Oversharing

As I've been going through my social media networks this week, I've seen a lot of artists, bands, businesses, brands, companies, and anything else you can think of, posting what seems to be too much. Social media is a key part of marketing, I'll never disagree with that. But when it comes to actual quality of posting, so many people seem to get it wrong. Below, I've outlined a few key things to do with each of your updates to keep your audience coming back, rather than drive them away.


1) If you don't have anything to say, don't say anything at all. 
While many people might not agree with this, I feel like you really need to have a reason for posting. All this "like my page" update day after day is nothing but spam. If something happened, like a studio recording or a new product was released, feel free to post a lot about it. But make each post somehow different than the last. Not simply rewording things, but take a different look at the event that happened. Include a photo, a video, a sample of what happened, a coupon code, something to keep your audience engaged. Plus, don't do it all at once. Spread your updates throughout the day, or even over two days. This does not mean post once per hour on the hour. Give your audience time to respond, and share that update around. Include the "like my page" but do it in a way that your audience doesn't feel overwhelmed.

2) Engage with your audience.
Some people take to Twitter and Facebook and just update, update, update. Seldom do they look at what people are saying about their brand. You (as a marketer of whatever it is you're selling) are the marketer, and you need to drive the conversation. I'll give you an example:

My previous college, Lancaster Bible College, has only created a Facebook page for the school in the past year and a half. I saw it the day it was launched and frequently visit to keep tabs on how the school is progressing, since it is one of my alma maters. What I found interesting over the first year or so was that nearly every update was about the sports scores and accomplishments at the college, and virtually nothing about what was really going on in other departments.

A few alumni took to the comments to voice their frustration, making responses such as "seems like the focus of LBC has turned to its athletics instead of its academics" and other comments that weren't as friendly. From time to time, someone would post as LBC and respond that things were being worked on, but didn't offer much insight into it. Finally about 6 months ago, the page exploded with a plethora of content and information that would be exciting for alumni, including pictures of construction of new buildings, renovations, new department wings, and even pictures from classes.

What happened here was very key: someone at the school recognized that the LBC brand was being talked about negatively on Facebook and decided to change that. They began to find out what alumni and even current students wanted to see, and began to share that with them. But it goes one step further. The people who run the page also frequently respond to questions and comments on the page as well, especially when they pose a question. So if you're going to try and engage your audience, make sure you respond with the same expectancy you have of them.

I might add some more key aspects to this post later on. What are some things you can think of that will help promote your brand or artist? Let me know in the comments, on Twitter, and on Facebook.