It’s a new age of content for brands on social media.

So… Remember when we declared the death of Facebook’s organic reach? Well, we still stand by that. However, we recently decided we should clarify a few things.

Jacob Chappell and Will Price got together to teach brands about the Rebirth of Content Engagement on social media. No, we haven’t gone crunchy on you, but things aren’t as doom-and-gloom as they once appeared.

Brands shouldn’t be looking at the recent algorithm updates as a death sentence, but an opportunity! We know… It sounds like something your mom would say about, “trying hard and believing in yourself,” but let’s face it… Your mom was always pretty smart.

Essentially, the updates boil down to a chance for brands to rethink the way they’re using each social media platform individually. There are new big-players online (Instagram, LinkedIn, etc.) that are allowing companies to target new audiences in more specific and relatable ways. We see it over and over again that when a brand really gets their audience, their social media success soars. The same is true for multi-location brands who connect with local audiences, rather than trying to reach a national audience who isn’t likely to become a customer in the first place.

Chief Revenue Officer at SOCi, Warren Kay, puts it like this, “I like to think of the Facebook update like the encyclopedia. You rarely pick up the encyclopedia to read the entire thing. But you will go to a particular part of it that is of interest to you. Essentially that’s what Facebook is doing to your timelines.”

The reality is, most content engagement is happening on local pages, not on corporate brand pages. Relying on brand power to attract engagement is a formula for failure. Brands need to be focusing on a content strategy that encourages participation at the local level through comments, shares, and great reviews.

[bctt tweet=”Relying on brand power to attract engagement is a formula for failure. ” username=”meetsoci”]

Chances are, you’re seeing at least one of these types of engagement on your page, but if you’re looking to boost them (and you should be) there are several ways you can start building these connections as soon as you hit “enter.”

The 5 R’s of Engagement on Social Media

• Research the most popular content in your industry to find out where your audience is

• Creating Rich Content (industry-specific guides, cool videos, ahem… Webinars) can help you engage customers in an active conversation

• Find out which of your branded posts are most Relevant to your audience in order to make every post count

• Start to Repurpose and Repost content from influencers to reach an even wider local audience.

Content doesn’t have to be a mystery. It may be harder to “go viral” now, but viral posts don’t necessarily equate to more traffic to your locations. By taking part in the online conversation, going local with your content strategy, and creating the kinds of posts your audience wants to share and comment on, you’re setting yourself up for social media success in the current climate.

Yeah, it may be easier said than done. But think about your fans. Put yourself in their shoes. Before posting anything, ask yourself, “Would I read this? Would I share this with my friends? Why do I care about this?”

Ready for more? Watch The Rebirth of Content Engagement now.