t enough hours in the day to give your social media accounts the attention they need.
If you need help with your community management and organic engagement, Meerkat can help! Contact us, today, learn how we can make your social media one less thing for you to stress over.
