The clock is tik-ing for businesses on social media

PEOPLE’S FACES ARE buried in their phones for hours every day, so getting your business noticed on social media is more important than ever, even if you’re not selling products online.

That was the word from Talei Wong, social media manager for Insight Health & Wellness Engagement.

Ms Wong went over the social media landscape for 2023, which is bigger than ever.

The top trend is TikTok, a platform that anyone with kids or young adults in their lives will be aware of. Now the most downloaded app in the world, TikTok has one billion users, Ms Wong explained to the audience. In New Zealand, this equated to 1.46 million users or 38 per cent of those aged 18-plus.

The TikTok audience usually looks for content that is funny or entertaining but it’s also a growing platform for online shopping and “edutainment”. People also use it as a search engine.

Videos are the best way to capture attention, regardless of your audience. Generating a plan and finding out what matters to your audience is the first step in creating video that resonates, Ms Wong said.

Think about your audience, what they are interested in and what problems you are helping them to solve,” she said.

Using “social listening” apps to monitor social media channels for mentions of your brand, competitors and products can help you research relevant content.

She said plenty of easy-to-use video editing tools within social media platforms and third-party apps, such as Canva and Vidyard, could help create simple content.

Most importantly, she advised creating video suitable for the platform and your budget.

With the recent explosion of tools such as ChatGPT, almost anyone can use artificial intelligence. The main question Ms Wong said she was asked about AI was, “Will it replace marketing and ad professionals?” She thought not, as AI tools could be complicated to use, and there were risks with algorithm biases, and privacy and security issues to consider.

However, there were practical ways to apply AI to social media marketing, she said. Copy generators such as ChatGPT and Copy.ai could help with starting social posts, blog content and more, but Ms Wong said it was important to doublecheck the output.

Text-to-image generators are becoming available at low-to-no cost, but the quality can be poor. “The results often need refinding, but it can be a good starting point for image ideas.”

About one in five people actively participate in a social media community, according to a recent Hubspot survey, Ms Wong reported.

She said that with intense competition to be noticed and the fragmentation of social media platforms, these social communities could help turn customers into fans.

To start a social community, begin where your audience is and then work on building a network. Be consistent in responding to comments and questions and find a “rhythm” to posting. Strive for a consistent, authentic voice and post content that is true and aligns with your values.

“If you make a mistake, own it.”

Finally, Ms Wong advised pharmacists to monitor their community to learn from them and use that to inform overall strategy.

“Managing the community can mean the difference between followers and fans.”

Like them or not, influencers help reach new audiences, generate engagement and drive online sales. Most influencers can be found on Instagram and now TikTok.

People were shifting away from perfect aesthetics and preferred feeds that mirrored real life, Ms Wong said.

A recent survey showed 39 per cent of Gen Z social media users said they cared less about impressing others on social media than they used to, and 44 per cent were more likely to trust someone if they knew their struggles.

“Audiences want to see authenticity.”