Finding Your Audience

A Guide to Finding and Understanding Your Audience

Social media has made it easier than ever for people to become content creators and distributors. In fact, I've been able to connect with more people around the world than ever before through Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. But if you want your audience to grow beyond the size of your immediate circle of friends and family members, you need to go beyond simply promoting yourself on social media networks. When it comes to growing your fan base organically, there are some tried-and-true methods that have worked well for me over the years.

Create a community, not just an audience.

You've probably heard the phrase "social media is about building relationships." That's true, but it's also a little misleading. It can sound like you're supposed to be making friends with your audience and that's it--but those connections are what make social media so powerful. Businesses can now directly engage with their consumers. They can connect with them, receive feedback, provide information, and even see how consumers are using their products.

Here are some ways to think about how you can use social media as a way of connecting with people who may not be your customers yet:

● Get to know them on a personal level (not just professionally).

● Use social media as an opportunity for self-expression, not just promotion of your brand or products/services.

Understand the needs of your audience and connect with them accordingly.

It's important to understand the needs of your audience, because if you don't know what they want, how can you give it to them?

When it comes down to it, there are two main ways that people find value in content: they either want information or entertainment. Some people are looking for solutions; others just want something interesting. If your blog post doesn't fit either category, and many won't, then chances are good that no one will engage or feel disinterested.

It's also important to know what type of content is best suited for different types of audiences but also who these people actually are so that when creating your next piece of work, instead of just writing something based on how you think would be helpful or interesting - write something based on what they think would be helpful/interesting. This will help ensure greater engagement across social platforms which means more exposure and more leads.

Provide useful content that people will want to share.

The best way to get your content shared is by providing something that's useful and interesting. If you can make your content unique, relevant, consistent in its method and how it's released. If it’s authentic, interesting, and useful, it will be more likely to be shared.

If you have a blog or website with original content such as tips/advice/how-to guides, then this is an ideal place for people who are interested in what you do as well as those looking for inspiration or advice on something specific.

If you're active on social media like Twitter or Facebook then consider creating content specifically for them too.

Use social media as a way to build relationships with people who may not be your customers yet.

Social media is not just another sales channel. It's an opportunity to build relationships with people who may not be your customers yet, but could be in the future.

When you're trying to reach out to new audiences on social media, remember that you're interacting with real people who have their own lives and priorities outside of whatever products or services you offer. Make the intersction memorable so they may consider you in the future if they want what you offer.

Step outside of yourself, listen to others on social media and engage them in ways that are meaningful to them.

Make sure they feel heard

When you're developing your brand and trying to find your audience, it can be difficult to step outside of yourself and listen to what others have to say. However, if you want people to engage with your content, then it's important that they feel heard.

To do this:

● Be authentic - Be genuine in how you interact with others online by sharing content that is meaningful and relatable, and not just promotional. There are plenty of ways for brands/businesses/individuals who aren't marketers or copywriters by trade (like me) can utilize social media as a platform for connecting with people who might otherwise be unreachable through traditional advertising methods such as TV ads or billboards. Lots of helpful posts help to build trust between followers over time which leads into point number two below.

● Listen more than speak - Asking questions when engaging with someone online shows them that their voice matters. Listening carefully will allow them an opportunity present their ideas back at another time which could lead into great conversation starters later down the line.

You need a well thought out plan and consistency in its implementation.

You need a well thought out plan and consistency in its implementation.

The first step is to create your social media strategy, which should include:

● Who are you targeting? What are their demographics and how do they use social media?

● What content will resonate with these people? How much time do you have each day/week/month to create new posts for your accounts and respond to comments?

● When are the best times for posting updates on each platform (such as time of day or weekends).

Find your target audience on their social media. Know who they are and what interests them there.

Find your target audience. Know who they are and what interests them. This is where you need to put on your detective hat and start digging into the data available to you, including:

● Google Analytics -- find out who is visiting your website

● Social media -- follow the people who are following/liking/sharing content related to yours on all of your platforms and see if it matches up with what products or services you offer

● Listen -- listen in on the conversations happening around your brand online through hashtags (#) or topics (e.g., "I want a new camera"). Pay attention not only for mentions of specific brands but also for general trends in consumer interest.

If you want to reach out to an audience, it's important to start with the right platform for you.

● Know your audience. What do they like? What will engage them? Where are they most likely to find what they're looking for?

● Know how your content will be consumed. Do they want long-form articles or quick tips that fit into their busy schedule? Will people watch a video on Facebook or Instagram (or both)?

● Connect with your audience where they are most likely going to find it: Facebook groups and pages, Twitter chats (using hashtags), Instagram stories...the list goes on! Follow them back when possible; if someone follows me on Twitter and I see that person tweeting about something interesting related to my niche area--I'll often choose not only follow back but also retweet their tweet as well as reply with some sort of comment/feedback about whatever topic was discussed in said tweet so long as it doesn't require too much effort on my end since there may be hundreds if not thousands of other users engaging in similar conversations at any given moment.

Use polls, infographics and quizzes to engage your followers and create a sense of community around your brand or product.

Polls and quizzes are great ways to get feedback from your audience. You can use this information to improve your products or services, as well as create a sense of community around your brand or product.

For example, if you're running an ad campaign for a new product, ask people what they think about it and then share the results with others in the community so everyone can weigh in on whether or not the campaign was successful (or not). This will encourage others to participate and engage with one another too.

You can also use surveys to find out what kinds of products or services your audience wants to see from you in the future. This will help you create content that they'll appreciate and enjoy. You could even use this information to improve your existing products and services, adding new features or making them more user-friendly based on customer feedback.

Promoting yourself on social media isn't enough - get creative and find ways to stand out from the crowd

Social media is a great place to start, but it's not enough. You need to get creative and find ways to stand out from the crowd.

You should use the right platform for your target audience. If you're targeting millennials, Instagram or Snapchat might be better than Facebook; if you're targeting parents and families with young kids, Pinterest is probably more appropriate than LinkedIn which is for professionals.

It's also important to understand that social media isn't just about promoting yourself - it's about creating relationships with people who have similar interests as yours. So when posting online content related to your business/brand/product(s), don't forget about other types of content such as polls (where users can vote on something), infographics (which are visual representations of data) or quizzes (which ask users questions). These types of posts will help build community.

Conclusion

If you're looking to grow your audience on social media and reach out to people who might not know about your brand, then it's important to start with the right platform. Develop relationships with your target audience and know what appeals to them. Its essential to form a well thought out plan and apply consistency in its implementation.