How To Build A Social Media Following In 2024 [Quickly]

Looking to master the art of social media engagement?

Connecting the right people on the right platform is often the key to maximizing the benefits of social media marketing campaigns.

You must first build a social media following, which requires an effective strategy.

You can create massive brand awareness on social media platforms with the correct method and due diligence.

In this post, let’s find out how to build a social media following in 2023.

Frequently Asked Questions

What You’ll Need To Build a Social Media Following

Building a social media audience requires consistency and patience in applying the crafts of your strategy while applying the method requires the following:

• A computer or mobile device connected to the internet. You will also need some associated social media apps or a web browser to conduct research and apply different steps.
• Access to the right social channel with the correct username and password. With a tool like Sprout Social, you may automate posting on various social media at once.
• A modest budget to spend on a social media marketing plan. This is only required if you want to increase your organic growth by running a paid social media campaign or tool.

How To Build a Social Media Following: Step-by-Step Instructions

Building a social media following was straightforward when social media networks like Facebook or Twitter were in their early prominence.

With your audience now scattered on different platforms, it takes a lot of planning and effort to attain followers on social media.

It’s not quite rocket science, though, as you can obtain consistent growth on your social media profile with a few essential tips.

1. Choose the Platforms To Find Your Audience

If you take a social media marketing course, you will know the importance of reaching the right people at the right time online.

Choosing the right social channel for your brand is more complicated than it sounds, especially with the availability of so many platforms.

New social media networks pop up every now and then, making it difficult for brands and personnel to maintain their digital marketing focus.

Some of the best platforms to gain followers include:

• Facebook: With 2.9 billion users, Facebook is the most used social media platform globally. It allows users to post various content types and run paid Facebook ads.
• Twitter: The platform is known for microblogging and boasts around 450 million active users per month. It also has paid advertising features to connect with your audience.
• Instagram: Offering users a chance to showcase their creativity with visual content, Instagram enjoys around 1.21 billion monthly active users on its platform.

The list could continue with many more established and rising platforms, offering different ways to interact with global audiences.

Fortunately, you don’t need to be on every platform for the success of your digital marketing plan.

Instead, you must find the proper channels for your brands and establish a solid social media presence.

Conduct diligent research about different social media demographics and competitors before determining which social media platforms work the best for you.

2. Complete Your Social Profiles With Unique Branding

Once you know where to find your audience, open your accounts and complete your social media profile.

Use a similar username for all your social media accounts so potential followers can find you on different channels.

Finding and integrating a keyword into your social handles is another excellent way to create brand awareness.

Once you create an account, upload a profile picture that resonates with your brand.

If it’s a personal account, upload a clear photo of yourself.

For business accounts, make sure to include a logo in the design.

Different social media channels have varying size requirements for their profile and cover photos.

So, you should customize your graphics accordingly.

While at it, fill out all the followers-focused sections with up-to-date information.

Pro Tip: You can easily use the about section to promote your website.

Adding a link to your other social media account can also help direct your audience from one platform to another.

3. Know the Best Time To Post for Maximum Engagement

One of the most effective tricks to succeed in social media is posting at the best times.

This is when the maximum number of audiences engage with a platform or your content.

A survey of thousands of social media marketers found that the best time to post in 2022 was between 6-9 pm and 12-3 pm.

There are also the best days to post in a week, with Friday’s posts performing better overall.

You will also find a lot of platform-specific information online.

Focus on the competitor’s posting habits and align your schedule accordingly.

It is also best to create a content calendar with different post types scheduled for separate days and times.

It will help you remain consistent with your content.

While proven statistics can be an excellent starting base, you must find the most engaging time for your audience.

As the behavior and preference of your target audience evolve, so should your posting time.

4. Create Unique Social Media Content for Each Platform

Like profile pictures and details, different social media platforms have unique requirements for posting and sharing content.

Even if you post the same content across multiple channels, you should fine-tune it according to the platform’s preference.

Learn What Content Works the Best

You must know which content type is more appropriate for a specific social network.

For example, pictures and graphics work better as an Instagram story, while texts are more impactful on Twitter.

You should mix your posts with videos, pictures, sounds, texts, etc., to keep your audience interested.

Sharing other creators’ posts is helpful to lessen your content-creation burden and make your brand more approachable.

Be Consistent Across Channels

Consistency is vital for any digital marketing plan’s success, let alone capturing your potential followers’ attention.

You must post consistently on a network to grow your organic followers.

Likewise, the posts must be aligned with your brand, content, and messages. 

Giving off a specific vibe, like funny and cheerful, is okay if you remain consistent with your brand persona across social media.

Check Out the Live Feature

Going live on social media has become an effective way to engage with your audience, as the latest generations of users value authentic communication over anything else.

Features like Facebook live don’t require pre-designed sets, yet they offer direct interaction with your customers.

However, you must know whether a live event is appropriate for your purpose, network, and audience.

Leverage the Hashtags

Hashtags are keywords for social media posts that can increase the visibility of your content in platform-wide search results.

You should include top-performing and relevant hashtags in your posts so your potential followers can look them up in search.

Any valuable content should refrain from using random, irrelevant hashtags.

5. Build Strong Rapport With Your Social Media Audience

Whether it’s a personal or business account, your followers are not a mere vehicle to grow your audience.

Social media users are real people who need attention and care to remain interested.

Therefore, you must invest time and effort to build and nurture such relationships.

You can build a solid social media presence with the following:

• Analyze your audience preference before creating and sharing your content.
• Post and share valuable content that positively impacts your followers’ lives.
• Show genuine interest in your audience’s lives and engage with their posts to keep yourself updated.
• Engage with your audience by asking for feedback, appreciating their comment, and replying to their messages.

Most importantly, a personal touch is all it takes to build a long-term relationship with your followers.

You should also avoid self-promotion in more than 10% of your posts, as excessive self grandiose can deter your audience instead of attracting them.

6. Run Paid Social Media Ads and Promotional Campaigns

Social media platforms like Facebook or YouTube offer various digital marketing features to create and run paid adverts.

With the right strategy, paid social media marketing campaigns can massively increase your brand awareness.

The steps may include the following:

1. Creating social media ads to promote an account, page, or post.
2. Collaborating with micro-influencers to spread the message regarding your product or offerings.
3. Teaming with similar brands to run surveys, polls, or a rewarding giveaway campaign.
4. Converting real-life customers into social media followers with seasonal marketing campaigns.

For instance, paid Facebook ads can increase your post’s engagement and help you reach new customers.

Although it may cost you some money, a transparent marketing campaign is significantly more effective than buying followers in some shady way.

7. Track Your Performance and Review the Strategy

Your social media strategy must be agile and reviewed occasionally for maximum optimization.

Different social channels offer platform-specific analytics tools, which you can access to keep track of your posts and engagement.

These tools also provide information regarding your audience demographics and behavior.

In addition, social media management tools like Hootsuite offer feature-rich social listening and insight tools that can help you analyze your competitors’ strategy.

These insights may include the best time to post, top-performing content, customers’ pain points, etc.

You should record all the insights over a specific period (monthly, quarterly, etc.) and analyze them to find your optimal strategy, akin to comprehensive social media auditing.

This is a continuous process vital for obtaining long-term growth and engagement.

Otherwise, you may fail to penetrate new customers.

Similar Tutorials To Check Out

Building a social media following is just the start of your digital marketing journey, which requires further knowledge and methods to reach your goals.

You can learn more by checking out the following tutorials:

• How To Make Money On Social Media: Convert your online followers into paying customers by learning how to make money on social media.
• How to Reach Gen Z On Social Media: Bring your brand to the modern age and keep it relevant by exploring how to reach Gen Z on social media.
• How To Perform a Social Media Audit: Find the loopholes in your social marketing strategies by discovering how to perform a social media audit.

Wrapping Up

Building a social media following interested in your brand is fundamental for reaching and connecting with your customers online.

You can reach many potential followers and encourage them to connect with your brand by applying the steps in my guide.

However, you must focus on the quality of your followers instead of the number to make your effort rewarding.

Please feel free to share your experience in the comments.

You can also give this site a shoutout on your social media and help it grow.