Remember those nascent days of social media? Back in the early aughts, you needed a college email address to join Facebook. Fans were tickled when a celebrity acknowledged them on Twitter. It was all so pure.

Pure is not the first word that comes to mind when we think of social media today. We all know where things went wrong–Russian election meddling, misinformation, and the like–and that’s part of what’s tarnished our shared opinion of social platforms.

But I think the shift in business model–away from fostering connections and toward generating ad revenues–has something to do with it, too.

I get it. We live in a capitalist society. Building a platform that runs on good vibes only is not how you win investors or fuel a successful IPO.

But in our collective rush to capitalize on the magic of algorithm-driven, audience-targeted social media advertising, we’ve lost some of the alchemy inherent in authentic connections. And now, with many of the tech giants limiting user tracking, the days of highly-targeted advertising may be fading away.

So what is a brand to do?

We think it’s time to return to the wholesome spirit that drove social media’s early growth. And the best way to do that is through organic social media.

Why organic?

Many articles out there will tell you to spend big on social advertising. Everybody’s doing it!

And we’re not saying scrap it altogether. Social advertising remains part of a healthy, balanced marketing diet. Paid social is great for expanding your reach, building brand awareness, and driving conversions for something specific (like sign-ups for an event or downloads of an app). But it should not be the be-all and end-all of your marketing efforts.

All advertising–social or otherwise–is essentially an exchange of money for attention. You pay for social ads by impressions, engagement, or clicks. Each set of eyeballs or link-clicking fingers costs you money.

With organic social media done right, you get ongoing access to your audience’s attention at no extra cost.

Once someone follows your brand on social media, you’ve earned a sacred space on their feed. If you can continue to craft entertaining, engaging, and informative content, they’ll continue to follow, read, watch, like, and share.

Your ideal customers are the only ones that matter. Great social content doesn’t have to go viral or be universally appealing. It has to resonate with the people that will buy from your brand.

So how do you create great social content?

Social media can be a wonderful tool, but it’s also a hungry beast. You need to create substantive content on a regular basis. It’s not always easy. Here are some guiding principles to keep you on the right track.

Stay laser-focused on your audience

Your ideal customers are the only ones that matter. Great social content doesn’t have to go viral or be universally appealing. It has to resonate with the people that will buy from your brand.

Before you post anything, ask yourself, “Will our ideal customer like, understand, or benefit from this content?” If the answer is no, do not share it. Period.

Some people like to create little characters to represent their ideal customers: “Corey, the harried CEO” or “Alex, the health-conscious pet parent.” If that sounds like fun, get creative! Pick some stock photos to represent your customers and hang them over your desk. Then look at Corey and Alex every time you post to social and make sure your content is relevant to them. Do whatever works to keep those customers top of mind at all times.

Educate, don’t sell

No brand is on social solely out of the goodness of its heart. Businesses are there to connect with customers and, ultimately, to make sales. But you can’t hammer your audience with “buy, buy, buy” messaging–that’s very Glengarry Glen Ross, and people do not react well to it.

It’s possible to be generous without being entirely altruistic. Share your knowledge and expertise. Freely give away a little of what makes your brand special. People can’t know they want to buy from you if they don’t understand what makes your brand awesome and unique.

Once they see you in action, you won’t need to twist arms to always be closing. Folks will gladly do business with a brand that extends some goodwill up front and brings them a product or service they value.

Actually be social

So many brands are focused on posting new content that they forget about the other, equally important, component of social media: engagement.

Unlike some other forms of marketing content, social media is not a monologue. Instead, social content opens up a dialogue with your audience. One of the greatest things your brand can do to take full advantage of organic social is to volley back when someone reaches out to you.

Respond to reviews. React to comments. Acknowledge feedback and suggestions–good, bad, or ugly. Interacting with followers humanizes your brand and makes your followers feel seen. Even followers who don’t reach out to you directly will gain a positive opinion of your brand if you take the time to chat with those who do. Because social conversations are public, your response to one person can build goodwill with anyone who views it.

Lots of folks–marketers and non-marketers alike–are burnt out on social. We understand why! But we also think it’s a good idea to reflect on why we all signed up for these social platforms in the first place. It was to learn, build connections, and find community.

If your brand can create a corner of the internet that still champions those ideals, you may establish a loyal following. And while they may only like your posts today, they just may buy from you tomorrow.

Want to chat with us about your organic social media strategy? Email us! Or hit us up on social–we practice what we preach over there.