6 Ways to Build Your Community on Social Media

Do you have a community on social media? Your community is made up of your loyal followers that ALWAYS show up and always comment even when no one else does. These people come to events to support you, always show love and really go hard for you consistently. It’s great to have big numbers on social media, but actually having a community on social media is better in the long run; you can at the very least know a certain group of people are going to be on the ride no matter where it takes you.

That said, I’m sharing 6 ways to build your community on social media.

Start Paying Attention to the Followers Who Engage the Most

Everyone’s goal is to grow to 10K or more, BUT the real goal is locking down a solid 1,000. Whatever follower count you currently have, pay attention to the people who ALWAYS comment, ALWAYS read your content; those are the people you’re showing up for; this is the first stage of building your tribe. The more you engage and build that relationship, the branch to who you will come to know grows.

I’ve literally become friends with ladies in my community and ended up finding out they’re the cousin of my long time friend or their husbands went to school with mine; that my hair stylist used to do their hair, literally the connections are endless. By default your community will grow based on the connection you have to someone else.

Not only that, in order to build anything, it has to be nurtured. Take care of the people who take care of you, I’ve sent a gift to someone because they are loyal to me and my brand. I’ve gone harder for some others or made sure to comment and share things simply because I know if the roles were reversed the ladies in my community would do the same. Pay attention to whose riding with you.

Join Other Communities

Join a Facebook group, connect with people outside of your circle. It’s okay to get some new friends. You don’t have to join every group out there, but being a part of a community is the easiest way to build one. You connect with people mutually; someone has something you need and you have something they need, next thing you know, you’ve added to your community and grown it by a few more people.

Joining a “pre-built” community is also a good way to get information from other people. So many of us have different experiences and so many need to hear those experiences, to have a space where you can be transparent and honest is also key to community. As you learn and as you grow, we don’t always want to share what our struggles are, at least not publicly so being able to share those struggles with someone who looks like you and/or someone who is in the same industry as you is helpful. Not only that, getting more comfortable sharing those struggles allows you to be more vulnerable when you show up online. You never know who you will connect with. If you’ve been looking to start a podcast and you need people to interview, being a part of a community that is already existing gives you access to hundreds if not thousands of potential people to grow with.

Engage With Individuals in Your Community

Responding to your comments is crucial to growing and building your community. Nothing irritates me more than creators who never respond to people. I’ve gotten to the point that I don’t ALWAYS respond at the drop of a DM, but any that hits me up, can usually expect a response from me. Respond to your comments + DMs even if it’s just to say thank you. If you create full time, off top your priority should be responding to and engaging with those who reach out to you.

There have been so many times that people have told me they were shocked that I responded, not because they didn’t think I personally would, but because they have been ignored by others and that is of course never a good look. Unless your DM has to be approved before a response or you get insane amounts, set aside time to respond and engage with your community. That one response can make all the difference.

Make People Feel Welcome and Supported

People want to be a part of a community because they want to be supported, they want to be acknowledged and if you aren’t going to engage with them, they will most certainly feel that lack of support. The reason I love spending time commenting on people’s post is because that often times opens the door for someone else to share and keeps the conversation going. I also enjoy commenting on people’s posts because often times people ignore the question or captions all together and I know how nice it is to have someone actually read what you are talking about.

I recently received a DM from a loyal and long time follower sharing she got her first brand deal. Not only was I obviously ecstatic for her, but the fact that she felt led to share with me and thank me for supporting her all this time, meant the world. Even though I have felt like wow maybe I could do better, something I was doing and sharing resonated with her and she took that information and used it AND THEN came back to let me know how much the support did help her. So really tap in with your community, genuinely support and welcome people in.

Build A Newsletter List

Now ya’ll know how I feel about newsletters. I’m still loving Flodesk and really looking forward to continuing to create more content for ya’ll, but if you want to know who is REALLY apart of your community, check your email list (or start one if you haven’t). My list is almost up to about 200 subscribers and that is with me being inconsistent. Imagine what consistency would do.

Similar to a private Facebook group, your newsletter list is a private community of people who want more access to you and not only that want access to whatever it is you’re offering. These are the people who will come with you as you continue to level up and grow your brand. This is the community you ACTUALLY own. If everything ended tomorrow you would at the very least have your website and newsletter list.

Show Up For Yourself and Your Community

Last, but certainly not least, the way to build community is to show up. We have to show up for our community, interact with our community and be the community. Show up for others and they will show up for you.

Do you notice your community beginning to form? What ways are you willing to be present and more active in the growing of your community?