Building an Audience on Social Media – Detailed Study Notes

Builds on the two previous lessons about choosing platforms and an earlier opening-module lesson on general audience-building tactics.
Current focus: specifics of creating engagement and growing an audience on chosen platforms.
Next lesson will present two detailed social-media business case studies.

Treat every platform as a community you belong to, not a one-way marketing channel.
Your commercial goals matter, but you must bring value to stay welcome.
Ultimate aim: become a respected member, yet always remember you are one member.

The "audience" spectrum: media outlets, bloggers, influencers, prospective customers, and other niche stakeholders.
All engagement tactics should map back to reaching this mixed group.

Moving into a new neighborhood → first party → you don’t say “Hi, give me $5$ .”
Social media works the same way: add value first, requests later.
Failing to add value = rapid marginalization or outright ignoring by the community.

Proposed guideline: $80\%$ other people’s great content, $20\%$ your own.
Claimed (non-scientific but practical) multiplier: sharing others first makes your own posts feel $4\times$ more valuable.
$\text{Perceived Impact}_\text{own content}=4\times\text{Baseline}$
Bottom line: curate generously to elevate your authority and goodwill.

Except for direct messages, all comments, replies, and threads are publicly visible.
Public visibility should guide tone, professionalism, and strategic messaging.

Need not be a universal guru; dominate one specialized slice of the overall niche.
True expertise accelerates follower growth; faking expertise stalls it.

Imperative: "If it’s not share-worthy, no one will share it."
Example 1 — Mobilegeddon Post
- Detailed analysis of Google’s 2014 mobile-friendliness update.
- Investment in depth paid off → 3,000+ social shares.
Example 2 — “World’s Greatest Singers” Study (Concert Hotels / Distilled)
- Analyzed vocal ranges across numerous recordings; plotted on a single chart.
- Novelty + rigor → 100,000+ Facebook shares.
- Surprising result: Axl Rose held the largest documented range.

Reply to every meaningful comment—blog, guest posts, or social feeds.
Comment exchanges increase likelihood that users will later amplify you.
Speaking at Conferences
- Physical talks trigger instant follows and future shares → treat as social media.
- Principle: online and offline brands are inseparable; leverage both.
Seventh Generation Example
- Boring product class (toilet paper, cleaners) but engaging eco-friendly messaging.
- Posts like “You have a right to know what’s in your sprays” generate dialog.

Influencers possess large audiences + high trust → their shares outperform yours.
Can also drive SEO-valuable links.
Cautionary tale (“party corner” story): over-focusing on one influential person alienates everyone else. Balance is key.

Possible KPIs: mentions, impressions, views, reach, audience size, online sentiment, links.
Example objective set:
- $\text{Organic Media Links}$ and brand mentions (major or minor press).
- Audience growth → future opportunity.
- Cultivation of influencer ties.
- Positive/neutral sentiment scores.

Cisco showcases “Social Media Ambassadors” in blog posts → raises those employees’ authority and, in turn, Cisco’s.

Small-talk starters (sports, local events) can open doors; ensure conversation eventually circles to mutual value.

FTC (and global equivalents) require transparent disclosure of material relationships when employees or influencers promote brand content.
Ethos: authenticity, mutual value, balanced engagement.

Builds upon earlier platform-selection lessons and pre-module overview of audience growth.
Sets stage for upcoming module on influencer case studies, reinforcing why relationship strategy and KPI clarity matter.