You, too, can become a social media power user

 Social media provides an equal opportunity for communicators to be whatever we want to be, said Peg Fitzpatrick, author and social media guru, at the keynote session of Business Communicators Summit in Kansas City.

The one-day event, hosted by KC IABC, drew 145 communicators to the Holiday Inn on the Country Club Plaza for professional development, networking and connecting with friends and colleagues.

Peg, co-author of The Art of Social Media: Power Tips for Power Users, has 13.5 million followers on the various social media platforms she manages. There’s no shortcut to attract followers: it’s work, but it’s possible. Here are a few quick tips from Peg on how to maximize your use of social media to build your brand:

•      Optimize your profile with a great photo of yourself and a meaningful background photo or graphic. Use keywords in your profile that draw followers you want. Be friendly and personal.  Use your name on all of your social media platforms.

•      Share great content. You don’t have to create it all yourself. Show up every day and post something – a message, a repost, a comment on someone else’s great post. Create a list of three things people should know about you and tailor your posts accordingly. Stay on brand. Everything you post creates your brand.

•      It’s possible to “buy” followers, but don’t. It’s a vanity metric and it’s meaningless. Attract people to follow you by producing content they want and need.

•      Build your own “squad” of 8-10 blogs that you like. Support other bloggers in your field of expertise by commenting and reposting. Yes, this means boosting your direct competitors. They will pay you back by doing the same for your great content.

•      Consider a post-planning platform, which is a tool to help you set up and post on a schedule you set. Some possible sites are Alltop, Feedly, Buzzsumo and Hootsuite.

•      Find a site like Google Alerts to send you information daily about your field. This helps create an inventory of great content you can repost or comment on.

•      You don’t need to be present on every social media platform. Choose what works best for your intended audience and where you get the most value.

•      Follow the rules of engagement on social media, meaning don’t post and run.