10 Tips for Using Keywords to Improve Social Media Engagement

Tuesday, April 19, 2016

If you have done any work with SEO for your website, you know that keywords form the foundation of any SEO strategy. However, your work with keywords shouldn’t stop at driving traffic to your site from organic search. Employing a keyword strategy in your social media outreach and content promotion can improve social engagement with your brand via more relevant posts, provide a new source of topics for content creation, and most importantly, increase conversions.

Using keywords in your social media strategy is in many ways similar to doing so for search. There are a few key differences, though, and with these tips you can master your social keyword strategy.

1.Conduct Social-Specific Keyword Research

There’s nothing wrong with using the keywords you use in a web search to drive social search traffic as well. There’s a good chance that your top keywords perform just as well in social searches as they do in others. Don’t limit yourself, though. Research the terms that are ranking well on social, and use those words and phrases in your posts to drive more social traffic.

2. Understand the Differences Between Mediums

Different keywords may perform better on specific platforms. In other words, the phrases that work well on Twitter may perform poorly on Facebook and vice versa. Carefully analyze how your keywords perform on each platform, and adjust your content accordingly.

3. Weave Keywords Into Your Posts

Once you know which words and phrases are best suited for which platforms, weave them into your social content, including captions for images and videos. Not only will you drive new traffic, but you’re also responding to how your audience is already finding your brand, and reiterating your message to them.

4. Create Different Content for Different Platforms

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Re-purposing content is a well-known tactic for driving additional traffic — and helps you get the most from your great ideas. Once you have determined your social media keywords, use them to drive your content creation and develop different types of content for each platform. For example, turn the blog post that you developed for Facebook and Twitter into an infographic for Pinterest, and promote each using the corresponding keywords for the site.

5. Use Keywords in Your Descriptions

When you complete your company description on social accounts, use your keywords in those descriptions as much as possible while still sounding natural. Include as many of the keywords you wish to rank for as possible.

6. Use Keywords in Ads

Keyword insertion is a proven tactic in PPC advertising, but it can work in your social media ads too. Using keywords in your social media ads and sponsored posts can help increase click-through rates, because they increase the relevance of the ad to the user. Use your social specific keywords when planning your campaign to see a higher ROI on your social spend.

7. Engage in Social Listening

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Social listening is a valuable tool for keyword research. Review your social media accounts to see what people are saying about your content. Make note of any themes, as well as words and phrases your audience uses in their responses. You’ll probably discover additional, surprising keywords to incorporate into future content.

8. Track Your Competitors

Closely monitor what your competitors are doing on social media to refine your strategy. Use a competitor discovery tool to determine which keywords your competitors are using and what content is resonating with their audience. Analyze their content to see what’s working and how they are meeting your audience’s needs better than you are, and use that information to influence your own content development.

9. Adapt as You Go

How people talk about your company and your products will change over time. Language is always changing and it’s important that you stay on top of conversations and identify those shifts. Often, a sudden decrease in a specific keyword’s performance is an indicator of a change in the conversation, so stay alert to those shifts, and adjust your strategy accordingly.

10. Don’t Overdo It

Keyword stuffing and over optimization isn’t a concern on social media the same way it is on Google, but you still want to avoid going too crazy with your keywords or being unnatural in how you use them. The keywords you use repeatedly will become associated with your brand, so choose them carefully and use them naturally.

The most important aspect of using keywords in social media is to simply make sure that you are doing it. Don’t lose out on potential traffic by focusing only on web search, but engage your audience by making it easy to find you in the social sphere.

The post 10 Tips for Using Keywords to Improve Social Media Engagement appeared first on Web Design Blog | Magazine for Designers.



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