As a young marketer, I remember trying to find the perfect formula to keep my “customers engaged online.” Was it the new Tiktok trends, Facebook hashtags, Instagram Reels, or Story sharing on Instagram? Or better yet, who remembers the whole multi-picture post vs. video debate on Instagram?

In reality, there truly is no magic formula, and no week is the same. But we all have the same goal in mind. Keeping your audience engaged on your social media is still an essential part of any successful marketing strategy. However, it’s not enough to simply post content and hope for the best. To truly connect with your audience and drive results, you need to be strategic about how you use social media. Let’s explore some important things to remember when engaging with your audience in a social capacity, including external data, internal data, the customer journey, and talking up your successes. 

Do your research. One of the most important things to consider when engaging with your audience on social media is external data. This includes information like starting price points, home selling trends in your area, competitive analysis, and other relevant data. By keeping an eye on external data, you can tailor your messaging and content to better resonate with your audience. For example, if you notice that home prices in your area are trending upward, you might want to focus your messaging on the benefits of buying now before prices rise even further or language around how your quick move-in homes are priced to sell. 

Internal data is all driven by your own reporting. This includes things like ratings in your CRM system and analytics data from your social media accounts. By analyzing this, you can gain insight into what’s working and what’s not, and adjust your strategy accordingly. For example, if you notice that posts with certain types of content are consistently getting more engagement than others, you might want to focus on that type of content moving forward. Don’t be afraid to get outside your comfort zone. Be sure to check in on yourself. How are those emails you are sending from the marketing team doing? What post last week saw the most engagement? Check your Analytics and CRM database! 

Understanding your customer journey is key. Be sure to know which data points are important at each stage of your customer journey, understanding why someone moves from initial awareness to becoming a lead, scheduling an appointment, and finally signing a contract. By tracking this journey and tailoring your messaging and content accordingly, you can help move customers through the funnel more effectively. For example, if you know that a particular piece of content tends to be popular with customers at the awareness stage, you might want to promote that content heavily on social media. *** Reminder that social media is a heavy part of the awareness stage within a customer's journey. ***

Finally, it is important to talk up your successes. This includes sharing data points and information about what’s working well and how successful you have been. By highlighting your successes, you can build credibility and trust with your audience. For example, when you have a new community that launched and you receive 7 contracts within the first week — be sure to announce that. Create urgency while also creating street credibility!