- Social media isn't social if you're lacking followers.
When you're starting out,
the early traction can be really challenging.
So start small and close to home.
Once you set up your social media accounts,
invite colleagues, coworkers, friends,
and those in your extended network to follow your brand.
Next, make sure to include your social media links
in all of your owned media.
Start with your website and your blog
but also include links in your emails or newsletters.
Then focus on posting valuable content.
If you post content people can use or be interested in,
then chances are they'll share it.
The wider your content gets shared,
the higher the chances
that you'll pick up some new followers.
And you should consider using hashtags in your posts.
And hashtags are a way to classify content online.
Anyone can create a hashtag
to refer to a specific content or topic.
And by using the hashtag,
you indicate the relation of your content
to that specific topic.
And hashtags are searchable on several networks.
And with many networks,
people can follow hashtags.
So they see content related to that tag
appearing in their feed.
Including popular or trending hashtags
is also a great way to get exposure
to people who are not in your immediate network.
And then they could become your followers.
You can also use @mentions in your post.
An @mention calls out another platform user.
And by doing this,
the other user will get alerted to your post,
and then they can consider re-sharing it
if they find it relevant.
That'll give you exposure to a new group
of potential followers.
Now imagine you own a coffee shop.
You could post a picture that includes an awesome assortment
of fresh pastries with the caption,
what's better than fresh pastries from @localbakery
alongside your morning coffee?
Another way to grow your following
is to rely on an influencer.
A post from them on their account
could give you a lot of exposure.
However, this typically doesn't come for free.
If you're interested in getting help from an influencer,
tools like Socialbaker or Tagger
can help you find the right fit
for the audience you're targeting.
Finally, you can create an advertising campaign
to help you generate awareness
and followers for your business.
Now one piece of advice here.
You want followers who have a genuine interest
in your brand.
So make sure your ad campaign
is focused on building authentic followers.
Now there's a ton of tools out there
that can help you advance your following.
I'd encourage you to explore the course,
marketing tools social media.
You don't build a following overnight
but if you follow these steps,
you'll find that your audience can grow faster
than you think.