The Psychology of Social Media: What Makes People Engage?

Effective social media engagement taps into the understanding of the more profound psychological principles, which can help brands create more meaningful connections with their audience and foster long-term loyalty.

At its core, social media is about human connection. Platforms like Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Linkedin are used for self-expression, form relationships, and feel a sense of community. 

But what exactly drives people to comment, share, or like a post? 

There are a few key psychological factors that explain why we engage on social media and that can be used to your advantage to boost engagement.

The Power of Visuals

Fun fact: humans process visual information 60,000 times faster than text! Eye catching photos, videos, and graphics grabs attention and evokes emotional responses. Creating and sharing content that resonates with people on a deeper emotional level will increase the likelihood that they will share and interact with your profile. Brands that invest in high quality visuals see higher levels of engagement from their audience.

The Need for Validation

Social media provides people with a platform to connect with others in a way that humans fundamentally need. Brands that respond to followers and show appreciation for their comments tap into this need for validation and connection. This creates a feedback loop and encourages future interaction.

As you can see below, brands will add commentary that relate to the creator, while aligning their comment message with their brand values.

Social Identity and Belonging

People engage with content that resonates with their sense of identity and/or aligns with their values. Users can feel a sense of belonging to a larger community by following brands that reflect their personal beliefs or interests. 

Imagine you are scrolling on Instagram and you see a reel of a woman sharing her experience with mental health. If you or someone you care about has struggled in the same or even just a slightly similar way, you would be more inclined to hear what she has to say and follow her for more. You might also want to share some of your story in her comments or DMs, as you would definitely see an outpouring of comments from others. It is a great opportunity to feel connected, swap advice, and be better prepared when encountering this type of thing in the future. 

Brands with a clear mission, purpose, or culture relevance often see higher rates of engagement. Creating content that speaks to your audience’s identity strengthens their connection with your brand and encourages them to share your message with like-minded individuals.

FOMO and Social Validation

The Fear of Missing Out (FOMO)  and the need for social validation can be a powerful motivator behind social media engagement. People don’t want to miss out on the latest trends, conversations or events. They want to be seen as worthy by their peers by taking part in these things.

Brands can create FOMO in their own social media strategy by creating a sense of urgency around limited time offers, exclusive content or timely campaigns. FOMO pushes people to engage quickly, ensuring they stay relevant and in the loop. Urgency can also be used as a psychological selling tactic that drives up sales. 

Reciprocity

Reciprocating is another fundamental principle of human behavior. When someone engages with a user's content, for example, the user is more likely to reciprocate by engaging with their content in return. Same goes for brands: when a brand engages with a user’s post by liking, commenting, or sharing, users often reciprocate by interacting with the brand’s content in return. This helps put the brand on the user’s radar as a personal and responsive company.

Personal + responsive = trustworthy customer service!

Brands that prioritize two way communication and actively engage with their audience will build stronger relationships that result in higher engagement rates.

The Dopamine Effect

Social media is designed to keep us returning for more, largely due to it triggering a dopamine release in our brains. This “reward chemical” gives us a sense of pleasure and accomplishment and every notification, like, and comment, triggers a small rush of this neurotransmitter. This psychological response is why people habitually check their feeds, hoping for that next notification.

Instant gratification theory can also be applied with the dopamine effect. Let’s say you comment on your favorite celebrity’s post and they comment in response. Imagine how excited and how much more connected you would feel to that person. That same concept applies when your brand replies and engages with the content of others. 

Brands can capitalize on this human behavior by creating interactive content that encourages engagement. Examples of this can include asking questions, creating polls, or using interactive features like Instagram stories. 

Influence of Social Proof

Social proof is a psychological phenomenon where individuals copy the actions of others to determine what is the "right" way to behave in a particular situation.  So, when people see that others are engaging with a piece of content, that mere fact alone can influence them to also engage. In social media, this also often takes on the form of following trends and engaging with already popular content. Content with a lot of likes and comments signals to users that it is worth their attention and adds value to the brand’s content.

Brands can harness social proof by showcasing user generated content, testimonials, or case studies  to encourage further encouragement. 

Conclusion

Understanding the psychology behind social media engagement is only the foundation. To truly maximize your brand’s social media presence, it is important to strategically build emotional connections, encourage interaction, leverage user generated content, create a sense of urgency, and engage consistently. 

Social media engagement is far more than just a numbers game. It’s about understanding the psychological drivers that motivate people to connect with content, share their thoughts, and interact with brands. By tapping into crucial psychological principles like validation, social identity, and reciprocity, brands can foster more authentic relationships with their audience, resulting in deeper engagement and long-term success.