Social media engagement isn’t just about chasing likes or racking up followers – it’s about building meaningful connections that drive real value for your brand. In today’s crowded digital space, success lies in sparking conversations, inspiring action, and creating content that resonates deeply with your audience.
What is social media engagement?
Social media engagement shows how well your content is resonating with your target audience. Are they interested enough to interact with your brand – and how often? They are used to determine what is working and what needs refining, so that you can sharpen your strategy.
You can measure the success of social media posts and campaigns using a range of metrics, such as likes, shares, saves and for video content, watch time. But not all metrics are equal. Too often, brands focus on follower numbers and post reactions (widely referred to as “vanity metrics”), which look impressive but reveal little about genuine connection or conversation.
What should we be tracking?
Lots of followers might look impressive, but if they are only watching but not engaging, they are not driving real value. Engagement isn’t about looking good; it is about sparking authentic conversations and inspiring genuine connections that help your business grow.
More meaningful metrics to focus on include:
- Shares: what content pieces does your audience deem worthy of sending to others? Possibly the most valuable indicator of your audience liking your content, shares are a strong vote of trust and brand confidence, plus they extend your reach.
- Saves: If your content is genuinely useful, inspiring, or worth revisiting, people will save it. So next time you create a post, ask yourself, “Would someone want to keep this?”
- Comments: A lively comments section means your audience has opinions, emotions, or ideas connected to your content. If your comment section is growing, this is indicative of your audience becoming more invested in your brand.
- Video completion rate: This is the percentage of viewers who watch your videos to the end. Social media platforms will prioritise videos with a high completion rate, so this metric directly impacts visibility.
If a user engages in any of these actions, it indicates that they have a genuine interest in your brand or product and may be considering making a purchase or getting in touch.
Brands and creators are increasingly recognising the value of these metrics, and LinkedIn, for example, has become the latest platform to introduce options to save and send posts, offering a more accurate picture of what truly resonates with audiences. This marks a significant shift in determining how we create engaging content; it is no longer solely about likes and comments. Visibility is not enough. If your post receives fewer likes but more shares or saves, don’t panic; this kind of engagement shows that your content is valuable.
Consistency Wins
Consistency on social media is another key factor influencing engagement.
Posting regularly using a variety of stories, videos, reels, carousels, and infographics, will produce a far more positive result than posting intensively for a short period, then going quiet. Why does this work? Consistent posting signals to algorithms that an account is a reliable content source, increasing your chances of appearing in feeds. It also gives your followers more opportunities to connect and engage, deepening trust and community.
Building trust through engagement
Tracking your social media engagement metrics not only helps you refine campaigns, but also provides insight into your brand health, how you compare to competitors and helps measure campaign success. Understanding what drives your audience to engage with your content helps shape a more effective, customer-focused marketing strategy.
When creating content, aim for it to be useful and valuable. Ask yourself if someone would share this with a friend or save it until later? Don’t just chase vanity numbers that don’t reflect real impact.
If you want to elevate your social media with content that inspires genuine engagement, get in touch with Wildwood Plus. We have years of experience in helping our clients grow their visibility and develop meaningful connections online, and we can help you turn engagement into lasting relationships.
