Top 5 Tips to Grow Your Social Media Tribe

Article from SiteProNews

Top 5 Tips to Grow Your Social Media Tribe
A SPN Exclusive article By Jack Harold (c) 2011

In 2010, social media became an integral part of most businesses
many of which committed to spend a significant portion of their
marketing efforts on social media engagement. In 2011, this trend
will only continue as businesses realize that it can naturally
result in more buzz, leads and therefore, more sales!

You may have already established a social media presence for
your business. However, you - like many others - may be facing
the challenge of getting loyal followers and fans. You want to
grow your authority and influence in the social networks. You
want to earn the trust and interest of your blog visitors, but
where do you begin?

Okay, so now that the scene has been set, let's dive in. Listed
below are 5 great tips that I have been using to grow my tribe
of followers and fans. Pretty successful so far. My influence
now extends beyond my blog and I am actively engaging my
followers and fans on a myriad of social media platforms. How do
I achieve that?

Provide Exclusive and Unique Content
The number 1 bait to attract visitors to your blog or website is
to have compelling content. Personally, I spend around an hour a
day to update my blog with fresh, great content. Every single
day - without fail. That is the only way to satisfy my tribe
which is always thirsty for knowledge. With a little creativity,
you can even use premium content as a means of getting fans to
"like" you on Facebook. I also use controversy to generate lots
of buzz and interactions on my blog. Controversial blog posts
usually get viral very rapidly. Controversy sparks emotions and
makes it compelling to share that sparked emotion with others.
If you can do it correctly, it will create a flood of new
visitors and readers for your post. However, be mentally
prepared for the backlash when people start to debate on the
points you have made.

Engage the Tribe Through Interactive Sessions
This may sound overwhelming and requires a considerable amount
of effort as compared to other methods, but the returns are good.

Webinars, for example, are great. I was able to interact with my
subscribers who asked me questions and got their answers on the
fly. Such platforms are awesome in gathering valuable feedback
and concerns from my tribe followers.

How about hosting a contest? People love to participate in
contests. Contests with your blog audience can increase the
amount of engagement you experience rather than having them
simply reading, re-tweeting and sharing status updates. For
example, I held a contest called "My Biggest Fan" where I had
my fans tell me why they love my blog. The prize? A four hour
private consultation with me. Not really that great, but it did
help the contest winner who went onto make a four figure income
every month. My contest results? 2,937 comments, 5,846 re-tweets
and an additional 1,547 subscribers on the day of the contest.
Pretty amazing huh?

The Trust Factor
Trust is the most important element in any true relationship and
it is something that you need to build with your tribe. No tricks
or tactics here. There's only sincerity and honesty required. So
how do I build the trust between me and my subscribers? I listen
to them. I empathize with the problems that they face. I provide
advice and resources to help them solve their problems. Well,
even if I do not have an instant solution at hand, I am able to
provide a listening ear, just like a friend will if his friend
is in need. Create honest relationships with your tribe and you
will reap the fruits of your labor!

Creating Value
This point re-emphasizes what I covered earlier. A blog reader
or customer may ask, "What's in it for me?" Thinking from the
perspective of my blog audience, I do constantly reflect on this
- on whether I am creating value for my blog audience or not. If
you are an Internet marketer, you need to create value for your
subscribers first before they are willing to hand you the cash
from their pockets. That rule has never changed since the start
of civilization. But whether that value is tangible or not, it
does not really matter. It has to be there however to propel
people to take any action. Most of the time, I will do my best
to solve my customers' problems, to satisfy their needs or just
to answer their queries. That is unless the odd demanding
customer's request really ticks me off when I am out of sorts.
HA! Alright, I am just joking, but I am a nice guy generally. My
subscribers have always said that I have over-delivered on most
occasions so I guess I am!

Discipline, Patience and Your Road to Success
There is no way (other than using some automation tools which
are pretty much useless from what I see) to amass tens of
thousands of followers in the space of days. Patience does go a
long way. Right from the start, I pushed myself to share at
least a post a day on my blog. Well, not that I was really
pushing myself hard since I enjoy blogging, but as the
days went by, it was really gratifying to see my subscribers
growing steadily from my consistent efforts.

Fans and followers do matter. They are the ones who will be
interested in what you blog about and what you pitch. Remember
that they are always right. They can choose whether or not to
read your blog or your messages. My fans, my followers and my
customers are my bread and butter. Without them, I would not
be earning a six figure income every single month.

What tips do you have to get more fans - more followers - more
subscribers? I may have missed some. How are you using social
media to grow your tribe? Share your thoughts - the comments
are yours.

Bradford Web Design