It’s important to reach your community wherever they are. Right now, more people are online than ever, with users spending an average of 2 hours and 24 minutes per day multi-networking across an average of 8 social networks. As more brands turn to social platforms to build community digitally, it’s time to get creative in the ways your brand is engaging your biggest fans online to build greater value for your brand community.
Your biggest fans want to feel close to your brand and gain a greater sense of belonging within your community. We’ve come up with a few ideas to help build value and strengthen relationships with your community, digitally.
Host A Virtual Event
Maximizing your media outlets is crucial. The number of virtual gatherings has grown by 1,130% within the past year, with nearly all events now happening online. Brands are focusing on creating virtual experiences and events to build community digitally, and better reach new and existing customers where they are. Through platforms like Instagram Live, YouTube, and Twitch, brands and artists alike are sharing powerful virtual experiences and making themselves more accessible to their audience.
Your community craves greater access to your brand, and hosting a virtual event through some or all of these outlets is one of the strongest ways to maximize quality time with them. Hosting a buzz worthy event on social media is also a great way to broaden your reach and drive traffic to your official pages.
Here are a few ideas based on your brand’s industry for virtual events you can host for your community:
- Fitness or Athleisure: Host a free workout class on Instagram Live! Your community can tune in, get their endorphins pumping, and leave their workout feeling a stronger tie to your brand.
- Music and Live Entertainment: Time to get streaming! There are so many ways to share music with your biggest fans. Host a virtual listening party for a new release, share exclusive content, or even a virtual “tour” in unexpected locations.
- Beauty or Fashion: Invite your ambassadors and influencers to do a takeover showing off their favorite looks, or even host a virtual trunk show / consultation.
Hosting a virtual event for your community is a great way to boost engagement and reach organically, while creating a space for your community to connect with your brand and with each other.
Engage & Incentivize
Invite your brand’s fans to be active contributors. When you make your community feel like part of your team, they feel closer to your brand — building loyalty will make engaging more enticing for your brand fans.
Invite your brand fans to participate in starting conversations about your brand online, creating content for social media, and getting their friends involved. Having your brand fans like, comment, share, and create their own content will boost your reach organically, and give you plenty of authentic User Generated Content (UGC) to implement into your own content strategy.
Don’t be afraid to get creative in the way you challenge your community to get involved, but remember that having an incentive is important. An incentive doesn’t have to break your budget — simply sharing content that a brand fan created can make them feel important and valued by your brand.
Listen to Your Community’s Voice
Your community is your best source for honest, constructive feedback. Inviting your brand fans to tell you what they love, hate, or want to see more of will help you better adapt to serve your customers’ needs. Whether you push out a quiz, survey, or an open forum on social media, your community will appreciate being given a voice and will ultimately feel more connected to your brand. Feedback from your brand fans can also help drive product creation and enhancements, along with insight to help you build more effective, targeted marketing strategies.
Bring Your Community Together
Ultimately, reaching your community where they are — online — is the best method for building value for your entire community. Whether you host a virtual event, or hold a contest that allows your brand fans to get creative, you’re building value for both your community and your brand. When you invite your community to be active contributors to your brand’s mission, you’re building and strengthening positive relationships and loyalty, while driving awareness and feedback organically.
Looking to connect with your community? SocialLadder can help. Request your free demo today!
