As social media continues to stick around, the rules continue to change. It’s almost like watching slang evolve. Slang fascinates me because which slang words a person uses indicates so much about them. If you hear someone say “awesome” or “ratchet” you can almost guess what year they were born. The same is true for social media accounts. Being engaging is not just a matter of which topics you choose, but what you say and how you say it.

What Does “Engaging” using Social Media Really Mean?

Our accounts talk about tech and food a lot. It makes sense. We’re working parents. We use a lot of tech, and food is delicious. Luckily, our target market is business owners, so more than likely they’re our age or older. If we were targeting teens, we’d likely need to use different topics and even different words to be engaging.

For instance, if I talk to my business partner and she agrees with me, it’s likely she’ll respond “I agree”, “Totally”, or “Exactly”. If I’m talking to my nanny and she agrees with me, she’ll respond “Same”. If I were trying to target her on social media and meet her at her level, I’d often miss the mark with “Exactly”s.

I think that’s what being engaging really comes down to. Being personable and speaking to someone in the same manner as they speak to you. It doesn’t mean dumbing things down or acting like an impostor. People can tell if you’re faking it or being condescending. This is why social media isn’t easy and why so many business have social media meltdowns and no plan for how to handle them. Being engaging means that when in Rome, you should do what the Romans do. Learn to talk the talk and walk the walk. Know your customers well enough to innately begin sounding like them.

Are you picking up what I’m putting down? Awesome.