In my last post, we discussed the first of two reasons why churches complain that their social media program is unsuccessful. That issue is their content is mostly self-promoting and self-serving and thus non-engaging. The second reason that many churches are unsuccessful using social media in their outreach is that they aren’t listening to their networks. Let’s take a look at the power of monitoring social networks and engaging people “socially.”
The real strength of social media and for that matter, the internet as a whole, is the ability to interact in one-to-one and one-to-many conversations. So, if you are only publishing content, you are approaching social media with “one hand tied behind your back!” How then do we listen to or monitor our social networks to engage with our current audience but also start conversations with new friends? Here are a few ideas.
Pay attention. This is the simplest strategy to implement. Just watch your social media sites and anytime anyone comments, shares, follows or likes your content, RESPOND! For example, each time you get a new follower to your Twitter account, send them a direct message or tweet to thank them and give them a link to your website or blog. Even thanking people for simply “liking” your content will encourage them to continue to engage with you in the future.
Identify keywords. You can widen your net by searching social networks using keywords related to your company, products and industry. You can even keep an eye on your competitors. There are many ways to monitor these searches, you can receive daily updates on blogs from Google Reader. You can also use sites like Social Mention to search keywords on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and others.
Find tools or get help. To perform more comprehensive monitoring and engaging, you can employ any number of paid tools. Many of these tools are called aggregators that not only help you listen over multiple social platforms but to engage and measure results as well. Vendors include Argyle Social that I use as well as the Awareness Hub, Radian6 and many more. If you are not staffed or have resources to dedicate to in-house monitoring, there are many vendors that can monitor for you for a reasonable monthly fee, like Ethos Social Media.
Addressing these two issues, more relevant content and engagement, can improve the results from your social media pretty quickly. What are some tips you have tried that improved your content and engagement?
The Social Ethos 