Want to encourage your audience on social media to interact and become more engaged? We have 3 simple steps to share that don't take much time at all, but maybe help you do just this.

Since social media is all about connecting with potential and current customers online, those who have already chosen to follow you are willing to read and see updates. Therefore, don't hesitate to be honest with them to encourage better engagement.

1. Be Visual - The use or images and other visual media has become ever more prominent on social sites.

Just look at Instagram's popularity or the recent Facebook update where they will now be showing bigger, more vivid images. Users can much easier scan through and relate to images than text posts. It just comes down to the way people browse the web.

Use this fact to your advantage by centering your content around bold images and even video. Your audience will be more willing to share these kinds of posts with their friends as well. They are well aware that their audience will enjoy it more than just a block of text.

But get creative with your images! Keep them colorful, bold, and impactful so people will actually want to share it and engage. Add a clever sentence to go with it, a link for more information, and your well on your way.

2. Post Regularly - Just like with blogs, you should have a regular schedule for posting on social media sites.

It has been shown that when your audience and readers know how often they can expect updates or information from you, then they will be more likely to read it. When it comes to social media content, as long as they read it, they are much more likely to engage with it.

Whether you choose to use a social media calendar to keep your on track or just have a basic idea down, make sure you try and stick with it. That way you become predictable online, and your audience can come to expect it from you.

This is certainly a positive, since if they come to expect good things from you, they will likely respond, comment, and engage with you.

3. Best one of them all - Just ask! As simple as it sounds, this is both the most effective and overlooked engagement strategy.

Want people to share your picture? Want your audience to Like what you have to say? Want some retweets to spread the word?

Just ask.

After lots of trial and error from thousands of big social media pages, it has now become known that being straightforward with your audience can have great benefits.

The simple action of asking them to take a certain action, is more likely to lead to the desired result. If your content is interesting enough, people will be willing to engage and when you are specific as to how, they will likely do just that.

Try by starting to integrate all 3 of these ideas into your social media strategy slowly and see which works best.

Engagement is the lifeline of most online marketing, especially in the social spectrum. Like, comments, and sharing all lead to spreading the word of your brand or business, leading to more awareness and sales down the road.

Good luck!