Stop posting on your corporate social media

The prevalence of companies mindlessly posting updates on their social media platforms just because “everyone does it” is too darn high.

For some reason, the social media approach seems ingrained in startup culture. Businesses feel obligated to share everything - a giant hotpot mix of product updates, company hires, and the puppy that visited the office that one time.

It’s no surprise that the majority of company pages on social media platforms fail to perform even remotely. Imagining a marketing intern desperately trying to push a few likes by sharing another recycled PwC article on the future of the industry makes me feel a mix of crying and cringing.

Here’s a simple fact:

If someone willingly follows, views, and engages with your CRM on Instagram (yes, I tend to pick on CRMs a lot, they’re boring), it means they already have a significant level of interest in your company.

Because what kind of person wants to see a mixture of their friends’ holiday photos with yet another industry update?

Stop it!

We know your company operates in a hot niche that’s about to explode any minute, but we just want our CSV exports!

For most companies, people genuinely care only about major updates. Even for software products, bug fixes do not require an announcement outside of a product changelog. If there’s a bug, it’s inherently expected to be fixed.

For those wondering how to engage their target audience effectively when social media seems to be falling short, consider the following:

What is the one channel that people would actually read my content?

In most cases, assuming your business is more sales-oriented than creative, email remains the most effective channel. Because when I’m in my email inbox, I’m already in work/to-do mode.

Here, you can segment your customers and leads into specific lists, targeting each group differently.

A simple framework I created:

1. Everyone: 5/5 star critical updates, including bug fixes (no company information included)
2. Half your customer base: 3/5 star short-term business and offering updates
3. Loyalists: personal information on the company and its people

By delivering content that people want to consume and find useful, you’ll actually improve your relationship with them.

It’s the difference between that shop attendant who leaves you alone but finds your size right away, and the one who won’t stop trying to make small talk until you feel exhausted and end up experiencing buyer’s paralysis.

The majority of customers do not care about the internal workings of your company. We might like to imagine they do, but they have too much on their minds. They only care about what you can do for them.

And if you still want to explore a corporate social media strategy, here’s a little cheat sheet for what each social platform can be useful for:

1. LinkedIn: Networking effect and recall
2. Twitter: Technical conversations
3. Instagram: Personal moments
4. Facebook: Your audience lives in 2015, or in South America