I read a great article recently titled, '6 Habits of Remarkably Likeable People', on Inc. Read it.
Awesome, right?
Immediately upon completion, it struck me that there are a huge number of parallels between the habits of remarkably likeable people, and traits that make businesses likeable on social media.
There's a fair bit here that I'm hoping is highly applicable to your business. So, I've included a high-level description of each habit, and paired it with how to apply this to your social media marketing efforts to great effect.
1 - They lose the power pose
HOW THIS MAKES PEOPLE LIKEABLE: Standing tall, shoulders back, deepened voice, firm handshake. You know the drill for asserting yourself. The problem is that this posturing makes meeting people more about you than the other person.
The key to being likeable and opening yourself up to others is to show respect, be approachable and relaxed. It shows that you are equally happy to be meeting the other person as they are to meet you.
HOW YOU CAN APPLY THIS TO YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING: Any time you're making decisions on social media with your business as top priority, your priorities are out of whack.
What do your consumers want? What will they find valuable? What do they want to talk about?
Rather than dictating a monologue, start real conversations, and find ways to provide real value, and your consumers will respond with greater involvement and engagement.
2 - They embrace the power of touch
HOW THIS MAKES PEOPLE LIKEABLE: "Appropriate touch can be powerful... It can break down natural barriers and decrease the real and perceived distance between you and the other person."
HOW YOU CAN APPLY THIS TO YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING: While you can't literally touch anybody on social media, you can work toward breaking down barriers between you and your community. You can accomplish this by ensuring that your community knows the people behind your business or brand. By humanizing your business, you'll be able to develop deeper, more genuine relationships with your consumers.
3 - They whip out their social jiu-jitsu
HOW THIS MAKES PEOPLE LIKEABLE: "Remarkably likable people... get you to talk about yourself without you ever knowing it happened.
... ask the right questions. Stay open-ended and allow room for description and introspection."
HOW YOU CAN APPLY THIS TO YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING: Shift the focus of your conversations on social media to focus on your consumers.
What are they into? What motivates them? What excites them? What do they want from you?
When your conversations and content is too self-centred, consumer attention will wane as the value of your engagement and interactions will feel one-sided and promotional by nature. No matter your business, you aren't operating to serve yourself; you should be operating to serve your consumers or clients. By focusing your attention on your consumers, you might even learn something from them to make your business even better.
4 - They whip out something genuine
HOW THIS MAKES PEOPLE LIKEABLE: "... Don't be afraid to show a little vulnerability. People may be impressed by the artificial, but people sincerely like the genuine.
Be the real you. People will like the real you."
HOW YOU CAN APPLY THIS TO YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING: Try to remain open to your consumers' criticism, suggestions, ideas and contributions. They are, after all, responsible for your business' success or failure, so if they have something to say, don't dismiss it as inconsequential, embrace it and be appreciative that you have consumers who care enough to engage with you. Remember, whether they consciously do this or not, what they're trying to do is make a business they have interest in, even better.
5 - They ask for nothing
HOW THIS MAKES PEOPLE LIKEABLE: "You know the moment: You're having a great conversation, you're finding things in common... and then bam! Someone plays the networking card.
And everything about your interaction changes.
Put away the hard-charging, goal-oriented, always-on [kind of] persona. If you have to ask for something, find a way to help the other person, then ask if you can.
Remarkably likeable people focus on what they can do for you - not for themselves."
HOW YOU CAN APPLY THIS TO YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING: I love this point. I don't think there's a whole lot of interpretation and adaptation required here. This pretty well defines how businesses should behave on social media. It's all about adding value to your consumers, not broadcasting your business-centric communications.
6 - They "close" genuinely
HOW THIS MAKES PEOPLE LIKEABLE: Closing on "... Nice to meet you... is instantly forgettable."
Instead, "close" with a reason why it was nice to meet them, and "... smile: not that insincere salesperson smile... but a genuine, appreciative smile.
Making a great first impression is important, but so is making a great last impression."
HOW YOU CAN APPLY THIS TO YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING: I'll admit that I struggled with this one a bit. The reason I struggled is that ideally you aren't ever 'closing' a conversation on social media, you're simply putting conversations on pause until the next time you engage with your consumers.
This said, you should focus on making each of your interactions with your consumers meaningful enough to ensure they're left with a lasting impression that will draw them back to your community in the future. Again, think about how you can you add value for your consumers' and do just that.
IN CLOSING...
So, what should you make of all of this? Well, probably that positioning your business on social media as being likeable is remarkably similar to being likeable in the real world.
Ensure that your business is open, honest and approachable. Don't fall into a trap of producing content that is cool for your business, but has no meaning or value to your consumers.
And finally, provide huge value. Your consumers have invested their time to interact and engage with your business on social media, so live up to your end of the bargain and give them something of value in return. If you do it well enough, they'll be inclined to stay connected with your business in the future.