How to Get More Facebook Likes, Twitter Followers & Social Friends

Hopefully most businesses are well on their way to setting goals and objectives for 2013 and beyond. Chances are you are working on a plan that has a social media component to it.

Do these questions sound familiar?

How can I get more Facebook likes?
How can I get more Facebook fans?
How can I get more people to like my page and my brand?
How can I get more comments on my posts?
How can I get more Twitter followers?
How can I get more retweets?
How can I get more Twitter mentions?
How can I get more people to connect to me on LinkedIn?
How can I get more people to talk to me on any social network?
How can I get more Facebook shares?

You are asking some of the right but some of the wrong questions.

Let's reverse this scenario. Let's put ourselves in the head of your audience. You know the people I am talking about. Or did you forget it is real people who are sitting behind the Facebook profile, Twitter handle and LinkedIn connection? Oh now you are remembering…yes… those people. The people you want to like you, engage with you and your brand and share your content so you can become a viral rock star. Yup, those people.

What are these people really thinking?

Why am I getting so many Facebook requests to like all these pages?
Which ones should I like?
Why should I like ANY of these pages?
I am tired of seeing spam updates from businesses bragging about themselves.
How can I remove this spam from my Facebook news feed?
Why did I like this page? All they do is talk about themselves?
What is up with all of these event invites?
I like these Facebook pages because they are providing me real value for my business and life.
I love how that brand page always posts helpful tips.
I like how that brand page posts inspirational messages.
Some of the brand's pages I liked need to take a lesson from those other pages who offer me value.
Maybe I will just unlike all the pages. Never mind that will take too long. I'll start using Facebook lists and filter them.

The most important question you need to ask yourself is WHY!

Why should anyone:

Like your page?
Comment on your content?
Sign up for your newsletter?
Follow you on Twitter?
Retweet you?
Share your content?
Read what you write?
Give a rip about what you have to say?
Trust you enough to give you their email to download a whitepaper?

So what is a brand to do?

Here are 12 tips to help you get started on the right foot and start asking the right questions. These tips will help you worry less about likes and followers and instead focus on your real business.

12 Tips to Get Real Results on the Social Networks, Not Just Likes, Clicks & Followers

1. Ask the right questions. Focus on the WHY. Why should your audience like, click, follow, tweet, retweet you? Why should they give a rip about anything you say, do, tweet, post or sing? Give them a reason to take action.

2. Have a plan. This post is not designed to give you a template for a plan. Bottom line you need a business strategy inclusive of a social media strategy and plan. You need goals, objectives and a plan to get there.

3. Know your audience. Bottom line if you don't know your audience you won't know how to inspire them to connect with you, let alone click, like, comment or share. Get in their heads as deep as you can. Know what they like to eat, drink. Know where they hang out. What do they talk about ? Where do they go for work, lunch, fun, dancing, talking, laughing, crying, and support? Where do they share their photos? Where do they talk about business? Talk about family? Talk about the services they like, need and want? The more you can know about them the better you can inspire them to connect with you and your brand. Download our audience analysis worksheet to help you get started on this step.

4. Polish up your social brand & know who you are. Develop your social brand in support of your corporate or overall personal brand. Everything you say and do online should be a positive reinforcement of your brand promise. Check out these three articles for tips on developing your Facebook and social brand: 15 Must Know Tips to Rock Your Facebook Timeline Business Page, 10 Easy Ways to Rock Your Brand on Facebook, 20 Tips to Build a Brand that is a Sweet Orange in a World of Bitter Apples.

5. Develop a content plan. You must offer relevant content and conversation that will not only inspire but engage your audience. You must inspire them to take action. They are not going to do it without such. Remember, they are asking themselves how they can get rid of the spam and over hyped Facebook posts while you are figuring out how you can get more of the same in their face. Download our Content Inventory worksheet to help you get a grip and organize your content so you can begin by maximizing what you got and know what content you need to develop or enhance.

6. It's what happens after the Facebook like that matters most. Focus on providing value both before and after the like! Check out this article: What Happens After the Facebook Like? 20 Tips To Engage Your Audience After the Like!

7. Give without expecting anything in return. Ask not what your fans, followers, friends can do for you but what you can do for them. Focus on providing the highest value possible.

8. Earn their trust. Your first goal should be to earn their trust. The quicker you earn their trust, the better and quicker you can inspire them to connect with you and your brand. Clicking, liking and following should not be a deep thought for them. They should be so engaged in your brand that clicking is natural because they have no reason not to trust you. Check out this page for more tips: Social Trust Factor: 10 Tips to Establish Credibility

9. Don't be afraid of the data and insights. Most businesses we work with have never spent more than five minutes looking at their Facebook or YouTube analytics. As I always say “there is gold in them there analytics!” Dig into all the free data and insights available on the social networks. With a little digging you can find data that will help you make the right decisions to do better in the coming year.

10. Don't get caught up in the social buzz hype. Don't get caught up in measuring only the social buzz metrics. You must focus on the right metrics so you can measure real results. Bottom line you need to set measurable goals and objectives and you need to measure them. Goals are nothing without a plan to achieve them and proof you did such!

11. Don't forget the fans you already have! The biggest mistake we see brands make is focusing only on numbers and growing their community. A large community should not be your top goal. Instead you should focus on how you can offer the most value to your community. If you focus on value and the fans you already have as a top priority you'll be amazed how your community will grow and how your results can be more easily monetized. Show those who have already liked your Facebook page or followed you on Twitter that you appreciate them. Offer them insight, knowledge, conversation and data that brings value to their life and business.

12. Inspire – connect – achieve. Focus on the goals of your audience first. Inspire your audiences to connect with you with a goal of helping them achieve their objectives. If you help them achieve their goals and objectives, you will achieve yours organically. Trust me, this works!

What you say?

Have you been too focused on the likes, clicks, follows and shares? Is it time you get back to the nutz and boltz of business and focus on providing value to your audience and stakeholders and a plan to achieve your business results.

Take Action & Get a Grip on Social Media:

This is part of the series titled “How to Get a Grip on Social Media.” The series will include a free newsletter, webinars, whitepapers, tips and best practices to get a handle on your business and social media.

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