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In today’s newsletter:

• How to Win on Social Media: Break through the Noise to Increase Your Views, Engagement, and Followers
• Market Watch, Florida vs. California, and Jobs
• How to Maximize Your Brick and Mortar in a Digital World

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For many operators out there, social media is a source of constant frustration instead of a direct funnel to customers. The idea of it is great – share content and resources with your target audience, gain trust, pitch products and services, all without a middleman. It sounds too good to be true, but oftentimes, social media can turn into a time-suck with very little additional business to show for it.

Thankfully, when you understand the algorithms behind these social media sites, you can become one of the lucky few who leverage social media into real-world success. In this article, you’ll learn how to approach social media on the big four platforms in order to win in that space again and again:

General Principles

People are not typically on social media to interact with brands. According to a recent survey, social media users are on these apps to keep in touch with friends and family (48%), to fill spare time (aka, entertainment) (38%), to keep up with the news (34%), and to find content (30%). Finding products to purchase was all the way down at #7 – which is still significant, but it does represent a minority of users.

With all of this in mind, you can build a relationship with potential customers over time by prioritizing entertainment value (#2 reason for being on social media) that relates to your product or service somehow, by giving culturally relevant updates that it makes sense for your brand to cover (#3), and by giving useful, surprising, or interesting information (#4 – and sort of #2 also). There’s nothing wrong with letting people know about a great deal you’re running offering or asking for the sale from time to time – but it has to be balanced out by offering content that your target market is going to find valuable or entertaining. A good rule of thumb is 3 posts that give for every 1 post that asks for something, and always look to encourage interaction with your content.

Keys to Making Effective Video Content

1) Start with the hook.

People swipe past reels that seem boring in only a second or two. Instead of wasting those precious moments with a standard introduction (eg. “Hey, guys, this is Roy with McCallen Autoparts…”), try starting with what the audience is going to get out of watching the entire video. (eg. “Your car could be leaking oil and costing you up to $100 a month – but I’ll tell you how to stop that from happening in 30 seconds.”)

2) Make content that asks for interaction.

Try ending a reel with an invitation for people to ask questions in your area of expertise (“Comment below with your autocare questions, and we’ll make an answer video and tag you.”), suggest that viewers show your reel to someone they know who has the problem you’ve addressed (“Send this to a friend who needs to know.”), or try to get people to comment in meaningful ways so that a conversation can start (“Have you tried this method on your car? Tell us about it in the comments.”).

3) Jump in on the trends.

Some social media apps have a “trending” button when you are creating content to post, which will show you the top 50 audio files being used in videos on that platform. It’s a quick and easy way to increase the visibility of your content. Also, jump in on the fun if a viral trend is going on (Remember the Harlem Shake and ALS Challenge? Things like that).

4) Meet minimum standards of aesthetics

Gone are the days when you need to spend $10,000 on video and audio equipment to make viable video content. The camera on your smartphone is actually pretty good, and you can have a serviceable audio system for less than 50 bucks. But if you record in a dark room, or under a flickering fluorescent light, or with a bright background behind you but no lighting in front of you – it’s going to look awful, and people won’t want to watch it. You don’t have to get fancy – people will watch short videos of people talking at the camera while sitting in the front seat of their car, but that car is full of windows and natural light, so the image is, at least, well-lit. Make sure your video is well lit also.

Here are some things to keep in mind for each of the big social media apps out there:

TikTok –

Nearly 2/3 of TikTok’s users are between the ages of 16 and 24, so if you’re looking to reach young people online, TikTok is the undisputed hub. Ad spends are more affordable here, compared with other platforms, and live shopping has now gone into beta testing. Engagement and hours per month spent on TikTok is much higher than its competitors, and it is steadily growing its user base.

TikTok’s algorithm rewards interaction in a way that is very similar to Instagram (see below), but it does so in a unique way. It sends new content to a small group of initial viewers, then assesses how many likes, shares, saves, and comments it gets before deciding whether to send it to a broader audience or not. For this reason, some have insisted that it is easiest to gain a following on TikTok if you have your core audience’s interests nailed down.

Keep up with the trends, learn how to integrate the new selling features directly into your content, and post a little more often on Tiktok compared with Facebook or Instagram.

Instagram –

Instagram is largely populated by Millennials, with nearly half of the user base made up of individuals aged 25-34. The latest iteration of the IG algorithm heavily rewards interaction/engagement. It is constantly attempting to create a more and more personalized profile for each user, and the way it serves them content is based on which accounts they follow, what posts they like, share, save, and comment on. In deciding how far to send your content, Instagram’s algorithm is also going to consider things like image or video quality, whether or not your content has been reported for violations, and on how original it is.

You can post Stories (great for managing relationships/rewarding existing followers), Posts (great for sharing information, deals, and giveaway trains), or Reels (evergreen content that can reach beyond your followers list). Keep in mind, however, that the real growth potential is coming from Reels.

If you remember only one thing, remember this: Instagram is going to prioritize content that it believes people are most likely to interact with.

For more IG tips, check out this article.

Facebook –

44% of Facebook’s 3 billion person user base is over the age of 35. There are plenty of teens and young adults populating the platform, but it’s a much better place to reach Gen X and Boomers than some of Facebook’s competitors.

Facebook owns Instagram, so in some ways, the apps are going to reward behavior in similar ways. Like Instagram, you can make stories, posts, or reels. Facebook is going to prioritize “who posted it” when deciding what content to serve to users. If a user has interacted a lot with a particular account, it is more likely to receive content from there. Facebook is also going to consider what kind of content people interact with – so users who interact with photos will get more photos, and people looking for videos will get more videos, etc. Naturally, engagement factors into all of this, and you want your content to be receiving lots of reactions, shares, and comments. Incidentally, this is why Facebook can seem so full of “people arguing with relatives about politics” compared with other apps. If there is an account a user is friends with (such as a family member) and there is a lot of engagement (like in an argument on a contentious issue, which draws eyeballs for the high number of comments, reactions, and shares), then that post is going to be featured prominently. So as a brand, you’re up against this sort of organic content, competing for space in people’s feed. That means you need to double down on making posts that will solicit a lot of reactions, comments, and shares.

X –

X, formally Twitter, is a microblogging social media app that is a little different than the others we’ve mentioned so far today. It’s user base is more US based than the other apps we’ve discussed, it skews slightly male, and 58% of its users are under the age of 35.

On X, you’ll need to verify your account if you want to reach a wide audience, engage with other accounts like yours, establish a unique voice for your tweets, use hashtags, and be strategic about what time of day you publish. Under Elon Musk’s leadership, X has been undergoing some changes, such as increased integration of video and other visual media, and now you can host (or join) chat rooms centered around a particular subject matter, current event, or common interest. You’ll want to post daily on X, and possibly as much as 3 times a day.

X is a big online conversation, so you can think of it like a networking event. Mingle, float around to different discussions, groups, make sure you are being consistent in how you are presenting yourself, and give people a reason for following.

LinkedIn –

LinkedIn is primarily B2B, not B2C, so if that fits your business model, you’ll want to take a serious look at the platform. Secondly, LinkedIn’s algorithm is specifically designed not to have content go viral.

Seriously.

On the plus side, its algorithm is arguably more targeted towards relevant interest groups, so that your reach may not be as broad as on other platforms, but it could potentially be more efficient. LinkedIn prioritizes relevant, high-quality content that promotes engagement and relies upon your verifiable expertise within a narrow subject set.

So if you want to win on LinkedIn, you’re going to want to avoid some typically-common-sense aspects of social media that you do on other platforms to boost your posts. LinkedIn may actually limit your reach if you specifically ask for likes and shares, use irrelevant reaction polls to gin up engagement, or post too often. “Too often” is anecdotal at best, however: many top LinkedIn accounts have noted increased success by posting as often as three times per day. Good luck keeping up with that pace, but if you can, it’s likely to pay dividends.

You can position yourself as an expert by posting high-quality articles, commenting on other people’s posts that have something to do with your field of knowledge, and getting endorsements for your skill tree. Even though you have to be careful not to be “spammy” on this platform, you can still expand your reach through the use of hashtags, tagging relevant companies and individuals in your posts, and being intentional about keywords in your content. Try to keep outbound links to the comments, rather than in the body of your post or article, and capitalize on the access LinkedIn can grant you to decision-makers within large companies who are usually not very accessible.

INDUSTRY INSIGHTS

Market Watch, Florida vs. California, and Jobs

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Market Watch

The collective Nasdaq, Dow Jones, and S&P500 rallies cooled off this week, even as bond yields slide downward under 4.2%. Oil is up, amid Russian signals of a deepening output cut in Q1 of next year. In real estate, 30-year fixed rates have fallen back down to September prices, around 7.5% as existing home sales continue to decline. Many experts insist that despite some pain in the market currently, housing will recover in 2024, but some warn of a coming crash. A majority of economists predict that falling inflation rates will prevent a recession in 2024, though unemployment will likely tick upwards to around 5%.

Florida vs. California

Last week, Florida governor Ron Desantis debated California’s governor Gavin Newsom in a much publicized debate on Fox News in what some are calling a debate between “different countries,” due to the massive split in American politics, economic philosophy, and cultural issues between red and blue states. Florida’s business-friendly tax policies were put against California’s progressive tax policies, the relative exodus from California to Florida was discussed, educational policies, and crime as well. While some democrats are more enthusiastic, others have said the debate performance may do their party more harm than good. Republicans, for their part, saw Desantis as the clear winner – something that a Drudge reaction poll seems to back up, but some commentators believe the debate also hurt Desantis. Ultimately, this is a debate not just between two rising political stars, but between two very different directions for the American economy, culture, and government that is unfolding in real time.

Jobs

The number of job openings in the US dropped to its lowest in two and a half years according to recent figures. This comes amid reports that finding a job is more difficult than in previous years for the average worker, and “entry-level jobs” are no longer widely available to college graduates, 50% of whom say they feel unqualified for such jobs anyway. AI technology continues to replace numerous jobs in a trend that now includes white collar industries, though advocates insist the technology will also create many jobs. In any case, the US remains in a labor shortage, so worker-replacement technology will likely improve the overall efficiency of the economy, though in the short term, a problem remains for many individuals who have not found their niche.

Sunday School

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Q. What three languages was the Bible written in?

A. Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek

“More books? Why aren’t you on social media, like your brother? Don’t you want to be successful in life?”

TIPS & TRICKS

How to Maximize Your Brick and Mortar in a Digital World

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It’s no secret that businesses are moving online. E-commerce is inexpensive to set up, easy to run, and more popular than ever. Kids are using TikTok as the home shopping network, and traditional malls are ghost towns. But even in this ever-changing business environment that is so heavy on social media, Google ads, and website traffic, tangible, physical locations still make a lot of sense for many businesses, if they are leveraged correctly. Here are a few tips on how to win with your brick and mortar in 2024 and beyond.

Location, Location, Location

Despite the buzz about growing ecommerce, online sales still only account for about 15% of total retail sales in the US. People may work from home more, homeschool more, and spend more social time online, but at least for the time being, they do still go out. However, the way they interact with stores is changing nonetheless. Customers often like to get in and out of the store quickly, and that may be part of the reason traditional malls are languishing while strip malls are becoming highly sought-after. Traditional anchors for strip malls, such as grocery stores or movie theaters, should be less of a factor today when deciding on the desirability of a commercial location. In many cases, local city governments will have data on how many cars pass on certain roads each day, and road-facing signs on your business act like a continuous billboard for you year-round.

Make it easy for customers to find you, and prioritize adding your location to Yelp, Google Maps, and Apple Maps.

Offer Hybrid Solutions

Pick-up orders and food delivery continue to experience elevated demand, even years after the pandemic-era lockdowns. Now, instead of facing a reduction in income, many restaurants are able to cater to two entirely different constituencies from the same building. Hybrid solutions will vary from business to business, depending on what sort of product or service you offer, but keep in mind the rising trend of ordering online and picking up in person, or paying online and expecting delivery. It’s worth investing the small amount needed to provide this sort of functionality in your online presence to allow your customers more options in how to buy from you. Additionally, much of this technology allows for a reduction in overhead, as self-checkout and other innovations allow businesses to hire fewer employees for in-store service.

Leverage Your Physical Space with Events and Cross-Promotions

Many influencers and e-businesses still have the need to do in-person events from time to time. Trade them your space for exposure and promotion. Pop-ups, seasonal festivities, book signings from a relevant expert, meet-ups, or any number of other events can drive new customers into your store, boosting your visibility and garnering additional sales. People still want to get out of the house and find things to do, so they might as well end up at your location, if you can find a relevant way of attracting them there.

Make the Most of the In-Person Experience

E-commerce is, in many ways, very convenient. It is not, however, personal. When customers come into your store, you have the opportunity to make it a personalized, warm experience. Train your employees to be friendly, helpful, and to remember customers’ names. Constantly evaluate the customer experience in your store, and improve as you gather feedback via surveys or even customer experience audits. People don’t usually go to a bar because their beverages are so much different than the bar down the street. They keep coming back because the bartender is easy to talk to, and she knows their names. If your employees make customers feel welcome and are just as eager to help them solve problems as they are to make a sale, repeat business will tick upward, and you’ll reap the benefits of a healthy, thriving brick and mortar. Just make sure that if you’re serving the sort of client who wants to get in, out, and on with his life, he or she is able to do so quickly and efficiently. Then, you can have the best of both worlds.

Quick Hits

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• Walmart releases a 23 episode holiday rom-com series with in-show shopping opportunities.
• The iconic “Jesus Film” shown worldwide since 1979 is getting an update, as Cru film ministry is working on an animated version that will remain evergreen.
• SCOTUS heard arguments this week on the contentious Purdue Pharma bankruptcy case. The question before the court is: should individuals with exposure to fraud and litigation be able to shield themselves from criminal and civil litigation by funneling assets out of their company, then declaring bankruptcy?
• Disney’s stock continues its recent decline, as an independent audit of the Disney-controlled, tax-exempt Reedy Creek Improvement District reveals systematic fraud, bribery, and corruption.
• Business Insider speculates that the Fed could begin interest rate cuts as early as next month, though signals have not been consistent.

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Our “How to Win on Social Media” graphic was generated using AI prompts. Guess the prompt for your chance to win Sent To Win gear. Just reply to this email with your best guess.

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