10 PRO Tips For Building an Interactive Social Media Community

The core of any social marketing campaign is community building.

Without a community of loyal fans, you’ll never be able to sell, market or collect data from your social pages.

That’s why you need to learn how the pros build great, interactive

communities for their fans. Here are our top ten tips.

#1: Address People By Name

Fans like to be acknowledged, so the next time you’re on Facebook, Twitter

or your blog – address them personally. Show them you’re

interested in their opinions, to get fans that come back for more.

#2: Give Them a Reason

If you’ve been publishing post after post, and have still not managed to get any comments – you need to change it

up. Give your fans a reason to reply. The quickest way to do this is via a competition, a free giveaway or a

really interesting question.

#3: Pay Attention To Each Comment

Comments are like gold on any social platform. To build a great community you need lots of them, so spend time

answering each one to perfection. Most of all, don’t publish spam! Or

your posts will scare real commenters away.

#4: Lend a Helping Hand

If a fan asks you a niche question, that doesn’t benefit you in any way –

answer it! When you prove that you’re willing to help, people will find you

more appealing and will continue to frequent your pages.

#5: Keep it Light and Positive

It should go without saying that negativity is not allowed on your

pages. People are attracted to positive posts, so be encouraging, innovative and quirky to get their attention. Too much negativity will send your fans

packing.

#6: Get Them Talking

Get your fans to meet each other and talk to each other to become a real

community. It’s not just about you and them, it’s about everyone! Start by

asking for opinions on other people’s comments.

#7: Go Above and Beyond

Pretend that your community is your online family. If a family member asks you to take a look at their blog – you should do it! Go the extra mile and your fans will do the same for you. You’ll never stop benefiting from it.

#8: Focus on Interaction

You need to be where your fans are interacting – so focus your attention

there. Don’t get caught up doing other things, its people that are most important to social community

building.

#9: Remember The Little Things

Get to know your community, and surprise them by remembering their

birthdays and special occasions. A nice touch is to send them a discount

voucher for something in a virtual e-card. It costs you nothing, and means

everything to your fan.

#10: Giving To Receive

To keep your community happy you need to consistently give to them. Free

stuff, great content, products, discounts, coupons, competitions,

chances to win, exclusive sneak peaks – they need to form the basis of your

online relationships.

Social Media Marketing University (SMMU) is the creation of John Paul Souza, a serial entrepreneur who's held senior managerial positions at Banc America Capital Management

Group and JP Morgan Chase. Serving marketing professionals,

entrepreneurs and corporations, SMMU differentiates itself by offering

hands-on training from hands-on experts who are actively applying their

skills on real-world projects.

SMMU was recently honored as one of the top 5 finalists by the leading blog

site, Mashable, as one of the top provider of social media services for businesses. The firm has earned the title of "most trusted social media

firm" with over 900 unsolicited testimonials.

For more information about social media webinars and social media

online courses, please visit http://www.socialmediamarketinguniversity.com