A JWC ‘How-To’: Create an Awesome Social Media Post
Written with assistance by JWC PR Assistant Elpin Keshishzadeh
Creating a social media post is easy. Creating interesting content, though time consuming, can involve more thought, research and strategy.
One measure of the success of an organization’s social media presence can be determined by the level of engagement posts receive. How many liked the post? How many shared it? Were people commenting positively?
So, how do you get people to engage?
Although sites such as Facebook allow for the boosting of a post, without all of the essential components, the chances of a successful, engaging post remain slim.
It goes beyond these basics tips: a catchy headline, a relevant image, clickable links and proper grammar. Based on a recent JWC social media case study involving a post for our client, the International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE) about Engineers Week, a few components helped drive post popularity.
- Create images and/or infographics: Yes, people love images, but people love unique visuals even more. Take a few extra minutes to create a quick and simple visual or graphic to make your post more interesting. Think of it this way: If it’s cool enough, more people will want it on their page. You can also find fun ones that already exist.
- Post “plain English” content: As with Engineers Week, sometimes the content you want to post isn’t a topic easily understood by everyone. Find a way to make the topic relatable (e.g. using the assembly of a bicycle to explain systems engineering). This will increase the chances of engagement – especially the number of shares.
- Ask relevant questions: What’s the best way to create dialogue between your organization and your followers? By asking engaging questions. Increase your organization’s approachability by asking questions your followers would want to answer. For example, in the Engineers Week study, we asked members to give each other advice – creating a sense of community. By doing so, not only are you boosting engagement, but you’re bridging relationships.
