So you’ve worked hard to grow a following on social media channels and then suddenly (gulp!) followers seem to be leaving in droves. It’s important to figure out why people are unfollowing your brand. It can be due to a huge array of reasons from they are simply no longer interested—or worse case scenario— offended by something you’ve posted. But there are typically 6 common reasons someone will unfollow you. Let’s take a closer look at why these people could be unfollowing you. Keep reading for more!
6 Reasons Someone will Unfollow You On Social Media
1) There’s no consistency to posting
You disappear for weeks, if not months on end. I can’t stress how important posting regular content is. Of course, this is not a free license to spam people five times a day, but you should be posting a minimum of three times a week. After all, the old adage goes ‘Out of sight, out of mind.’ If you’re not showing up in your followers’ feed, they’ll move on to the next best thing. And what’s worse, if they’re not interacting with you for a while, they might not even see your content at all.
2) Sharing boring content
With so many businesses online competing for attention, if you’re sharing boring content, you’ve already lost the battle. For example, if you’re an electrician instead of posting photographs of ‘here’s my van outside a job’ and ‘this is a pile of cables’, try short-form video talking about the jobs you are undertaking—the pain points and the solutions. Take selfies, introduce your team members, even try undertaking a viral dance challenge. Think about what makes you stop scrolling on socials, and do more of that! If it wouldn’t make you stop and look, why are you posting it in the first place?
3) Use of annoying click bait headings
Clickbait uses sensationalized headlines to generate clicks, however, when you click on the article or watch the video, it’s under-delivers. For example, Discover the social media trick guaranteed to get your 25,000 followers in a month. And you click on a long-winded video and by the end of it, you’ve learnt a big fat zero. While it’s a tempting ploy to try, Facebook and Instagram frown upon using this type of advertising strategy. Not only will you get penalized (ad account may be banned or reach limited), you’re likely to see fed up followers hit that unfollow button.
4) Poor quality products/service
Reputation matters! If you’re receiving a barrage of bad reviews and irate customers experiencing terrible service, it will drive followers away. If your products and services don’t live up to the hype, it only takes a keyboard warrior named Karen to go postal and watch you glowing reputation lose its shine. If you gain a bad reputation, your followers will either leave and the ones who stay are either inactive on social media, or there to laugh at the explosive comments.
5) Lack of engagement
A key part of social media is the ‘social’ part of it. You can’t expect to post and pose questions to your audience and then ignore their comments. Your followers want to feel like you care! If you aren’t interacting with the online comments, you’re missing a vital opportunity to start conversations which boosts your reach.
The goal is for your followers to feel like they are part of some special insider club. It’s a great way to turn followers into super fans. Followers who would walk across hot coals for you if you asked and defend your reputation until death (okay, slight exaggeration but you get the idea). What’s the point of posting engaging questions, if the people on your page hear nothing from you but crickets?
6) You’re too pushy
We know you’re on social media to ultimately sell your product but does every single post need to be sales focused? No! Not everyone wants to sold at, and what about the followers who’ve already purchased your product or service? What’s the drawcard to stay following you are only trying to peddle your wares? I like to use the 80/20 formula. 80% are informative posts. For example, if you’re a real estate talk about how to style rooms to sell, grants available for first home buyers, the pros and cons of renting to buy. 20% are sales and talk about your products and services.
Emily is currently running an initiative called “Ask Me Anything”, where you can ask her all of your social media questions for free. You can find time in her calendar by clicking here. You can also follow her on LinkedIn and Instagram. Emily Rose Hills is one of Australia’s leading social media experts. Emily has worked in social media for over a decade and is currently leading the social media strategy for the NRL who have the largest social media communities in Australia. Previously, Emily has led social teams at Finder and THE ICONIC.
