After three hours at the salon, I decided to close my business books and read a few articles in Cosmopolitan and Essence magazine. What do you know? The majority of the articles were about how to woo your mate on the first date. Wow! But, what’s interesting to know is that whether you were trying to woo a man or a woman, we all want same things. Love and attention! We have this conception that people who are charismatic, attractive and highly educated have the gift to woo anyone. But this is completely, false! With social media, it’s about engaging your audience’s mind and imagination. To grab your audience can be accomplished without a PhD or a gorgeous body:
1. Feed their ego
Who doesn’t like a stroke of their ego? Let’s just face it, everyone loves to be recognized. Imagine having a first date with a hottie and he or she does not recognize your most impressive attire or your sexy 6” heels. Ooo! You will start to feel a little uneasy and wonder if that person is attracted to you.
Promoting others is the key to success in social media. Watch what your audience is doing online. Praise them for their hard work, perseverance and promote them to others in your network. They will love and remember you for that!
2. Hit their spot
Ok, maybe not that type of spot! I’m talking about hitting your audience emotional spot. To woo your audience, you make them feel protected, secure and confident. Just like your first love. When you engage with your audience after repetitive interaction, it creates an emotional attachment. When your audience is emotionally attached to your brand; they become your loyal customers and active promoters.
3. Mentally Stimulate Your Audience
It’s not easy to pay attention to some people in this world. I have been on dates with gentlemen who were quite boring or talk too much. But there’s one thing that intrigues me the most about a gentlemen – how mentally stimulating he is. He will ask closed-end questions that keep me involved mentally and physically.
Remember, your audience is part of your community because they want to be educated and take something away of value. By stimulating your audience’s mind with thought-provoking questions, we keep them interested, intrigued and entertained.
4. Just Listen & Respond Briefly
Ok, back to the gentlemen who talks too much. Uh! That’s annoying! I understand you want to be heard online but when you talk too much instead of listening, you will be tuned out. You will be the dude that everyone avoids at the party.
Law #4 from the 48 Laws of Power “When you are trying to impress people with words, the more you say, the more common you appear, and the less in control.”
Listen to your audience before jumping in the middle of any conversation. Be brief with your response and be out. You will appear more profound and mysterious.
5. Be Honest
This last one is for the fake folk! I was on a date with a gentleman who talked about how perfect his life was. The money, the career and his lifestyle was so golden. I knew he was lying! He is human!
Law #12 from 48 Laws of Power “Open-hearted gestures of honesty and generosity bring down the guard of even the most suspicious people.”
It’s not about one act of honesty, but a series of acts. This applies to the language you speak to your audience. Some bloggers need to be more transparent toward their audience to show that they are human.
From being a single parent, working a full-time job, part-time freelancer and a part-time Social Media Enthusiast, I would be lying to tell you my life is golden. Even though I have my ups and down, my life journey has been exciting and spontaneous. When we are honest to tell our audiences some of our struggles and setbacks, you inspire others to pursue their dream and overcome their challenges.
Whether you are an introvert or extrovert, wooing your audience is not rocket science. It requires time and patience. If you can provide valuable content, be attentive to your audience’s needs, stimulate their mind and stroke their ego, you will create an emotional bond and grab their attention.
