In the past few years of uncertain times, it is clear that there is an increasing need from consumers to experience real and authentic content on social media, especially when it comes to brands. Sprout Social has reported that “90% of consumers say authenticity is important when choosing the brands they like and support”. Additionally, this research identified that “81% of people believe businesses have a responsibility to be transparent on social media.” By presenting an authentic persona on your social media, you have the potential to create a stronger relationship with your customer and secure their valuable attention and engagement.
It can be intimidating to pull back the curtain and deliver the authenticity that audiences are now expecting. However, with these tips, your strategy will be starting to feel more and more authentic by the day!
Show up and Show Your Face
A key factor in appearing authentic with your social media is to show up and show your face. After all, people are more likely to buy from people.
If you’re a team, make sure your audience knows that. Publish original images featuring your team members on social media, celebrate their achievements and promotions. Make your team something your customers feel and want to be a part of. Here at Giraffe, we make sure to utilise national days to show off our team’s faces on our Instagram page. Furthermore, according to Sendible, research has found that photos that feature faces are 38% more likely to receive likes. Additionally, they are 32% more likely to receive comments on Instagram. These results certainly speak for themselves!
If you’re solo or a small business or just a little shy, there are still ways to show up! As we mentioned, keeping up with national days that connect with your brand is a great way to make your content feel more human. Additionally, you can use shorter form content such as TikTok, Reels and Stories on either Instagram or Snapchat to show behind the scenes content and even q&as. All of these small steps work together to humanise your brand. Who knows, they may even make you confident enough to show up yourself.
Connect With Others
Another way to humanise your brand is to collaborate with others through influencer marketing or sharing user-generated content (UGC).
By connecting with customers through UGC, you’re showing your customers that you care about them beyond the point of purchase. For example, if you’re resharing a photo of an order that a customer posted, you’re firstly showing the original poster that you appreciate them as a human. Secondly, you’re showing other potential customers that you are a brand that people purchase from and care about their customers. All of this works together to demonstrate authenticity.
Similar to UGC, by investing in influencer marketing, you are collaborating with someone else to show up and show their face on your behalf. If you form a long term collaboration with a micro-influencer who is perfectly positioned in your niche, they are able to extend your authenticity to your now shared audience. When it comes to authentic content, teamwork is what makes the dream work!
Be Honest with your Authentic Content
The final step towards authenticity is to be honest with your audience. If you’ve made a mistake and you’re being called out for it, admit to it and make public steps to ensure this doesn’t happen again.
Also, as previously mentioned, behind the scenes content is another way to produce honest content that appears entirely authentic. What’s more, behind the scenes content is hugely popular for short-form video content right now
Next Steps
Take a look at your current strategy and consider how these tips can be implemented to help boost your brand’s authenticity. However, be wary of how you implement these changes, at the end of the day you must be staying true and consistent with your brand’s identity whilst posting authentic content.
If you want to find out more about keeping your socials authentic, check out the Giraffe Social Media Podcast here. In need of specific advice for your brand? Get in touch with Giraffe Social Media for a proposal.
