By now, everyone knows the impact that social media can have on building brand awareness and recognition among target markets. Big companies like Ford and CBS are among many that have mastered social media’s branding potential. So how do they do it? The answer: increasing followers which leads to increased awareness and ultimately increased participation and engagement.

For the purposes of this blog, we will focus on the Facebook and Twitter platforms, specifically. By increasing Facebook and Twitter followers, you are, in turn, increasing public awareness. In order to increase awareness and readership, you have to reach a broader audience. Below are some mechanisms that will help you do just that:

Marketing Collateral
This is one of the easiest forms of outreach you can do. Include links to your Facebook, Twitter and blog accounts in your email signature and other appropriate marketing collaterals—brochures, website, surveys. This ensures that you are promoting your presence on these platforms just by doing what you typically do everyday—sending emails, passing out business cards to contacts, and so on.

#Hashtags
Hashtags are particularly relevant on the Twitter-sphere. Twitter is primarily used as an immediate news source, meaning people obtain real-time information and updates on news. People are likely to follow you if you generate information into “discussions” that they find interesting or relevant to them. To be seen on pertinent discussion groups, you need to use hashtags (#) which are typically followed by a word or phrase that describes the topic your post might fall under.

Retweet/“Like” Relevant Posts from Key Influencers or Organizations
While original content is the first prong in social media engagement, aggregating posts from key influencers or organizations is the second. Why is this significant? When you create original content, it is only seen by people who already follow you. To reach a broader audience, you have to utilize other people’s network and readership.

This recommendation stems back to the concept of SEO for a website or a press release. By associating your profile on Twitter or Facebook with a more well-known and well-connected company like Ford, for instance, this ‘connection’ will help your social media SEO and keep your profile highly visible among pertinent industry discussions. It also illustrates your involvement in broader industry topics which helps display your knowledge and awareness.

Engage with people or groups directly 
Another way to associate your social media profiles with larger audiences is to directly link to a company (@Ford, for example) on a post that you know would pertain to them. By directing a post directly at a particular person or group, you automatically are included on that person/groups “wall” or “page,” so anyone that visits that group will see your post as well.

Cross-pollinating your social media platforms, website and blog
Connecting your social media platforms, blog and website to each other will generate more participation across your digital map. Cross-linking or cross-pollinating will increase traffic and visibility for your various social media platforms. For instance, linking to your website as often in possible in your posts will help drive people to your website, creating more of an opportunity for people to explore and learn what you do and what services you offer.

Note: every link you provide in a post should have a purpose. This means that linking to the homepage of your website won’t be of much use. However, linking to the registration page for an upcoming event that is housed on your website is!

Create highly shareable content
“Viral” posts—those that garner a lot of public attention and views—are ones that contain highly shareable content, encouraging people to share it with others by posting it on their own profiles (hence the “retweeting” or “liking” that we mentioned above). What constitutes highly shareable content?

• Interesting or original photos (not stock pictures)
• Breaking industry news
• Fun facts
• Humor/Sadness—people often respond to posts that elicit an emotional response like laughter or tears
• Videos (educational or otherwise)

How do you know if something would be considered highly shareable, you ask? There is no simple recipe for this—it will require trial and error. The best way to judge a good post from a mediocre one is to look back at previous posts that garnered a lot of attention. Once you decipher which posts receive the most attention, try to replicate that as often as possible.

Encourage people to respond and participate
How do you get people to comment or participate? Here are some ideas:

• Create a short poll/quiz
• Ask questions that people can easily respond to (“where would you like to vacation this summer?”)
• Provide an incentive for participation or for being the first to answer correctly.

Again, encouraging participation and discussion gives you direct insight into what people find most interesting and important. This data will help you refine your social media posts in the future and help you better understand how to effectively reach your audience and generate response.

Pay close attention to comments and respond when necessary
This is the quickest way to determine how people feel about what you’re posting. People’s comments will often give you insight into new topic ideas or what they would be interested in hearing/learning more about.

Join relevant groups and follow relevant people and participate in the conversation
It is important to stay abreast of what other key people/groups are taking about and what they find important. This will not only give you access to newsworthy topics, but it will help you identify other key influencers as well.

Participate in the conversation. Much like you are encouraging people to engage in your posts and online activity, you should engage in others. This is another great way to exhibit your interest and knowledge in relevant industry topics, but it is also a great way to network and connect with key decision makers and the community at large.

If you’re in healthcare, insurance, technology or other professional services industries, and need help with public relations, marketing or crisis communications, contact Scott Public Relations.

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