The Key to Social Media Success? Engaged Followers.
Today we’re going to focus on one tip to successfully using social media to promote your brand. I’ve observed some companies going wrong by using their social media platforms to simply advertise themselves. Social Media growth does not come from spaming your followers with buy now, call now, book now direct sales posts. In today’s world, this won’t work. Consumers are no longer buying just products, they are buying relationships. They go to a restaurant because their favorite influencer recommends it, they read a new book because their friends are raving about it, they buy the latest trend because everyone else is. We all want to join in the conversation with those around us.
With this in mind, let’s think about how we use social media. Each platform has its own little niche, but there’s some overarching rules as well.
- Get the Right Followers. Everything in social media stems from engagement.
You want engaged followers. Many people ask about buying bots for more followers and likes. This can work when done correctly. The bot has to be set up to gain real followers and for local business it needs to be local followers.
Think about your purpose for using social media – to promote yourself yes – but what else? Are you trying to increase sales? Foot traffic? Traffic to your website or blog? Gather feedback? None of these goals will be achieved from fake followers. Take the time to get the right followers. Those who will see your posts and want to reach out – whether that’s by coming in your store or restaurant, sharing it with their friends to increase your awareness, or simply adding a comment providing some feedback that not only you, but other viewers can see.
- Introduce Yourself Being all about connections, viewers love to see the face behind the product.
They want to know WHO they’re buying, your values, your beliefs. This is a great time to use those headshots you’ve gotten from our Pittsburgh business photographers. Creating a personality for your brand – that mimics your own – will gain the trust of your viewers, and they will want to follow you throughout your career, gaining yourself some loyal followers.
- Give Your Brand A Personality. Now that they know you are, keep that personality going.
Find a tone that works for you – sassy, classy, light & friendly, sophisticated – and stick to it. Use all your captions as a way to talk to the followers. Social Media is a platform for conversation – not one -way advertisement. Use copy that sparks conversation not only between you and them, but between the followers themselves. If you can do this, you’ve just began to create your own little world. THESE are followers who will bring in their friends, spread your name, and help increase your success.
- Go Live! Some platforms like Facebook and Instagram allow “live-stream” or “stories” features.
Take advantage of these! Depending on your business, use the live stream to show “behind the scenes” footage or to quickly promote something new. Using the “stories” feature also allows you to directly talk to your viewers. In your stories, it allows you to add stickers, one of which is a chat sticker. This is by far the most common and most effective sticker. You can use it to ask for opinions, to open it up for questions, or to start a dialogue.
- Use Hashtags. **Instagram Specific** The other tips were there to help you keep the followers you already have engaged.
This one is to help find new ones. Instagram uses hashtags to connect posts to each other. This is how people find new accounts and posts based on subjects they are interested in. You can use up to 30 hashtags on your post. SHOULD YOU USE THEM ALL? You can but for the best organic growth use only 9 to 10 hashtags per post. Use a mix of location hashtags (#pittsburgh, #robinson #pgh) , general industry hashtags (ex: #headshotcrew), and a few specific post related hashtags. Keep in mind if you want to grow local followers the more local hashtags you use the more local people will find you. If you use mainly industry hashtags you will grow people in your industry for all over the world. General hashtags or content related hashtags should be used less often. (ex: #Italiandinner).
6. Use great photos. You will see many online claims that your photo quality dose not matter.
However brands that really are growing on social media use high quality photos. On our Instagram we will use a mix of Professional photos from a DSLR and only few iPhone photos. Why? Because Personal Brand Photography is a mixture of photojournalism, lifestyle and portraiture. Sometimes the ease of use of the iPhone helps to regularly communicate your personal brand and make a meaningful connection with your audience.
Jen Barker Worley Photography
555 Grant Street, Suite 337 Offices at the William Penn Pittsburgh, PA 15219
https://jenworley.com
412-370-4520
Subba. Taken with new 13Pro on Portrait, then edited in Lightroom Mobile. #shibainu
Jun 18
Subba. Taken with new 13Pro on Portrait, then edited in Lightroom Mobile. #shibainu
In the line for the tour, the guide asked a little white girl what she knew about George Washington. She said: “He had slaves.” The enslaved people of Mt Vernon was one if my biggest takeaways from the visit. This was George Washington home, farm, and yes, plantation.The home was by no means the grand mansion that we would expect a man of Washington’s stature to have today. But the grounds were expansive. He had 5 large farms, tons of acreage of forests, a harbor on the Potomac, and beautiful personal gardens. In 1799 when he died, there were 5 family members who lived on the state. About a dozen white servants.But over 300 black enslaved workers. Some families were split up to work on the different farms, and so didn’t regularly see their spouse or children. When they died, there was no marker to signify where they had been buried; by contrast, at the end of his life Washington commissioned a new tomb & grave site be made for his family, with a big brick mausoleum complete with the obelisks typical to the period. Not even the smallest of stones for the enslaved people.#mtvernon #georgewashington
May 19
In the line for the tour, the guide asked a little white girl what she knew about George Washington. She said: “He had slaves.” The enslaved people of Mt Vernon was one if my biggest takeaways from the visit. This was George Washington home, farm, and yes, plantation. The home was by no means the grand mansion that we would expect a man of Washington’s stature to have today. But the grounds were expansive. He had 5 large farms, tons of acreage of forests, a harbor on the Potomac, and beautiful personal gardens. In 1799 when he died, there were 5 family members who lived on the state. About a dozen white servants. But over 300 black enslaved workers. Some families were split up to work on the different farms, and so didn’t regularly see their spouse or children. When they died, there was no marker to signify where they had been buried; by contrast, at the end of his life Washington commissioned a new tomb & grave site be made for his family, with a big brick mausoleum complete with the obelisks typical to the period. Not even the smallest of stones for the enslaved people. #mtvernon #georgewashington
Along the riverbank of the Susquehanna, hillsides of yellow wildflowers blossomed. Photo @dan_jenworleyphotography
Apr 23
Along the riverbank of the Susquehanna, hillsides of yellow wildflowers blossomed. Photo @dan_jenworleyphotography
Just playing around after our job. Dan and dogs brunch at @corkandforkpa (Great pistachio arugula pizza!)First time for me in Harrisburg. Impressed. Guess I wasn’t expecting much, as Erie PA is bigger, so I’m told.But love it! Reminds me a bit of a quiet and more spacious Old-City-Philly. With a small-time feel.The PA Captial building is amazingly beautiful, and in great shape! I had the privilege of being in the Superior Court rooms, and the artwork from 1920 (by Violet Oakley) was amazing. Not sure if I can post those though.Glad I extended my work trip by a tiny bit to see more of this city. Worth a trip. And stay at @hiltonhbg.
Apr 21
Just playing around after our job. Dan and dogs brunch at @corkandforkpa (Great pistachio arugula pizza!) First time for me in Harrisburg. Impressed. Guess I wasn’t expecting much, as Erie PA is bigger, so I’m told. But love it! Reminds me a bit of a quiet and more spacious Old-City-Philly. With a small-time feel. The PA Captial building is amazingly beautiful, and in great shape! I had the privilege of being in the Superior Court rooms, and the artwork from 1920 (by Violet Oakley) was amazing. Not sure if I can post those though. Glad I extended my work trip by a tiny bit to see more of this city. Worth a trip. And stay at @hiltonhbg.
I love doing #teamphotos. My goal is to make sure that each person shines in the group, and that no one gets lost in the photo. You know what I mean - the person back in the third row that looks really tiny, trying to stick their chin up so you can see their head. 🤣And I love working with #financialadvisors and helping each different team produce a photo that highlights their uniqueness.Fun fact: this building I shot at was featured in the movie “Love and Other Drugs”, and the team shared with me some stories from filming day.
Apr 1
I love doing #teamphotos. My goal is to make sure that each person shines in the group, and that no one gets lost in the photo. You know what I mean - the person back in the third row that looks really tiny, trying to stick their chin up so you can see their head. 🤣 And I love working with #financialadvisors and helping each different team produce a photo that highlights their uniqueness. Fun fact: this building I shot at was featured in the movie “Love and Other Drugs”, and the team shared with me some stories from filming day.
Had the amazingly talented @amy_madalinsky in studio last week! Looking forward to seeing where her career takes her! #pittsburghphotographer #pittsburghnews
Feb 16
Had the amazingly talented @amy_madalinsky in studio last week! Looking forward to seeing where her career takes her! #pittsburghphotographer #pittsburghnews
Back in December, I was hired to bring my skills for an event promoting Women Leading Women , a non-profit whose goal is to empower women through female-led conversations exploring career, family, and well being.I had 22 amazing women in front of my lens, with the goal of capturing their confidence and beauty.As a female photographer, I know the struggle women in business face in trying to do it all, while not letting go of their standards. Of standing their ground and not shying away from confrontation when needed. And supporting our community, as we are owed the same respect as our male colleagues. My hope is to continue these missions in my role as President of the Pittsburgh chapter of ASMP: The American Society of Media Photographers
Jan 26
Back in December, I was hired to bring my skills for an event promoting Women Leading Women , a non-profit whose goal is to empower women through female-led conversations exploring career, family, and well being. I had 22 amazing women in front of my lens, with the goal of capturing their confidence and beauty. As a female photographer, I know the struggle women in business face in trying to do it all, while not letting go of their standards. Of standing their ground and not shying away from confrontation when needed. And supporting our community, as we are owed the same respect as our male colleagues. My hope is to continue these missions in my role as President of the Pittsburgh chapter of ASMP: The American Society of Media Photographers
Epic photo shoot time! This is what happens when you have an over-zealous new president. Ahem. The new Pittsburgh board of the American Society of Media Photographers is up for the challenge of supporting professional photographers/video/creatives in their hometown, and what a better way to show that than to collaborate as a team for this shoot. @asmp_pghEveryone had a part in making this shoot happen, and crafting it as we went. I am so excited to be working with @elanmizrahi our VP; @wdophoto our Secretary, @jwramp our Treasurer, @adrieshoots , @dprephoto .If this kinda looks familiar to you, then you are probably a @nbcbrooklyn99 fan. @aspictures awesome work on the show’s last promo photo was our inspiration. I loved this piece from the first time I saw it, and been dreaming a way of recreating it using our hometown @visitpittsburgh . “Sincerest form of flattery.”I was so giddily excited about it (think Jake) and determined to get it done (think Amy), that I was unyielding in my decision to finish it that night (Captain Holt.). Ok, I’m a total dork who geeked out about this for hours, with the help of @dan_jenworleyphotography , to finish the creation that evening.Other credits: to @asmpnational, who as a 75-year old organization is embracing change and promoting inclusivity. I don’t believe the Pittsburgh Board has ever had a women President before. (But correct me if I’m wrong.)Looking forward to what’s ahead. #pittsburghphotographer
Jan 18
Epic photo shoot time! This is what happens when you have an over-zealous new president. Ahem. The new Pittsburgh board of the American Society of Media Photographers is up for the challenge of supporting professional photographers/video/creatives in their hometown, and what a better way to show that than to collaborate as a team for this shoot. @asmp_pgh Everyone had a part in making this shoot happen, and crafting it as we went. I am so excited to be working with @elanmizrahi our VP; @wdophoto our Secretary, @jwramp our Treasurer, @adrieshoots , @dprephoto . If this kinda looks familiar to you, then you are probably a @nbcbrooklyn99 fan. @aspictures awesome work on the show’s last promo photo was our inspiration. I loved this piece from the first time I saw it, and been dreaming a way of recreating it using our hometown @visitpittsburgh . “Sincerest form of flattery.” I was so giddily excited about it (think Jake) and determined to get it done (think Amy), that I was unyielding in my decision to finish it that night (Captain Holt.). Ok, I’m a total dork who geeked out about this for hours, with the help of @dan_jenworleyphotography , to finish the creation that evening. Other credits: to @asmpnational, who as a 75-year old organization is embracing change and promoting inclusivity. I don’t believe the Pittsburgh Board has ever had a women President before. (But correct me if I’m wrong.) Looking forward to what’s ahead. #pittsburghphotographer
Maybe you got their card in the mail? Always a challenge getting a big group together and making sure everyone "shines." Thanks to @omniwilliampennhotel for being flexible to allow CooksonPeirce and I to utilize the lobby.
Dec 24
Maybe you got their card in the mail? Always a challenge getting a big group together and making sure everyone "shines." Thanks to @omniwilliampennhotel for being flexible to allow CooksonPeirce and I to utilize the lobby.
Eliza. #pittsburghwomen #pittsburghprofessional
Karissa. #pittsburghprofessionals #headshotphotographer
Dec 19
Karissa. #pittsburghprofessionals #headshotphotographer
Marlana. #pittsburghprofessional #pittsburghphotographer
Dec 15
Marlana. #pittsburghprofessional #pittsburghphotographer
Susan. #pittsburghwomen #photographer
Tionna. This is the last week of fall, and she's wearing one of the best fall colors. I think. #pittsburghpeople
Dec 13
Tionna. This is the last week of fall, and she's wearing one of the best fall colors. I think. #pittsburghpeople
Fun at work! #pittsburghcreative #pittsburghbaker
Sam. #pittsburghlegal #headshotphoto
Caryn. #pittsburghprofessional #pittsburghheadshots
Dec 8
Caryn. #pittsburghprofessional #pittsburghheadshots
Carly. #pittsburghlegal #pittsburghphotographer
Linda. #pittsburghprofessional #powerfulbeautiful
Fun headshots to brighten your Friday. Gardening season is right around the corner! (If you consider “the corner” four months from now. 😆) Beautiful subject and great hobby! #pittsburghphotographer
Dec 3
Fun headshots to brighten your Friday. Gardening season is right around the corner! (If you consider “the corner” four months from now. 😆) Beautiful subject and great hobby! #pittsburghphotographer
14 years and 2 dogs later. Partner and business partner. Love and friend. #happyanniversary
Dec 1
14 years and 2 dogs later. Partner and business partner. Love and friend. #happyanniversary
Kim. #pittsburghpowerfulwomen #pittsburghphotographer
Nov 30
Kim. #pittsburghpowerfulwomen #pittsburghphotographer
Shades of black&white and color. @laurenlevenson #pittsburghlawyer
Nov 23
Shades of black&white and color. @laurenlevenson #pittsburghlawyer
Gia. I would love to see this concept on a company’s web bio page. From cool smile to smilie, on everyone. #pittsburghphotographer
Nov 19
Gia. I would love to see this concept on a company’s web bio page. From cool smile to smilie, on everyone. #pittsburghphotographer