Authenticity is when you say and do the things you actually believe. ~ Simon Sinek
I’ve recently done a few videos and webinars about social media for entrepreneurs, especially in real estate. (You can check them out on my YouTube channel.) We even had Sean Cannell, CEO of ThinkMedia, teach us some video ideas and tips to grow on YouTube.
Whenever social media marketing is mentioned, right alongside tips on making content and how to engage your audience and put the “social” back into social media, the word "authenticity" always pops up.
“Interact with your audience in an authentic manner.”
“Create content that stays true to your branding. Be authentic.”
But what does it mean to have an authentic social media presence?
Merriam-Webster defines “authentic” as “not false or imitation: REAL, ACTUAL” and “true to one's own personality, spirit, or character.”
It means being sincere in your messaging and branding and being consistent in your words and actions in your social media posts and in real life.
In this digital world we live in, the internet is saturated with content from brands all over the world, and alongside those brands are the scammers and fraudsters who want to take advantage of other people online. That’s why our audiences are more conscious and wary about authenticity—they want to know whether they can trust you before they associate and do business with you.
Authenticity means being true to who you are, the values you, your business, and your brand embodies and being reliable in your words and actions. Mean what you say, do as you say, and be transparent about your business and your industry.
People watch informative videos both to learn about something they find interesting and to see whether your values and value proposition align with their values.
It is easy to pull a scam online, and it is easy to unravel those scams because people are rapidly becoming more conscious about what content they consume and are more than ready to call out (and even cancel) brands and frauds that they catch in the act of being inauthentic.
The good news is that your audience, once they know you are a real person doing an honest business, will be more than willing to share that word too.
So, how do you keep an authentic social media brand?
Be yourself, speak the truth, be transparent about your business and your industry, and be consistent (both in your messaging and in showing up). Scheduled posts are great timesavers, but take time to do some real-time engagement and posting. Do live videos. Give a face to your brand. People want to know who is behind the business. Give them a face to associate with the name and the messaging they are seeing online.
If you make a mistake or receive feedback and criticism, approach it with a sense of responsibility and humility—don’t just delete negative comments or evade the issue, confront it. If you are wrong, admit it. And show them how you are learning from it.
Also, stop spamming them with sales-y posts. I’m sure you don’t step out of the house, see a friend across the street, and approach them with “Here are my listings. What house are you looking for?”
No, you socialize with them as one human to another. Put that same vibe and humanity into the way you interact with and engage your audience.
Pay attention to their opinions, and respond accordingly. This is a great opportunity for you to understand your audience’s motivations even deeper.
Be genuine in your post, and try to have fun and connect on a deeper level with your audience.
Keep it real, and thank you for reading A Brilliant Tribe.
