Are you looking for ways to provide more relevant content to your followers? Want to know how to establish what your social media followers want from you?

Salesforce share their tips for success in this infographic.

Here’s what makes their list:

• Learn industry hashtags
• Check competitor mentions
• Keep an eye on more than the big platforms
• Ask them

Check out the infographic for more detail.

 

Social media has transformed the way businesses connect with their audience. With billions of users engaging on platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter (X), and LinkedIn, social media is not only an avenue for promoting products or services but also a valuable tool for understanding what your audience craves.

Creating content that resonates with your followers can be challenging, but with the right strategies, you can gain insights into their interests and preferences, allowing you to tailor your content effectively.

In this post, we’ll explore four key strategies to help you leverage social media to find out what content your followers want.

Learn Industry Hashtags

Hashtags are a powerful social media tool that can significantly enhance your visibility and help you connect with your target audience.

For small businesses, learning to use industry-specific hashtags effectively can be one of the most cost-effective and efficient ways to engage with potential customers and understand what content resonates with them.

When used correctly, hashtags increase the discoverability of your posts, boost engagement, and help you stay on top of trends within your industry.

In this section, we’ll dive deeper into how small businesses can leverage industry hashtags to not only get discovered but also gather insights into the content your followers want.

Start by Researching Industry-Specific Hashtags

The first step in using hashtags effectively is understanding which ones are relevant to your business. To find industry-specific hashtags, you’ll need to conduct some research. This can be done by looking at competitors, influencers, and thought leaders within your industry.

How to Conduct Research:

• Analyze Competitor Hashtags: Look at the hashtags your competitors are using in their social media posts. Take note of which ones are generating a lot of engagement, such as likes, shares, comments, or retweets. Tools like Hootsuite, Sprout Social, and BuzzSumo allow you to monitor competitor accounts, giving you a clear view of which hashtags are working for them.
• Follow Industry Influencers: Search for key figures in your industry, such as thought leaders, popular influencers, and established brands. See what hashtags they regularly use in their content. This can provide insights into both trending topics and effective hashtags.
• Use Hashtag Research Tools: Platforms like Hashtagify, RiteTag, and All Hashtag are tools designed to help you identify popular and relevant hashtags within your industry. These tools show you the popularity of hashtags, related tags, and trending topics, making it easier to choose the most effective ones.

Tip: Create a list of 10-15 core hashtags that are most relevant to your business, and make sure to use them consistently across your posts.

Utilize Both Popular and Niche Hashtags

When you use hashtags, it’s important to strike a balance between high-volume, popular hashtags and niche, more targeted hashtags. Popular hashtags are useful for reaching a broad audience, but because they are used frequently, your posts may get lost in a sea of content. Niche hashtags, on the other hand, are often used by a smaller group of people, but they can be incredibly effective for targeting a specific audience.

How to Balance Popular and Niche Hashtags:

• Popular Hashtags: These are the broad, widely used hashtags in your industry that attract large audiences. For example, if you’re in the fitness industry, popular hashtags might include #fitness, #healthyliving, #workout, or #gymmotivation. Using these hashtags increases the visibility of your content but may not always result in highly engaged followers.
• Niche Hashtags: These are more specific and cater to a particular segment of your audience. For example, if your fitness business specializes in yoga, you might use niche hashtags like #yogacommunity, #yogaforbeginners, or #mindfulness. While these hashtags have a smaller following, they tend to attract more engaged and relevant users, improving the likelihood of converting followers into customers.

Tip: Aim to use a mix of 60-70% popular hashtags and 30-40% niche hashtags in each post. This will give you the best of both worlds—broad exposure and targeted reach.

Track Hashtag Performance

One of the key benefits of using hashtags is that you can track their performance over time. Understanding which hashtags drive the most engagement on your posts allows you to refine your social media strategy and create more targeted content.

How to Track Hashtag Performance:

• Social Media Insights: Most social media platforms, like Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, offer built-in analytics that show how well specific hashtags are performing on your posts. Pay attention to metrics such as reach, engagement, and follower growth related to hashtags. On Instagram, for instance, you can see how many people found your post through a particular hashtag under the “Insights” section.
• Use Social Media Monitoring Tools: There are a variety of third-party tools that can help you track hashtag performance across multiple platforms. Tools like Hootsuite, Sprout Social, and Buffer allow you to monitor hashtags in real-time and measure their effectiveness. This data will help you understand which hashtags bring in the most engagement and which need to be replaced or modified.
• Look for Patterns: Over time, you’ll notice trends in which hashtags attract the most attention. For example, certain hashtags may perform better on specific days or times, or certain seasonal or event-based hashtags might attract more engagement during a particular period.

Tip: Regularly assess your hashtag performance every 30 days. Replace underperforming hashtags with new ones based on trends, events, or seasonal changes.

Engage with Content Using Your Hashtags

Hashtags not only serve as a way to categorize your posts but also as a means to discover and engage with content created by others. Engaging with posts using the same hashtags is a powerful way to increase visibility, build relationships, and stay relevant within your industry.

How to Engage with Hashtag Content:

• Like and Comment on Posts: Find posts with your industry hashtags and engage by liking or commenting on them. This helps your profile get noticed by other users who are active in the same hashtag communities. It also builds relationships with potential followers and customers.
• Repost User-Generated Content (UGC): If followers use your branded hashtag or post content related to your industry, repost it (with permission). This builds trust and fosters a sense of community, while also exposing your brand to a wider audience. Encouraging UGC also makes your followers feel valued.
• Join Conversations: When you come across posts using the same hashtags, take the time to comment thoughtfully. Ask questions, offer insights, or contribute to the discussion. By joining these conversations, you position your business as an active and engaged member of your industry’s community.

Tip: Set aside time each week to engage with posts under your key hashtags. Respond to comments, share valuable insights, and participate in conversations to increase your visibility.

Create and Promote Your Own Branded Hashtags

Branded hashtags are unique to your business and help you build a community of followers around your brand. These hashtags can be used for specific campaigns, events, or initiatives and can encourage your followers to create content that’s aligned with your brand values.

How to Create a Branded Hashtag:

• Keep It Simple and Memorable: Choose a hashtag that’s easy to remember and spell. Avoid overly long or complex hashtags. For example, if you run a bakery, a hashtag like #FreshBakeryDelights would be easier to remember than something too lengthy or obscure.
• Make It Unique: Do a quick search to ensure your branded hashtag is not already in use. If it is, try to modify it or come up with a completely new one. The goal is to create a hashtag that’s clearly associated with your business and easy for people to find.
• Encourage Your Followers to Use It: Promote your branded hashtag in your posts, stories, and even in physical locations (such as on signage or packaging). Encourage your customers to use it when they share photos or experiences related to your product or service.

Tip: Run contests or campaigns encouraging users to use your branded hashtag. For example, ask followers to share photos of themselves using your product with the hashtag, and offer a prize for the best submission.

Stay Updated on Hashtag Trends and Changes

Hashtag usage and trends can shift quickly. New hashtags emerge, while others may lose relevance. Staying updated on changes in your industry and on social media can help you keep your content fresh and your posts engaging.

How to Stay Updated:

• Follow Industry News: Subscribe to industry blogs, newsletters, and podcasts to stay informed about trends, events, and news in your field. For example, if there’s an upcoming trade show or new product launch in your industry, you can create content around those events using relevant hashtags.
• Monitor Trending Hashtags: Platforms like Twitter and Instagram have trending hashtag sections where you can see the latest viral topics. Occasionally, using a trending hashtag that relates to your business can boost your reach significantly.
• Experiment with New Hashtags: Don’t be afraid to experiment with new hashtags that are gaining traction. Test out emerging hashtags, but ensure they are still relevant to your audience. If they work, incorporate them into your strategy.

Tip: Set a reminder to review trending hashtags every week to stay ahead of the curve.

Conclusion

Hashtags are a powerful tool that can help small businesses increase visibility, build community, and engage with potential customers.

By learning to effectively use industry hashtags, tracking their performance, engaging with content, and creating your own branded hashtags, you can gain valuable insights into what content your audience craves.

This allows you to create more targeted, engaging posts that resonate with your followers, ultimately boosting your social media presence and helping your business thrive.

Check Competitor Mentions

When it comes to discovering what content resonates with your target audience, one of the most effective strategies is to monitor your competitors’ social media presence.

By analyzing competitor mentions, you can gather valuable insights into what topics, formats, and messaging are working in your industry. This helps you refine your own content strategy, identify gaps in the market, and stay ahead of emerging trends.

In this section, we’ll explore how small businesses can use competitor mentions to understand what content their followers want, and how to leverage these insights to create more engaging and relevant content.

Why Checking Competitor Mentions Matters

Competitor mentions refer to instances where your competitors’ brand is tagged, discussed, or referenced on social media. By checking these mentions, you can gather valuable information about what people are saying about your competitors, what type of content they’re responding to, and where there are potential opportunities for your business to engage more effectively with your audience.

Key Benefits of Checking Competitor Mentions:

• Understand Audience Interests: Observing the content that gets the most mentions can reveal what topics, products, or services are getting the most attention in your industry.
• Identify Content Gaps: By seeing what your competitors are missing or not focusing on, you can create content that fills those gaps, offering something unique to your audience.
• Measure Brand Sentiment: Monitoring competitor mentions helps you gauge the sentiment (positive or negative) surrounding their content. This can guide you in crafting your own messaging to either capitalize on or avoid similar situations.

Use Social Media Monitoring Tools

While checking individual competitor mentions manually can be time-consuming, using social media monitoring tools can significantly streamline the process. These tools allow you to track competitor mentions across multiple platforms, analyze the sentiment of posts, and gain insights into what kind of content is driving engagement.

Popular Social Media Monitoring Tools:

• Hootsuite: With Hootsuite, you can set up streams to monitor mentions of your competitors on platforms like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. You can also track the sentiment of these mentions, helping you assess how people feel about the competitor’s brand and products.
• Sprout Social: Sprout Social’s “Social Listening” features allow you to monitor competitor activity, track mentions, and analyze key performance metrics for both your brand and competitors. It provides insights into trending topics and allows you to keep an eye on industry conversations.
• BuzzSumo: BuzzSumo allows you to track mentions of your competitors’ content, including blog posts, news articles, and social media mentions. It also gives you the ability to analyze which pieces of content are performing the best and driving the most engagement.
• Brand24: This tool provides real-time tracking of mentions across various platforms and also analyzes the sentiment around those mentions. It’s particularly useful for identifying not only direct mentions of your competitors but also broader industry trends.

Tip: Set up alerts for your competitors’ names and specific keywords related to your industry. This way, you can stay updated without constantly checking manually

Analyze Engagement with Competitor Mentions

Simply knowing when competitors are mentioned is not enough—you need to analyze how their content is being received. Are people leaving positive comments? Are they engaging in conversations? Are they sharing or resharing content? These insights can help you understand what type of content and messaging resonates with your audience and what doesn’t.

Key Metrics to Analyze:

• Sentiment Analysis: Are the mentions about your competitors positive, neutral, or negative? If people are excited about a specific product or post, you might want to replicate that type of content or even create a product or service with a similar appeal.
• Engagement Rate: What type of content is getting the most likes, shares, comments, and retweets? This can help you identify which topics or content formats (videos, blog posts, product demos, etc.) are attracting the most attention.
• Frequency of Mentions: How often are your competitors mentioned? A high frequency may indicate a growing or ongoing trend that you should explore or participate in.

Tip: Focus not just on the number of mentions, but on the level of engagement. A single mention that generates a lot of conversation may be more insightful than dozens of mentions with little engagement.

Understand Competitor Content Strategy

By analyzing what type of content is being mentioned or discussed in relation to your competitors, you can uncover the kind of content your target audience is interested in. This doesn’t mean copying your competitors directly, but it does provide valuable insights into trends, styles, and formats that work.

Key Areas to Explore:

• Content Topics: What are your competitors talking about? Are there recurring themes or issues that are sparking conversation? For example, if you’re in the fashion industry, you might notice that a competitor’s mention of sustainable fashion consistently garners positive attention.
• Content Formats: What types of content are getting the most engagement? Are your competitors seeing more success with images, videos, blog posts, or podcasts? Identifying the most effective formats can help you adjust your content strategy to match what your followers want.
• Call to Action (CTA): Pay attention to the calls to action in competitor posts. Are they asking followers to share, comment, or visit a website? Evaluating how your competitors’ CTAs are driving engagement can give you ideas for improving your own social media strategy.

Tip: Don’t just look at successful content—also analyze posts that fall flat. If a competitor’s post isn’t resonating, you can learn what not to do and avoid making the same mistakes.

Spot Opportunities to Differentiate Your Brand

By closely monitoring competitor mentions, you’ll often find gaps in their content strategy that you can capitalize on. If a competitor is getting lots of attention for a specific topic but hasn’t fully explored it, you can create more in-depth content or a unique offering to fill the void. Alternatively, you might discover areas where competitors are receiving negative feedback, which presents an opportunity for your business to position itself as a solution.

How to Spot Opportunities:

• Identify Overlooked Content Areas: If a competitor is getting lots of mentions for a particular trend but isn’t fully addressing it, you can seize the opportunity to create more content on that topic, providing deeper insights or more actionable information.
• Address Customer Pain Points: If you see negative mentions related to your competitors’ customer service, product quality, or brand reputation, you can position your business as the better alternative by highlighting your strengths in those areas.
• Create Alternative Solutions: If competitors’ products or services are receiving negative feedback for certain features or limitations, you can highlight how your product or service solves those issues. Make sure your content speaks directly to those concerns.

Tip: Look for gaps in the market. Are customers expressing a desire for something that your competitors haven’t offered yet? Fill that gap with unique content, offers, or product features.

Leverage Competitor Mentions for Campaigns and Collaborations

Understanding what content your competitors are being mentioned in can also help you identify potential collaborations and partnerships. If there are influencers or brands consistently mentioning your competitors in a positive light, reaching out to those same influencers for collaborations might give you access to a wider, relevant audience.

How to Use Competitor Mentions for Campaigns:

• Identify Influencers: If influencers are mentioning or promoting your competitors, you can reach out to these influencers and discuss potential collaborations. This can help you gain access to their audience and boost your brand’s credibility.
• Monitor Hashtags: Competitors often create or are associated with specific hashtags. By analyzing mentions under these hashtags, you can identify which influencers or brands are talking about them, potentially opening doors for cross-promotion or co-branded content.
• Keep Track of Events or Product Launches: If a competitor has recently launched a new product or hosted an event that has been widely mentioned, you can align your own campaigns or content to ride on the coattails of that buzz, while offering a unique perspective or alternative.

Tip: Be proactive in reaching out to influencers or partners who have a history of working with your competitors. You might find they are open to working with you, too.

Conclusion

Checking competitor mentions is a valuable practice for small businesses that want to stay competitive and ensure they’re creating content their followers actually want.

By monitoring social media conversations, using social media monitoring tools, analyzing engagement, and spotting opportunities to differentiate, you can gain valuable insights into your target audience’s interests and behavior.

These insights can guide your content strategy, help you fill gaps in the market, and position your brand as an industry leader. Through careful analysis and proactive engagement, checking competitor mentions can help your business craft more relevant, engaging, and impactful content that resonates with your audience.

Keep an Eye on More Than the Big Platforms

When most businesses think of social media, they often focus on the major platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn. These are certainly important, but they are not the only places where valuable conversations about your industry or niche may be happening.

To truly understand what content your followers want—and to find untapped opportunities—it’s essential to look beyond the major social media platforms. By diversifying your social media monitoring and keeping an eye on niche platforms, forums, and alternative spaces, you can gain unique insights that many of your competitors may be overlooking.

In this section, we’ll explore why it’s important to monitor more than just the big platforms and provide in-depth tips for small businesses on how to do so effectively.

Why You Shouldn’t Rely Solely on Big Platforms

While Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn are widely popular, they may not necessarily provide a complete picture of what your audience wants or needs. Smaller, niche platforms and even community forums often host passionate, engaged communities who are discussing topics that may not be trending on mainstream platforms but could still be highly relevant to your business.

Reasons to Keep an Eye on More Than the Big Platforms:

• Niche Communities: Smaller platforms often foster tighter-knit communities with highly engaged members. These communities may share niche interests, specific pain points, or industry trends that are overlooked on larger platforms.
• Untapped Conversations: If you focus solely on the big platforms, you may miss out on emerging conversations or ideas that have not yet gone mainstream.
• Diverse Demographics: Different platforms attract different demographics. By monitoring a variety of platforms, you can ensure you’re reaching a broader audience and not limiting yourself to one type of user.
• Less Saturation: Smaller platforms may not be as saturated with content, making it easier for your brand to stand out and engage with your audience.

Alternative Platforms to Explore

To capture a fuller picture of your audience’s interests and preferences, you need to go beyond the major platforms and monitor a wider range of online spaces. Here are some valuable platforms and channels to consider:

Reddit

Reddit is often described as the “front page of the internet,” and for good reason. It’s a treasure trove of niche communities known as subreddits, where users discuss a wide array of topics. Whether it’s a specific industry, product, or service, there’s likely a subreddit dedicated to it.

• How to Leverage Reddit: Use Reddit’s search bar to find subreddits relevant to your business. Monitor the discussions to understand what topics are getting upvoted or generating discussions. For example, if you sell eco-friendly products, you might follow subreddits like r/sustainability or r/ZeroWaste. Join in on conversations, but avoid overt promotion—be authentic in your contributions.
• Subreddit Tools: Tools like Redditlist or SubredditStats can help you find subreddits that are gaining popularity in your industry. Reddit’s own “Trending” section is also a good place to see what topics are being discussed across the platform.

Quora

Quora is a Q&A platform where users ask and answer questions on various topics. It’s an excellent resource for understanding the types of questions and problems your potential customers have. Monitoring Quora can give you ideas for blog posts, videos, and other content formats that address user queries.

• How to Leverage Quora: Search for questions related to your business or industry and see which ones are getting the most upvotes. The questions that get a lot of attention often point to common pain points or areas of interest that you can address with your content. For example, if your business offers a tech solution, you could track questions about common software problems or tech trends.
• Set Up Alerts: Use tools like Google Alerts to track relevant keywords and get notified whenever new questions are posted on Quora.

TikTok

TikTok is increasingly becoming a major platform for content discovery, particularly for younger demographics. It’s not just for viral dances and trends; TikTok is also an incredibly effective platform for niche communities to connect and share content.

• How to Leverage TikTok: Look for trends related to your industry by monitoring hashtags or searching for specific keywords. For example, if you’re in the fashion industry, search for hashtags like #fashionhacks, #sustainablefashion, or #fashiontrends. Watching TikTok videos that feature user-generated content can help you understand what resonates with your audience.
• Use TikTok’s Discovery Page: TikTok’s algorithm tailors content to your interests, making the Discovery Page a great place to find trending topics. Dive into the popular sounds, challenges, and content formats that are gaining traction in your industry.

Pinterest

Pinterest is a visual discovery engine where users “pin” images, videos, and links related to their interests. While Pinterest may not be as social as other platforms, it is a highly valuable tool for content discovery, especially in industries like fashion, home decor, and food.

• How to Leverage Pinterest: Search for keywords or browse boards related to your business. Check what kinds of pins are getting the most engagement (repins, comments, and clicks). This can help you identify what types of images, infographics, or blog posts are most appealing to your audience.
• Create Boards to Monitor Trends: You can create boards with ideas related to your business and monitor what’s trending within those categories. Pinterest’s Trends feature allows you to track popular keywords and topics across the platform.

Niche Industry Forums

In addition to large social media platforms, niche forums dedicated to specific industries or topics can provide deep insights into your audience’s interests. Whether it’s a community of software developers, health and wellness enthusiasts, or DIY experts, niche forums tend to have users who are highly knowledgeable and vocal about their needs.

• How to Leverage Niche Forums: Participate in forums such as Stack Exchange (for developers), Spiceworks (for IT professionals), or Wellness Mama (for health and wellness). Monitor the discussions to understand the types of problems people are seeking solutions for, and tailor your content to address those pain points.
• Use Forum Aggregators: Websites like BoardReader can help you search through various forums and message boards to find relevant conversations in your industry.

Monitor Content Aggregator Websites

Content aggregators collect and display articles, blog posts, videos, and other content from across the web. These sites often feature trending or highly-shared content, which can help you identify what’s popular in your industry.

Examples of Content Aggregators:

• Feedly: Feedly is an RSS feed reader that lets you follow blogs, news sites, and niche publications. By subscribing to content sources in your industry, you can quickly see what articles are generating buzz and gaining attention.
• Flipboard: Flipboard is another content aggregation platform that curates articles and blog posts based on your interests. It’s a great way to discover what content is being shared in your niche.

How to Leverage Content Aggregators:

Use these platforms to see which articles or topics are being shared the most. This can give you insight into trending topics, as well as content formats (such as listicles, how-to guides, or expert roundups) that perform well.

Be Mindful of Emerging Platforms

In addition to established smaller platforms, new social networks and content-sharing sites are constantly emerging. Keeping an eye on these platforms gives you an early look into up-and-coming trends and potentially untapped audiences.

• How to Leverage Emerging Platforms: Stay active in online communities that monitor emerging social media trends, such as Product Hunt, TechCrunch, or BetaList. These sites often highlight the next big platforms before they become mainstream.
• Experiment with New Platforms: If you spot a new platform gaining traction in your industry or among your target audience, consider experimenting with it to get ahead of your competitors. Platforms like Clubhouse (audio-based social networking) or BeReal (authentic, real-time photo sharing) offer unique ways to engage with audiences.

Conclusion

To fully understand what content your followers want, it’s essential to look beyond the mainstream social media platforms and explore alternative channels. By monitoring niche platforms, industry forums, and emerging content aggregators, you can tap into more authentic, relevant conversations and identify emerging trends before they become widespread.

As a small business, staying ahead of the curve and actively engaging with diverse communities can help you create content that speaks directly to your audience’s needs and interests. Expanding your social media monitoring to include these lesser-known platforms not only broadens your reach but also positions your brand as a proactive, insightful player in your industry

Ask Them

One of the most straightforward yet often overlooked strategies for understanding what content your followers want is simply to ask them directly.

Engaging your audience by soliciting feedback, asking for their preferences, and encouraging participation can provide invaluable insights into their needs, interests, and expectations. When done correctly, this approach not only strengthens your relationship with your audience but also ensures that your content is more targeted and effective.

In this section, we’ll dive into the various ways small businesses can ask their followers what they want, how to interpret the feedback, and how to use it to enhance your content marketing strategy.

Utilize Social Media Polls and Surveys

Polls and surveys are one of the easiest and most effective ways to engage with your audience and directly ask them what they want. These tools allow you to gather specific, quantifiable data that can be analyzed and used to make informed content decisions.

Where to Use Polls:

Most major social platforms like Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook have built-in features for polls and surveys. For example:

• Instagram Stories: Instagram’s Poll and Quiz stickers allow you to create simple, interactive polls. You can ask questions like “Which product should we feature next?” or “What type of content do you want to see more of?”
• Twitter Polls: Twitter allows users to create polls with up to four options, making it ideal for quick audience feedback.
• Facebook Polls: Facebook Groups, as well as your business page, allow you to create polls to ask followers about content preferences, product feedback, and more.
• LinkedIn Polls: LinkedIn offers similar polling features that can be used to engage your professional network.

Best Practices for Polls and Surveys:

• Keep It Short and Sweet: Polls should be quick and easy to complete. A question with two to four answer options is usually the most effective. Longer surveys can be used for more detailed feedback but may require a larger incentive.
• Ask Specific Questions: Instead of asking vague questions like “What content do you want?” ask more specific questions such as “Do you prefer blog posts or videos?” or “Which topics are you most interested in—product tips, behind-the-scenes, or customer stories?”
• Use Multiple Platforms: Don’t limit yourself to just one platform. Cross-promote your polls across different social networks to reach a broader audience.

Interpret Poll Results:

Look for patterns in the responses to see what types of content are resonating most with your followers. If you notice a consistent preference for video content over blogs, for example, you might consider shifting your focus to producing more visual content.

Host Q&A Sessions or “Ask Me Anything” (AMA)

Q&A sessions and AMAs (Ask Me Anything) are a great way to foster real-time engagement with your audience and gain insights into what they are curious about. These formats encourage followers to ask questions directly to you, which can reveal the types of content they would like to see in the future.

Where to Host Q&A Sessions:

You can host Q&As on platforms such as:

• Instagram Live or Stories: Instagram’s question sticker allows followers to ask questions, and you can answer them in real-time.
• Facebook Live: Hosting a live video allows you to directly engage with your audience, answer their questions, and ask them about their content preferences.
• Reddit AMAs: Reddit’s AMA format is a great way to engage with niche communities and get in-depth questions about your business, product, or industry.
• YouTube Live: If you have an established YouTube channel, hosting a live Q&A can also provide a space for audience interaction.

Best Practices for Q&A Sessions:

• Promote in Advance: Let your followers know in advance when and where your Q&A session will take place. This gives them time to prepare their questions.
• Ask for Topic Suggestions: You can ask your followers what they would like to discuss during the Q&A or if they have any specific questions about your business, products, or industry.
• Provide Follow-up Content: After the Q&A, consider creating follow-up content based on the questions asked. For example, if many people asked about how to use your product, you could create a detailed tutorial or video.

Engage and Acknowledge:

During the live session, be sure to actively respond to questions, comment on suggestions, and acknowledge user contributions. Showing that you value their input encourages more people to engage.

Engage in Direct Conversations with Followers

Engaging in direct one-on-one conversations with your followers on social media can offer deeper insights into what they’re looking for. This strategy allows you to ask open-ended questions and receive thoughtful responses that might not emerge from standard polls or surveys.

How to Start Conversations:

• Respond to Comments: Whenever someone comments on your posts, engage with them in a meaningful way. Ask follow-up questions to learn more about their interests or opinions on your content.
• DMs (Direct Messages): While direct messaging may seem like a more personal approach, it can also be used effectively to gather feedback. For example, you can send a DM to your most engaged followers and ask them what they would like to see more of in your content.
• Social Listening: Pay attention to what your followers are saying about your business in their own posts. When they tag your business or mention you in a post, reach out to thank them and ask them about their experience or what kind of content they’d like to see more of.

Best Practices for Direct Engagement:

• Be Genuine: Make sure your approach is authentic and not overly promotional. Followers will be more inclined to give honest feedback if they feel like you’re genuinely interested in their opinions.
• Personalize Responses: When responding to comments or messages, personalize your responses. This shows that you value the person’s opinion and makes the conversation feel more meaningful.

Run a Content Feedback Campaign

If you’ve been creating content for a while and want to know how your audience is responding, running a content feedback campaign can be incredibly valuable. You can ask your followers to give their thoughts on specific pieces of content, which helps you assess what’s working and what’s not.

How to Run a Feedback Campaign:

• Use Google Forms or Typeform: Set up a simple feedback survey using tools like Google Forms or Typeform. You can ask followers to rate your content (videos, blog posts, infographics, etc.) and provide suggestions for improvement.
• Incentivize Responses: To encourage more followers to participate, offer a small incentive, such as a discount, free resource, or entry into a giveaway.
• Ask for Specifics: Instead of asking for general feedback, request specific information. For example, “Which type of content do you find most helpful?” or “What could we improve about our weekly blog posts?”

Analyzing Feedback:

Once the feedback comes in, categorize responses to identify trends. This will help you see which topics, formats, and content types are most effective at engaging your audience.

Use Social Media Listening Tools

Social media listening tools allow you to monitor conversations happening around your brand, industry, or specific keywords across various social platforms. This enables you to proactively ask your audience for input and stay on top of trending discussions in real time.

Recommended Tools:

• Hootsuite: Hootsuite’s listening features allow you to track what people are saying about your brand and industry. You can use this information to shape content around your audience’s interests.
• Sprout Social: Sprout Social’s listening tool enables you to track specific keywords or topics to understand your audience’s preferences and engagement patterns.
• Brandwatch: Brandwatch is another powerful social listening tool that helps you identify conversations about your business or industry and analyze public sentiment.

How to Use Social Listening Tools:

Set up keyword alerts for terms related to your business, industry, and competitors. Use the insights to guide your content creation process and ask your audience for direct feedback based on what’s trending in the conversation.

Conclusion

Asking your followers directly is one of the most effective ways to find out what content they truly want. By utilizing polls, Q&A sessions, direct conversations, feedback campaigns, and social media listening tools, you can gather real-time insights into your audience’s needs, preferences, and interests.

When you actively engage with your audience and ask for their input, not only does it help you create more relevant content, but it also strengthens your connection with them, making them feel valued and heard.

In the competitive landscape of social media, this genuine engagement can set your business apart and help you build a loyal, content-driven community.

Conclusion

Understanding what content your followers want is essential for building a strong online presence and fostering meaningful engagement.

By learning industry hashtags, checking competitor mentions, keeping an eye on niche platforms, and directly asking your followers, you can uncover valuable insights into their preferences and interests.

Armed with this knowledge, you can create content that speaks directly to their needs, driving engagement, building trust, and ultimately, supporting the growth of your business.