How To Build An Investor Community Using Social Media

Millions of millions of views on social but still…

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Social media has been overlooked by a plethora of public companies for years. It’s still something many see little no value in doing. Fact of the matter is, these companies still need to raise money somehow, alongside getting their message out there. Using social media, professionals need to be authentic and focus on conveying a positive first impression. Investors can be found more easily on certain social media platforms, like LinkedIn and Twitter. However, when looking for investors on social media, small business owners need to do it carefully to avoid doing their brand a disservice. Believe it or not, according to a recent study, 75% of investors are now using social media and the web to inform investment decisions. Modern day IR is not what it used to be. It required more collaboration than ever before.

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Here are 6 things that public companies should do on social media to attract investors:

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Build A Foundation - nobody wants to follow a page with 0 followers. An effective way to start doing this is through content, which we’ll touch on next. But many companies forget that their social media is a “online resume” for investors. It shows how active they are, how much they value that audience, and that they are committed to creating shareholder value by keeping investors in the loop. These companies must build traction, showcase proof of projects, assets, etc and establish engagement and obtain meaningful feedback from other professionals. Building off this, a proper foundation includes the following: A minimum of 100 followers on each platform, well written bio’s, congruent branding, and a quality social kit.

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Content is King - People only follow others on social media for one main reason; they like their content. Why would you follow a company or page that posts irrelevant things, only re-shares and is never original? You wouldn’t. So putting high-quality, engaging content first is always on the priority list. The content that works best for investors these days is actually short-form video. As human’s, our attention spans have became lower than a goldfish due to this exact reason. If you can’t hook someone in 5 seconds or less, they are gone. Most of the time generic written or reposted content won’t be able to do this. Double down on short-form video.

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Be Visible - many investors are actually active on social media. Take Facebook for example, most companies would think no investors are there but the predominant demographic is 55+ on the platform. They are there, you just haven’t allowed them to discover you yet. Another point on visibility that works wonders is TikTok & Instagram reels. Many companies haven’t taken advantage of these platforms yet and they can reach hundreds of thousands of investors with virtually no adspend deployed. Often, communicating with angel investors on social media is like taking low-hanging fruits. Small business owners can introduce themselves to these investors on LinkedIn. Social media is often a noisy environment, but business owners can gain direct route though proper communication. Investors are cautious on social media to avoid any possibility of fraud. To better improve your chance, you need to slowly build your presence organically. It is better for potential investors to be aware of your presence, due to your innovative concepts and ideas.

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Stay Active. Don’t Drop Off - Many companies go through ebbs and flows of business, that’s life. But just because the market isn’t paying attention doesn’t mean you shouldn’t. It’s better to post a few times a week for months than every single day for two weeks. Staying active helps you stay top of mind, and when you’re top of mind with investors, they are that much closer to making a buying decision in your company.  A good way to drill brand awareness into the mind of potential customers is by providing something meaningful. It could be a post or highly informative comment. Remember not to go crazy with your posting. Three or four quality posts each week are enough.

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Facts Tell, Stories Sell - Social media is a platform to tell your stories and experience. Investors and venture capitalists love to read how people started their businesses from scratch. By telling stories, your business can be the start-up people want to invest in. It takes time to learn the art of storytelling and people must easily understand the essence of your message. No investor really cares that your second project has 17 acres of “unexplored potential”, they’d rather hear about the company before you that couldn’t complete a financing and had to shut down but were sitting on a potential goldmine. Turn your facts into stories and you will capture much more investor attention online.

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Omni-Presence - This will always be #1 for us. The fact of the matter is you don’t know where your next investor is coming from. You never will. But, being on a multitude of channels will allow you to cast a net wide enough to convert investors in the long-run. As far as platforms go, Twitter & Linkedin remain at the top spot. But closely after follows: Reddit, Facebook, Instagram, and quickly rising - TikTok. Don’t just settle for having a twitter account and calling it a day. Omnipresence is the key to investor awareness.

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