Note: Interested in joining our next, #C3Chat? Follow @DevinePartners on Twitter for more information on our Oct. 26 #C3Chat on the importance of connecting with your target audience using video.
So what did you think of our first #C3Chat?
Last Friday the D+P staff hosted our first #C3Chat, calling anyone and everyone to join us on Twitter for an hour discussion on the best ways to ‘Build Your Digital Audience.’ We asked the questions, you gave the answers, and now we’re here to help you grow your audience.
Here are three takeaways from the chat to help you feel more comfortable about growing your brand’s digital audience.
Not sure about SnapChat? You’re not alone!
Most of our #C3Chat attendees were uncomfortable with or unclear on how exactly SnapChat can be used to drive audience to a brand. You are not alone!
Thankfully there are many, many ways to approach SnapChat, whether it be by posting Stories about your brand and the different ways others can interact with it, or using it as a platform to deliver deals and poll your audience with “this-or-that” questions.
The key is to keep producing content that is relevant to your brand and your audience on a daily basis. Once you have your content plan down, make sure you’re promoting your account through other marketing tools and social networks to drive even more followers to your Snap account. Good content + large audience = Success!
Twitter is still the easiest networking tool for growing a following
While SnapChat is unique because of its privacy features, Twitter is unique due to its ability to help strangers meet like-minded strangers who could potentially be your network’s greatest asset.
Visit search.twitter.com and it’s easy to find out why Twitter is so helpful when trying to grow your digital audience. The advanced search tool allows users to search for other users by location (local users), hashtags and mentions, along with a plethora of other ways that make it super-easy to grow your follower count.
Pro Tip: If you really want to kick-start your digital audience growth, start following your competitors followers. Why? Because if those followers are interested in what your competitor is doing, they will most likely also be interested in you.
We all fear negative comments — don’t let that stop you!
It’s something that comes up every time a project involves any form of engagement. “What if we get negative comments?” and “What if there are trolls?”
Trolls: (n) A person who intentionally antagonizes others online by posting inflammatory, irrelevant, or offensive comments or other disruptive content (source: Merriam-Webster)
Believe it or not, every single brand on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, SnapChat and everywhere else, is worried about negative comments.
So how do you curb this fear for yourself and ultimately your clients? Create a plan. Think of what can go wrong and think of ways to counter negative responses (aka create a social media crisis plan). Both you and your bosses will feel much more comfortable once you have a plan in place and this will free you up to focus on what’s really important, your message and purpose.
Here are a few easy strategies for dealing with trolls:
- Always listen first: It’s important to not assume someone is trolling you or trying to make your brand look bad. Sometimes a commenter just thinks a mistake is funny and wants to be “that guy or gal.” Let them be “that guy or gal,” but also be honest and point out that you are fixing the mistake. If the conversation turns personal or the starts using words like “never” and “every” instead of “maybe” or “sometimes,” you may need to skip to suggestion number 3.
- Use humor: Many trolls are just looking for a laugh. If they’ve pointed out a mistake respond with something that reminds the individual that the folks working on your brand are, indeed, human. Example: “Good catch! It’s been a busy day!” or “Mondays, amirite?”
- Block or hide their comments: Facebook’s Hide Comment feature lets administrators hide negative comments. This does not delete the comment but it does make the comment unavailable to Page and Group followers. Overall, this is a win-win approach in that the poster doesn’t see their comment was deleted and you can easily manage your comments and overall message.
Have a question or topic for the #C3Chat community? Tweet or Direct Message us @DevinePartners. Read more about last week’s #C3Chat right here.
