• by Bryce Johnson , Op-Ed Contributor, October 2, 2015

For business owners trying to engage millennials, social media can either be your biggest ally, or your greatest downfall. Either way, you have to utilize it. Knowing how to engage users on all of the different types of platforms, as well as socializing your own brand, is imperative to truly connect with your millennial consumer base and keep them committed to your brand. Here are some of my tips on how to bring a social component to your business strategy, both on external social networking sites, as well as internally – two of the most important puzzle pieces in the ever-changing landscape that is the millennial/brand relationship. 

Facebook: Facebook is a great place to devote a lot of time and resources to, as it is one of the best social media platforms to engage your millennial audience. By encouraging customers to like your page, you can then have one-on-one conversations with them, have them like and share your posts so that their network of friends can also access your business’ page, and also encourage your customers to tag your business when they have made a purchase or interacted with your brand in any way. As a result, your millennial consumer has become an advocate of your brand, and their Facebook friends can see how and when they interact with your business, encouraging those friends to start interacting with your brand as well.

Twitter: Twitter is a great social media platform for businesses to stay up-to-date with news, trends, and more in real time. With Twitter, brands can connect their message with what’s going on in mainstream media, thus striking a chord with millennials on what’s most meaningful to them. The ability to start or maintain a conversation in real time via social media is a great way to get consumers interested and engaged with your brand, especially millennials.

Instagram: When used correctly, Instagram is another powerful extension of your business’ social media presence, and can even serve as a form of free advertising. Since Instagram is centered on photographs, it’s a great platform to give consumers a peek behind the scenes at your business or product. Additionally, Instagram also encourages millennial consumers to become an advocate for the brands they love. By posting photos with your product or about your brand, millennials are giving their seal of approval for your services, as well as sharing that approval with their close network of friends and colleagues.

Encourage Social Sharing: One aspect of social media marketing that every business should employ is a call to action to share, like, or comment. Take it a step further and use these platforms to reward your following with unique product offers, discounts, or however else you quantify value, in return for sharing information with others. With the added layer of rewarding your customers for engaging others on your social platform, you are invariably fostering a relationship where your customer is excited and happy to not only connect with you on social media but also talk about your brand, and for a millennial, that means real commitment for a long time. 

Engaging millennials through various social media platforms is a great way to connect with them, as well as their extended network of potential new customers. A healthy mix of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and internal social components is a sure-fire, and well-rounded approach to connecting with your millennial consumer, and fostering a relationship that will benefit your brand for years to come.