There have been a lot of changes to social media algorithms over the past several weeks leaving many marketers scrambling to adjust their strategy. Many of the changes have made it more difficult for marketers to reach their target audience, with an eye towards producing more paid advertising dollars. Thankfully, there is still a place for high quality content; you just need to know where and how to distribute it. Organic social media marketing can still be successful as long as you focus on educating and entertaining your audience, build real connections and ramp up distribution.

Groups

Discussion groups have long been a great way to reach and connect with potential clients. Thankfully, group posts will be taking a higher priority on both Facebook and LinkedIn newsfeeds. Starting discussions with educational content and engaging with other people’s group posts will give greater reach to your pieces and help to increase your website visits and blog views. Discussion groups represent a highly targeted audience that has already shown an interest in the subject matter being posted. When posting to groups you want to primarily share your own company’s content. You also want to make sure each piece fits the parameters and aim of the group. This will ensure admins and group members do not view your posts as spam.

Friends

With an increased focus on friend interactions, developing personal profiles to increase the reach of your content has become essential. Customers trust individuals that that like far more than most companies and social media algorithms will be prioritizing friend posts above company updates. This puts the onus on individuals within marketing departments to optimize their profiles and develop their personal following.

Company Participation

Having the backing of your own employees can make or break your social media campaigns. When you look at companies that are successful with organic social media marketing, they all have one thing in common; all of their employees like and share their content. Each time a coworker engages with your content it increases its reach exponentially, especially if all of your employees have bought in and developed their own profiles.

Hashtags

While there is still a negative stigma surrounding hashtags on certain platforms, there is no denying they are a great way to increase your reach and target specific searches. Piggybacking on popular hashtags can put your content in front of a large audience whether or not they’re part of your current network. This process also helps to increase your following as people searching for content on particular subjects can find you more easily.

Influencers

Influencers come in many forms and their engagement on your social posts can bring major exposure to your content and brand. Developing mutually beneficial relationships with influencers within your target market is some of the most beneficial networking you can do. A simple share from a popular influencer can put your brand in front of tens of thousands of potential customers.

Visual Content

Visual content including videos, infographics, images and memes are all great ways to increase social media engagement. Statistics show that infographics are the most shared type of content across social media, will video is gaining ground quickly. Many people prefer to watch a video rather than read, and it’s important to remember that everyone absorbs information differently. You may have the right information, in the right place, but without the correct format, your messaging may fall flat.

Storytelling

This is the big one these days. By now everyone has seen the carefully written, double-spaced human interest pieces that are dominating LinkedIn. These types of posts provide value to prospects and help to develop the personality of your brand. As the saying goes, people like to buy from people they like. Sharing a bit about yourself can go a long way towards humanizing your brand, which will lend itself to customer loyalty.

Founded in 1990, Winn Technology Group is a leading provider of global, multi-channel marketing solutions for the technology industry. Winn supports demand creation, account-based marketing, channel management, digital marketing, social media, teleprospecting, lead nurturing, event marketing, database services, and inbound response management for both direct and channel sales.