Nowadays businesses are talking a lot about “engagement” on social media and its platforms. All of them want a huge number of likes, comments, and shares. Because according to them, the key to success online is “engagement.” However, it’s true, but the question is, “Do they really know what engagement is actually about?” Some of them do, and some of them don’t. And those who don’t know about it are wasting their time, money, and, of course, some golden opportunities that can help them in growing.

So if you’re someone who wants to know about engagement or someone who already knows about it. Then you should definitely read this article because here we’re going to talk about where businesses go wrong about engagement and how they can fix their mistakes to approach their customers or audiences better. 

Mistake 1: Thinking engagement means just likes and comments

The most common mistake caused by businesses is that they thought engagement was just about likes, comments, and shares. And it’s also because they can easily see these actions; hence, they stay more focused on these activities. But it’s not the truth; if a post is getting many likes and comments, it doesn’t mean that it helps your business.

Let’s take an example: a video where you launched your product goes viral and gets many likes because it was too attractive to watch, but the audience of that video wasn’t interested in your product or business, so they just liked and scrolled. Now tell me, do those many likes and that one viral video help your business to grow by increasing your sales or reach? No, right! That’s what the concept actually is: something that goes viral doesn’t guarantee you growth. 

What to do instead: Don’t run behind the number of likes or comments. Instead, look or run behind those who actually reacted. Find out if they are the type of users who might purchase from you. Are they someone who is visiting your profile? This will be called real engagement. 

Mistake 2: Believing all engagement is good 

It’s true that not every type of engagement helps your business to grow. Sometimes, users engage because they’re confused, upset, or in any other mood. If your post is getting many comments, but all those comments are complaints or arguments, then what’s the point of getting many comments? 

Although, if users are reacting positively towards your post, it doesn’t mean that they clearly understand what your business is associated with. An attractive post gets attention, but if that post is not able to represent your business or your message, then it’s not good for your business. 

What to do instead: Give attention to the reason behind engagement of users, not just to how many. Ensure they are happy and understand your message clearly or not. You can also take help from some tools to monitor what people are actually saying and feeling about your business or content. 

Mistake 3: Forgetting about silent followers

You know what? There are numerous users who watch and read your content without liking or commenting. These types of followers are known as “silent” followers. They are interested, but they prefer to stay quiet. And these types of followers are actually more likely to purchase something than users who always comment. 

Some businesses ignore these silent followers as they don’t show up in the starting. But not showing up doesn’t mean that they’re not interested or paying attention.

What to do instead: You can take advantage of some tools to track actions of audiences, like website visits, time spent on a page or account, or the number of people who open your emails. With the help of tools, you can see how many users are actually interested in your product or services. 

Mistake 4: Not responding to people 

Lots of businesses use social media only for posting. They don’t spend time on replying to the comments or answering the questions. But they don’t know that when people don’t get a response and feel ignored, they just move away. 

Best engagement is the same as communication. If people are interested in talking to you and you keep ignoring them, then they’ll leave and go where they’ll feel valuable. 

What to do instead: Reply to the audience. Thanks then when they either give you advice or a compliment. Try to stay friendly with them. This little effort from your side will help them in building trust and supporting your business from their heart. 

Mistake 5: Chasing every trend 

Many businesses try to jump on everything that is trending, whether it’s a meme or hashtags. But the actual thing is , a trend that is not related to your business doesn’t help you, and instead of helping, it just confuses your audience. Maybe your content reaches everywhere, but it won’t tell a clear message.

Users are interested in knowing about what your brand stands for. If your posts are always going to change according to the trends , users won’t get what they expect from you. 

What to do instead: Select those trends that actually relate to your business and make sense. If there is any trend that is associated with your business and will help your business to grow, then you should definitely go for it. But don’t forget that you always have to stay honest and genuine towards your voice and values.

 Conclusion

At the end of the day, engagement isn’t about something that is based on likes or comments. It’s something that is based on developing relations with your audience. Which means replying, listening, helping, and showing them your care. 

Businesses miss the golden opportunities when they think that engagement is just about numbers. But when they start thinking about engagement as a way to develop the feeling of trust and connection, they gain real and loyal customers. 

So the next time you look at your engagement data, don’t just look for “ how many?” Instead, ask, “What does this mean?” And “Is this going to help your business to grow?” The moment you replace your mindset towards engagement, from that moment engagement starts becoming truly powerful for your business.