I’ve decided to take a break from my usual website critiques and bring you something a bit different. Yes, I know it has been a while since I’ve made a post but things have been busy, and frankly, I want you all to understand more about digital marketing.

One of that many hats I wear is that of a social media strategist. I am not going to call myself a social media expert because I think it takes more than 2 years to become an expert at something. I do, however, commonly hear discussions around what it takes for a business to succeed in the social media space. Is it “listening”? Is it “joining the conversation”? These annoying marketing buzzwords do come in to play when developing a strategy, but there are some very basic things that you have to understand while playing in the social space. I’ve listed below, in no particular order, five nuggets to consider.

1. Don’t make awkward conversation – If you don’t feel confident saying it, if it feels a bit awkward or forced, don’t say it. Just like having a real conversation with someone, nobody wants to be stuck hearing you stumble and fumble through something that isn’t all that exciting (like my neighbor Brian). It sucks for the person talking and it sucks for the person listening. Save that awkward conversation for the urinals.

2. Don’t be a robot – Don’t speak to your audience like a robot. Your interactions with your fans or followers should be natural, fun, and often spontaneous. Social media isn’t meant to be planned. Loose structure is fine, but don’t become too predictable or people will lose interest. Think about what keeps you engaged in conversation with someone and apply that to your social media strategy.

3. Don’t wast time – Who really has time to do anything these days, let alone listen to what us marketers have to say? So if you are going to attempt to engage with your audience, make sure what you are saying is valuable. If you are writing or posting just for the sake of doing it, you’ve missed the point. Worse yet, you’ve wasted your own time and your audience’s time.

4. Be funny! – People are more likely to share things online if they are funny. I mean really, who doesn’t like to laugh? When you are deciding what to say online to your fans or followers, make sure it’s fun or humorous. Don’t always joke but let the people you engage with feel as though they are connecting with a real person. I guarantee if you make a commitment to being funny, you’ll get a deeper commitment from your audience.

5. Let them talk – Let’s be honest here, people only want to talk about themselves. While it seems easy, opening up the lines of communication and actually “listening” can be harder than it seems. It’s imperative to to allow your audience to praise you, criticize you, share their concerns, and more importantly, share their experiences with your company or brand with their social circle. I mean, that’s really what social media is all about – talking, listening, sharing, caring.  Ask questions, respond to comments, and make it the whole experience for the user as easy as possible. If it’s too difficult to engage and interact, people simply won’t do it.