Part of my job as a creative writer is to create and manage social media strategies and editorial calendars. Many of my clients come to me looking for the golden ticket to social popularity. With the insane amount of “tips” and “guides” out there on how to win at social media, it’s no wonder that clients come to me overwhelmed and confused on what to absorb and what to ignore.

How many times have self-proclaimed “social media geeks” dangled intriguing headlines before us (e.g. “The 10 Types of Tweets You Didn’t Know Were Killing Your Brand”) so that we would click—albeit cautiously—only to find ourselves reading the same ambiguous “tips” over and over again?

Social media isn’t hard to understand. We love it and use it and crave it because we’re self-absorbed beings living in a digital age. Does it help us stay connected with the people in our lives? Yes, but that’s not why we tweet, it’s why our grandmas are joining Facebook. At its core, we are really only interested social media—especially when it comes to brands—if it:

  • Solves a problem we have or teaches us something
  • Makes us feel good (i.e. entertains us, rewards us, inspires us, or gives us attention)
  • Gives us a platform to air our grievances, share our opinions

That’s it. Your strategy should be about being relevant to your business or industry while simultaneously connecting with your fans and followers with content that matters to them. If you’re a brand online, I want to know:

  • What awesome things you’re doing for me
  • What new features or products you have that will benefit me
  • What is happening in the industry that affects me
  • Anything else related to your brand that is going to interest or entertain me

On the flip side, here’s a list of things you should not be doing with social media:

Ignoring or, even worse, deleting negative comments about your brand. It’s social media, folks, meaning it’s public information and people catch on to shady tactics. Does that mean you let derogatory comments fly? No. But there is a difference between a transparent service recovery opportunity and trying to cover up your brand’s mistakes. One makes you look good and the other makes you look bad.

Sharing something that has nothing to do with your brand or industry. I see this happen all the time. That doesn’t mean you can’t stretch—but not too far. It does nothing for you and confuses people more than anything else.
Letting your social platform get infested with crickets. Social media is the new way to network. Gone are the days of flying around the country to shake someone’s hand in person to seal a deal. Not that face-to-face doesn’t have any value, but social media is essentially free and the has the potential to reach a much larger audience. It’s really a no-brainer and should be an integral part of your marketing and sales initiatives.

For your brand to be good at social media, you simply have to share content that piques the interest of your customers and feeds them what they want. Content is king; it always has been and always will be.