Social media is becoming an aggressively competitive space for brands.
You need to be doing something different, or you’re doomed to be just another faceless business account in the crowd.
Planning a social media content strategy is great but adding that extra “oomph factor” is what really gets people talking.
And when people are talking, the social media algorithm will react and will push your content to more people in your target audience.
But the question is what can you do to really be different and stand out in this crowded digital landscape?
Read on to find out a few things you can do to cut through the noise and truly stand out.
“Just remember that you don’t always need a viral hit to stand out on social media.”
Let’s dive into the meat of the subject!
How to Stand Out on Social Media in 10 Simple Ways
- Be More Human Than Corporate
- Establish Your Own Brand Voice
- Be Informative & Engaging
- Be Part of the Conversation, Not a Spammer
- Embrace Storytelling
- Make Your Posts Memorable
- Take On the Latest Features
- Be Consistent
- Theme Your Social Feed
- Capitalize on Building Relationships
1. Be More Human Than Corporate
The first tip that will set you apart on social is to be human. Consumers don’t care about companies, they want real people to care about them.
In fact, no one loves interacting with faceless brands anymore. It’s boring, leaves little room for engagement, and kills the chances of conversion.
Brands need to be personified by people that have a voice and opinions, rather than a corporate account that is focused on selling products.
People need to feel they are talking to humans that can bring a solution to their pain points, accompany them during their journey and advise them when needed.
A simple thing you can do to appear human is to just use your face in your profile picture, especially if you own your business.
People are more likely to engage in a conversation with a real person than a faceless account.
Getting human in this virtual world is what will build trust, connection, and loyalty toward your brand.
Whether you’re a small startup or a multi-national corporate, you need to understand that your audience wants to speak to people and not machines.
Be proactive and be ahead of the curve. Don’t try to fit in, but bring something fresh and different to the table by being human.
This extends to the tone of your social media content as well. Being friendly, conversational, and even humorous will go a long way with followers.
In an overcrowded social media space where everyone is trying to grab attention, being human is the first and best way of standing out.
2. Establish Your Own Brand Voice
Another way that you can stand out on social media is to have your own brand voice paired with a distinct style of communication.
Your brand voice should consist of a clear underlying concept or idea that you want to convey to customers via your social media account.
Once you’ve decided on the characteristics and adjectives that best describe you or your brand, you must then translate this into how you create content and communicate to your audience online.
Simply put, a brand voice means that you should do things in a way that only fits your brand style in order to create a unique voice within your industry.
For instance, a personal brand voice can be referred to as the “essence” of a brand that people can immediately identify.
By being an active and personal part of this essence, you will be making an impression on those who follow you.
So, how does this help you stand out on social media?
Well, for one, it’s a great way to build an online presence that is coherent and recognizable.
When people encounter your brand voice it will be familiar to them; they will feel like they know you.
And the more they get to know you and can relate to you, the more your brand will grow and become trusted.
Don’t be afraid to be unique in your style. Take risks but make sure that the content you create is consistent throughout.
3. Be Informative & Engaging
The purpose of social media is to connect with customers on a one-to-one basis, so it should be no surprise that it’s best used when it’s informative and engaging.
This is where your brand voice really becomes apparent as you provide valuable insights into the industry or field you’re in (whether it’s marketing, technology, health, etc.).
Informative and engaging posts are those that provide valuable information and answers to questions that people may have.
And remember not to be overly promotional, as this can quickly turn people away.
The key to standing out on social media is to not be a carbon copy of everyone else.
This means that you should post things that are different from what everyone else is posting because if not, why follow you?
Again, we all want to be connected with businesses that deliver interesting and engaging content that really resonate with us.
So how do you create interesting content? By being unique, authentic, and honest.
One way to add an element of your brand voice to these qualities is by sharing relevant and fresh information that people haven’t really seen before or from a different perspective.
This is how you build a brand voice that’s both engaging and memorable. You want to make sure your posts aren’t boring or useless.
This is why you need to be creative and think outside the box.
According to Wordstream, there are around 95 million photos and videos that are shared on Instagram every day.
It’s clear enough to show that if you create dull content, you won’t go very far.
Instead, create and promote thought-provoking and interactive content which is one of the keys to win at customer retention.
4. Be Part of the Conversation, Not a Spammer
Remember that social media is a two-way street.
It’s not about you getting all the attention and talking about everything you have going on about your business or your personal life all the time.
Doing this on social media can quickly turn people off and turn them away from becoming a potential loyal fan, if not a detractor altogether.
However, you still need to be able to provide information on what’s going on with your brand and industry.
Relevant, helpful, and authentic content is what will help you stand out as an authoritative source of information among followers.
You need to consistently and genuinely give something of value to your audience to consume and that will make your social media account worth following.
In each and every piece of content, you put out there, ensure that you’re providing something for the consumer.
The way to do this is by putting yourself into your content, being human, and answering questions or offering a solution to problems that consumers face.
The most important thing is to be genuine, helpful, and thoughtful.
5. Embrace Storytelling
The art of storytelling in content marketing is taking on ever-increasing significance.
Not only are we more receptive to content that is based on a narrative but it also makes it easier for us to remember the information that is presented to us.
This means that you will be creating content that has a beginning, middle, and end with clear storytelling and captivating imagery.
It’s true that the human brain is wired specifically in a way where it wants to learn through stories.
So there’s no better way of providing outstanding value than through great storytelling.
And by embracing this aspect of social media with your brand, you’ll be making a very strong impact on your followers.
One thing about storytelling is that it allows you to be able to provide a narrative for your brand through the lens of your customers.
It’s about creating content that makes the story of your brand more meaningful.
6. Make Your Posts Memorable
As mentioned previously, the biggest challenge that most businesses face on social media is the fact that there’s so much information being shared on a daily basis that it’s very hard for people to keep up.
This leads to followers not having enough time to digest and appreciate the content.
Because of this, you need to aim for content that makes a lasting impact.
This is accomplished by providing content that is memorable and different in some way (whether subtle or obvious).
Whether it’s on Instagram, Pinterest or YouTube, make sure that your posts are catchy, click-worthy, and enticing so that you don’t miss out on user engagement.
A few key elements that will require a creative touch are:
- Headlines: create catchy, not clickbaity headlines that make people want to click on your post.
- Visuals: use images that will further enhance the experience of your content and add to the overall feeling of the post.
- Colors: keep brand colors consistent across your posts for brand recognition purposes
- Content: make sure that your post is intriguing and original to stand out in people’s feeds.
For example, you can use visual elements that attract attention and stand a chance to make your posts go viral (like reels).
You can also use compelling content that appeals to the human need to learn and grow (like storytelling).
Or, you can use an array of relevant hashtags to share your message with a larger audience.
You can also mix these tactics together to get the best results!
Below is an example of what memorable posts are:
7. Take On the Latest Features
One mistake many small businesses make is that they ignore the new features that social media platforms release.
As a result, their social media accounts become stale pretty quickly and their brand begins to blend in with the rest of the crowd.
To avoid this, you need to be up-to-date with the latest features and use them to your advantage.
The reason you need to embrace the new functionalities of these social platforms is that they going to push the accounts that are using them and gave them more exposure.
If you simply ignore the new features as a content creator, you will be left behind, missing out on potential customers, traffic and money.
With that said, one of the ways to stand out on social media goes beyond posting content itself.
The ways you’re expected to promote that content also count in the eyes of the social media algorithm.
If you want to keep your content from being buried within the ever-expanding sea of content, make use of the new features that are coming out and add them to improve your promotion strategies.
8. Be Consistent
You may have read more than one time that consistency is key and it’s true, especially when it comes to social media.
If you want people to follow and engage with your content, you need to give them a reason to come back again and again.
That’s why consistency in posting is the first step towards building a strong community online that will help expand your reach.
So if you’re looking for more social media exposure, the first thing on your agenda should be to make it a habit to post on a regular basis.
If you want to stand out from the crowded field of social media, you need to make sure that you’re active on the platform(s) and the algorithm will reward you for that.
Because consistency is an important ingredient for success in any industry, adherence to this rule should definitely result in improved visibility and views of your content.
However, it’s wise to not go overboard when it comes to content distribution on social media so as not to experience burnout.
Consistency is not posting many times a day though. It’s simply keeping a pattern in your posting schedule so that followers know when you’re likely to publish new content.
The basic idea behind consistency is having a well-planned editorial calendar which is a reliable source of motivation.
What I mean by that is that you can post content once a week but when you do it every week, you’re being consistent.
9. Theme Your Social Feed
When it comes to social media, it’s very important to make your channels feel cohesive and consistent.
That’s why you need to consider theming your social feed.
It’s proven that the human brain is confused with visual chaos but is attracted to beautiful and simple visuals.
So if you want to make the best out of your content promotion, you need to create a theme and stick with it.
When your audience comes across your social media profile, what you want them to get is a cohesive experience that features similar quality content, images, and color scheme.
Standing out on social media means being unique, and a themed social feed can help you achieve this.
10. Capitalize on Building Relationships
Last but not least! One of the best ways to stand out from your competitors on social media is to build genuine relationships.
The truth is that relationships make all the difference on social media, and being able to establish genuine relationships can make or break your business.
Very often we think of the word “stand out” as something that has to do with the visual aspect of a social media profile only.
Yet, a business can have a few million followers but the engagement rate is crappy.
On the other hand, you might have only a few thousand followers but you have a great relationship with your followers.
As a result, your engagement rate on your posts is much higher and genuine and your audience trusts you and sees you as an industry expert.
So, who’s really standing out here? You of course!
With that being said, let’s take a look at the main ways that you can establish genuine relationships and build your brand awareness.
- Be active: to start building genuine relationships, you need to get out there and be active.
- Be real: authenticity is key to building relationships on social media. That’s why you need to be 100% authentic and show who you really are.
- Provide valuable comments: as a social media content creator, you need to make sure that you’re answering questions and providing valuable insights to people.
- Post interactive content: Let people know that you’re interested in their opinions.
- Ask questions: it might seem unusual but asking questions is one of the best ways to start building a relationship with people.
By doing all of the above, you’ll not only build an authentic connection with your followers, but you’ll also become a trusted voice to the point that it will be easy to bring them to your sales funnel.
Wrap Up
A strong social media presence is a powerful asset in your hands that can do great things for your brand such as increasing brand loyalty, driving more leads and sales, and improving your online reputation.
The key to making sure your social media profile gets an all-rounded visibility boost is to apply the best practices explained in this post.
Are you up for the challenge?
Putting these simple tips into practice can do wonders for your brand and help you reach out to a wider audience.