Social media has become an essential part of our lives, allowing us to connect with friends, family, and others from all over the world. But with so many people using social media, it can be hard to stand out and engage with your audience. This is where emotional intelligence can come in handy. Using Emotional Intelligence (EQ) to elicit emotion connects a brand with its audience at a more personal level.
Emotion is what triggers engagement on social media. This results in increased brand awareness, user perception and intent to buy.
Remember most purchase decisions come from the heart, not the head.
Daniel Goleman the author of Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ, highlights five qualities that blend to create high EQ.
But he adds that interpersonal smarts referred to as “emotional competencies” count even more in the EQ scale. For example: of the competencies required for excellent performance in the job, 67% were emotional competencies.
Benefits of Using Emotional Intelligence on Social Media.
Now that we’ve gone over what emotional intelligence is and some of the key components, let’s take a look at how it can be beneficial in our social media interactions.
First and foremost, using emotional intelligence can help us to better understand ourselves and others. If we can become more aware of our own emotions and triggers, we can learn to manage them more effectively. And if we can pick up on the emotions of others, we can interact with them in a way that is more likely to lead to a positive outcome.
Secondly, incorporating emotional intelligence into our social media interactions can help to create a more positive online environment. We’ve all seen how quickly things can escalate when people are arguing online – but if we can approach our interactions with empathy and understanding, we’re much more likely to be able to resolve disagreements peacefully.
And lastly, using emotional intelligence on social media can help us build stronger relationships. If we focus on creating positive interactions and showing genuine interest in others, we’re much more likely to develop meaningful connections with the people we interact with online.
The role of Emotional Intelligence in Post Engagement.
Brands that understand the importance of EQ are able to challenge audience behaviors, understand and diagnose issues, personalize communications, and process data to make better-informed marketing decisions.
Rather than react to trends, emotionally intelligent brands are able to proactively map out content that is creative, relevant and direct.
Publishers who produce branded content with strong emotional impact not only see higher rates of engagement but also drive the highest rates of social sharing, while cementing their brand reputation.
The Qualities of Emotional Intelligence.
Here’s a short description of the five qualities shared by people with high EQ:
-
- Self-Awareness – They know their strengths and weaknesses, and work on these areas to increase performance.
- Self-Regulation – They use the filter in their brain before responding unlike their more impulsive counterparts
- Motivation – They defer immediate results for long-term success. They are effective at whatever they do.
- Empathy – They have the ability to identify with and understand the wants, needs, and viewpoints from other people.
- Social Skills – They are excellent at managing disputes, communications and building relationships.
How does Emotional Intelligence impact post engagement?
People engage with posts for their own sake.
They share and like so they look smart and funny to their own peers.
Therefore the goal is to post content that makes them look great. Before you tap ‘share’ on your post, ask yourself “would I share this if it showed up on my News Feed?”
According to a Yale University Study on Emotional Intelligence and Social Interaction, there is a positive correlation between the ability to effectively manage emotions and the quality of social interactions that emotionally intelligent people enjoy.
“At 1marketingidea we leverage the Social Media Experience™ (SMX) with our proprietary 6PS Framework that provides our clients a framework that groups digital marketing activities, and keep brands top-of-mind, year round. This results in increased brand awareness, interest, traffic and improved conversions.”
7 Secrets to Increase Post Engagement.
When you take the time to show empathy and understanding towards others, it creates a strong bond of trust. This is essential when building relationships with customers or clients, as they need to know that you care about their needs and concerns. One way to show empathy on social media is to respond to comments and messages in a timely manner. Another way is to share content that provides value and solves problems for your audience.
1. Create a Compelling Content Strategy.
Your content strategy is an important part of using emotional intelligence on social media. You need to create content that resonates with your audience and provides value for them. This means understanding what kind of content they’re looking for, and tailoring your posts accordingly. It could be helpful to create different types of content, such as blog posts, infographics, videos, or podcasts. This way, you can reach a wider range of people and keep them engaged with your brand.
2. Share Stories That Resonate with Your Audience.
People are naturally drawn to stories that resonate with them on an emotional level. When you can tap into this by sharing stories that are relatable, it will help increase engagement with your brand or business. For example, if you run a pet store, you could share stories about the special bonds between people and their pets. Or if you sell products for new parents, you could share heartwarming stories about the joys (and challenges) of parenting.
3. Build Relationships
Social media is all about building relationships—so make sure that your interactions are positive and encouraging. This doesn’t mean being fake or saccharine, but it does mean being polite, helpful, and upbeat whenever possible. You can also build positive relationships by sharing other people’s content, tagging relevant users in posts, and engaging in thoughtful conversations online.
Facebook is not a one-way communication but a community platform where you can develop long term personal relationships. You get to watch your client’s children grow, friends get married and colleagues enjoy once in a lifetime vacations.
4. Polarize.
Choose the right copy, picture or video that makes people take sides. Use data to identify content that your audience interacts with most, and leverage EQ to find a similar narrative. Those creative sound bites that people love or hate are the ones that spark emotion and increase engagement. For examples just look at NEWS media and how social videos, text and images make you feel something and draw you in to read more. The ability to transfer emotion into a post connects your personal brand to your audience displaying both personality and feeling.
5. Give Attention.
Would you share your own post if you saw it on the feed? The reason you share a post is the same reason why your audience shares a post: (1) we all want to be heard; (2) we like attention; (3) we want to sound intelligent or be funny. Before you post ask yourself, “is there something in this post a reader will want to share?” If the answer is no, do not post it.
6. Be a Resource.
Are you contributing sharing, commenting, liking, emojing, other content? With every Like or every answer you give to a question in a comment you build your reputation as a resource, plant a seed towards a relationship, and create an experience. Helping people builds trust and a positive feeling towards your brand.
7. Empathize Often.
Empathy is a personal skill possessed by emotionally intelligent organizations. It’s essential to be sensitive to what your audience experiences and feels in real-time. Ask polite and genuine open-ended questions to earn trust, and build your reputation. Make one of your objectives to be there in the nick of time.
Conclusion.
It’s important to remain positive and encouraging when using emotional intelligence on social media. This will help create a more positive relationship with your audience, and make them more likely to engage with your content. Try to avoid negative or confrontational language, even if you’re disagreeing with someone.
It’s also important to be aware of the tone of your posts – if you come across as angry or negative, this will put people off engaging with you. Instead, focus on being positive and upbeat, and show that you’re interested in hearing from others.
Understanding EQ and it’s role in social media marketing is the glue that connects your brand to your audience. Use these 7 tips and see your post engagement rise slowly at first but surely, as you make stronger and deeper relationships online
About the Author.
Daveeed Wagner is a Fractional CMO, keynote speaker, Founder & CEO of 1marketingidea, a marketing agency that leverages the social media experience to transform brands who struggle at connecting and engaging with their networks, resulting in deeper and stronger relationships, repeat business, referrals, and higher profits.