I get asked lots of social media questions but some I get over and over. Here are 10 burning social media questions answered for you! I answer social media questions in my free Facebook Group, Social Media For Small Business and Entrepreneurs, every Thursday. Join us and ask me all your burning social media questions!
I get the most questions on Instagram so let’s start there…
Question: I want to unfollow the fake accounts on IG. Is there an app I can use to easily see all my followers? Can I see who followed/unfollowed me?
Answer: I personally use the iPhone app Followers. The free version will show you who you are following, who is following you, who followed/unfollowed you, and who is not following you back.
Question: Why can’t I like or comment on anything in IG?
Answer: Make sure when you start new accounts (or become active on previously inactive accounts) you go slowly so you don’t get blocked. This happens a lot when accounts are brand new. Instagram needs to get to “know” your account and feel safe it’s not a fake bot. Fast liking and commenting makes Instagram flag you as a bot account. Also do not follow or unfollow at a fast pace, this is also a red flag to the Instagram bots!
Question: How often should you post on Instagram?
Answer: Quality content is better than just content to get it out there. So if you have enough quality content to post 1-3 times a day then go for it. If not, do the most you can but try to keep it consistent. For example, don’t post 2x day for a week and then nothing the next week. You’d be better off spreading it 1x a day for 2 weeks. Make sense? Consistency is the most important thing!
Question: I need more organic engagement. I try a lot of “drop an emoji or gif” and even giveaways but I feel like those get old and I need another approach.
Answer: You always want to encourage 4+ word comments because it won’t count on the Instagram or Facebook algorithm if not. Social media platforms want “meaningful” interactions so they don’t want emoji/gif comments or simple yes/no comments. Try asking open ended questions or things that would require a longer response. If you’re doing a giveaway, ask them to comment why they want the giveaway or what they would do if they were the winner instead of yes or me comments.
Question: I know my target market, but I can’t figure out how to reach them. Are there are there any instructions?
Answer: This is not a simple answer. In fact it took me 3 long blog posts to answer it! You need to figure out your target audience, create content that resonates with them, and then figure out which social media platforms they hang out on. Check out my blog posts on Customer Persona. That’s the closest thing I have to instructions!
Question: What is the best free way to promote my giveaway? I am not getting much traffic on it.
Answer: Definitely promote it on your social platforms. Create a post and story for it. Use your link in your bios as appropriate. You can also promote it through your email list and do a Facebook and/or Instagram Live about it. Another way to get attention is to change your FB page cover to promote it and make your button “Learn More” with a link to the giveaway. .
Question: Where do you get your stock photos? Do you use Photoshop?
Answer: I use Canva to create all my social media graphics. I use the paid $10/month version but the free version is enough for most small businesses. I”ve used photoshop in past jobs and it’s great but I don’t think you really need it to do social media stuff.
Here are some great free stock photo sites to check out:
Question: How can I format my Instagram copy so it’s not a cluttered mess? I use the notes app on my phone or a scheduler but when I transfer over, it’s all messy again.
Answer: I find sometimes Notes work and sometimes not. Some schedulers have formatting built in, others don’t. When it’s not formatting right, I use this link to format my captions for Instagram. You can add spaces, emojis, whatever. I’m usually on my desktop using a post planner but it works from a phone too. http://apps4lifehost.com/Instagram/CaptionMaker.html
Question: Why aren’t my likes turning into: “I will like 3 orders of this item please?”
Answer: Knowing your audience likes your product/service is a great place to start a relationship! Remember social media means being social. If it’s on Facebook, do you know you can invite people who like your page posts to follow your page? If on Instagram, follow those people and comment/like back on their posts. Most people don’t buy anything online the first time they see it but building that authentic relationship and showing your product/service multiple times will usually lead to some sales over time.
Question: What is the best free social media planner?
Answer: There are a lot of good ones out there. I personally like Planoly and Later. One thing to keep in mind though is engagement. Don’t just set it and forget it! Even if you schedule out your social media for the week, you still need to go in daily and engage on others’ content and reply to comments on your own posts. Being social on social media pays off with any of the platforms’ algorithms!
Have more social media questions? Follow me on Instagram!