By Mark G. Auerbach

Social media is a potent marketing tool, and very cost-effective. But, many people get carried away by analytics, timing, and search engine optimism, and they forget about the most important things about social media…content.

You can schedule your post at optimum time, target its audience, and hit the market in conjunction with your other marketing efforts, but if your content doesn’t grab people, your efforts are in vain.

Here are a few easy fixes:

[amazon_link asins=’1983805912′ template=’ProductAd’ store=’succeeding0d-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’997b766c-6a85-11e8-8ef1-e7f53239d06d’]- When you repost or repackage content from another source, i.e. a journal article, a blog post, a podcast, add some value. Add a short sentence as to why you’re posting it. For example, you’re a caterer, and you find this fabulous article about local asparagus. You could repost it with a comment like this: “Asparagus are only in season for a short time. These recipes may have you running to the farm stand.”

– A picture’s worth a thousand words, but caption it. So many people post about events and openings. They post a photo of a couple smiling in your restaurant. A caption like “John and Mary Doe among dozens of guests at the opening of L’etoilleEuro’s new patio” may pique the interest of a viewer to click to see the other guests.

– Video attracts attention, but the right kind of video is best, something 3-4 minutes maximum. A soundtrack boosts the appeal, but make sure the music’s appropriate and not too loud, because many people surf social media at work or from their devices in public.

– Tone matters. If you preach, you won’t be listened to. If you try to dumb down your message to the lowest common denominator, you’ll lose the interest of the more discriminating client. Remember who you are trying to reach: a client likely to want your product or service, or the masses, figuring that a small percentage of a large base might come to your business.

[amazon_link asins=’1537268031′ template=’ProductAd’ store=’succeeding0d-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’a36a57b0-6a85-11e8-9cc8-c54f9d676625′]- Don’t get into repetition. The same photo and message posted incessantly won’t be looked at a second or third time. The same message, slightly tweaked, with different photos or video, may attract attention more than once.

– Vary the message for the platform. We target the message to the social media platform. A photo with a short caption for Instagram. A professional demeanor for LinkedIn. A little bit of zip for Facebook, and something short and sweet for Twitter.

– Acknowledge the comments. Social media invites conversation. When you “like” a comment, it shows that you are paying attention to your market. When you thank someone for commenting or answer a comment, it reinforces your commitment to dialogue. When you respond quickly, it’s noticed.

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Mark G. Auerbach is principal at Mark G. Auerbach Public Relations, a Springfield, MA, based marketing, public relations, development and events consultancy. You can find more information about Mark at Facebook and LinkedIn.