I know you’re always looking for new and creative ways to encourage engagement on your social media posts. So am I. I’m not immune to the fact it can be painfully difficult to get people to leave a comment or share your content.

There are the tried-and-true strategies that work pretty well. The ‘ole “comment or tag someone to be entered” type of contest comes to mind.

And that will get you some engagement. But only for as long as the contest runs.

Then you’re back to crickets.

Meanwhile, your post is probably annoying more people than it’s attracting. I’ve been tagged in the same post multiple times by several Facebook friends trying to win a contest.

Good on you if you want to enter to win a new set of patio furniture or free tickets to a wine tour. But why do you have to drag your friends into it?

These kinds of posts don’t really do much to create a relationship within your audience anyway. After all, if there weren’t an incentive, would they comment or share? Probably not.

So how can you get that kind of attention without bribing people with a giveaway?

Organic Reach is… Tough

It’s no secret organic reach is tough to get with your Facebook business page. Unless your audience engages with your content, your social posts won’t end up in their feeds.

It’s a similar story for Instagram. The algorithm’s job is to feed you content you’re interested in. And how does it know what you’re interested in?

It studies the content you interact with.

Knowing that, it’s crucial for you to put out content that’ll get people to react–whether it’s with a thoughtful comment below your post or even sharing it with their audience.

The good news is, it doesn’t have to be hard. You don’t have to rack your brain to come up with clever ways to get people to engage. In fact, doing these 5 things consistently will boost engagement on your social posts:

Share the Content of Your Followers

Communication is a two-way street and so is engagement. Try sharing content that your followers post, and they’ll be more inclined to return the favor. They’ll want to give your post a little boost when you’ve already done the same for them.

This is an especially smart move if a follower has posted something about your business, like a purchase they made, a picture they took at your location, or a review of your business.

When they make a post or share a story on Instagram, reshare it to your business page with a caption like, “Thanks for stopping in,” or “We’re glad you enjoyed your [product/service].”

It’s a super simple way to share their content but still keep your feed on-brand.

With this strategy, you’re creating a more personalized experience with your audience (which creates loyalty and boosts engagement). You’re also encouraging your followers to create posts about your business because they know it could be shared on your page. That’s a no-lose proposition!

Be Human

Social media is about being social. No one wants to talk with a business. It’s impersonal, and it reinforces the idea that business pages only exist as a marketing tool to make money (which may be true, but you don’t have to remind your followers of that).

Just like you, your audience wants to connect with other people. They want to connect with you. Be personable. It’ll make your followers more likely to engage.

Here’s an example: Let’s say you run an independent bookstore. Your social media page might include information about your hours, sales, upcoming book releases, events, etc. That’s informative, but it’s not giving anyone a reason to connect with you.

Why not take it to the next level and create posts that give book recommendations based on what your staff members are reading?

Your audience won’t only get a steady stream of information about the titles you carry, but they’re able to make connections with your staff based on reading interest. It gives your audience a chance to comment and say, “Wow, I loved that book, too!” Or they may even make recommendations of their own.

Whenever you can, show the people who work behind the scenes through snippets of everyday life in your business. People want to talk to people—and people buy from people (not companies).

Learn When Your Audience is Most Active

It’s hard to increase engagement if you don’t know when your audience is online. Posting too early in the morning or too late in the day might get your content buried in their newsfeeds. Be intentional about the days and times in which you post.

Most social media platforms now provide analytics that let you know when your audience is most active. Break it down by day of the week and time of day. Then, strategically plan your posts to publish just before peak engagement times.

Respond to Comments

One of the easiest ways to encourage people to comment on your posts is to respond when they do. If you have a small following, try to respond to each comment quickly. If you have a larger following, and comments come in faster than you can respond, spend some time engaging with as many as you can.

If you can’t comment on all of them, try to at least leave a reaction to their comment. Personally, I prefer to use the heart emoji over the thumbs-up emoji. (Maybe that’s just me be over-enthusiastic.)

When you respond to comments, you’re telling your followers that you appreciate their engagement and you’re interested in what they have to say. It can be something as simple as a thank you when they leave a positive comment, or a longer response when they ask a question.

You may even start to recognize some of your more frequent commenters and build a relationship with them. That’s when you can reference them in old comments or tag them in content you think they may find interesting. All of this builds a sort of mutual engagement that creates loyalty and boosts engagement even further.

Create Posts That Spur conversation

This is a really basic strategy, which is probably why it’s so effective. Create posts that spark a conversation by encouraging viewers to share what they think.

These conversation starters don’t have to require deep thought. It could be something as simple as comparing two similar products and asking customers which one they like best and why.

You’ll often see this strategy in action by businesses that sell handmade jewelry or some other handmade item.

The post might have a picture showing two plates, with copy that reads, “We can’t decide which glaze we like better on these ceramic plates: green or blue. What do you think?”

Not only are you encouraging your followers to comment, but you also get some feedback on your products. When they give it, don’t forget to respond to their comments!

So there you have it: 5 easy ways to boost engagement on your social media posts.

None of these strategies is particularly advanced. They don’t have to be to work. The trick to building a good relationship with your audience is to put in the work.

Show excitement about their content, their comments, and publish posts that spark their interest and curiosity. When you do, your followers will naturally want to comment and share more often—no “like and share this post” incentive needed.