CAN'T BUILD A STRONG FOLLOWING? HERE'S WHERE YOU MISS THE MARK...

If you don't want your new Snapchat friends to be "once-and-done" visitors after they see your story, you better pay attention! I've compiled a list of 5 things that are major Snapchat "turn-offs". If you aspire to be a SnapPro with a huge audience of rabid fans that come back every day to see what you are doing, stay away from these five things:

1. Inside Jokes

When you post snaps to your story that nobody can understand but your best friend, you're not going to attract visitors. This alienates people and makes them feel like an outsider, and not a friend. If your general audience can't understand the meaning of your snap without an explanation, it's not going to make you Snap-famous. Don't do it.

2. Annoying Sounds

When your viewers open your story and screeching sounds violate their eardrums, it doesn't take a half a second to get swiped to the next story. Loud wind noise, rattling paper, shrieks, random machine noise, you name it. If it hurts your viewer's ears, they ain't coming back to endure it again.

3. Random Nonsensical Snaps

First of all, nobody wants to see a shaky, herky-jerky video of your feet or some dark hallway. If there's no purpose to the snap, who wants to be bothered with it? These days, people are so busy that they will resent you for wasting that valuable ten seconds of their life that they'll never get back. And you better believe they won't be motivated to navigate back to your story the next time you pop into the lineup.

4. Unplanned Stories

As the saying goes, "if you fail to plan, you plan to fail". If you want to be the next Snapchat reality show star, you have to realize that reality TV isn't reality. It's all carefully planned. My advice for building a repeat audience? Plan out what you're going to do a day ahead of time. They call it "My Story", not "Mindless Jabbering". Take the hint. Plan it out and create a story, and give your viewers a reason to follow along.

5. Meaningless Pictures

Every now and then, I come across snap stories that include pictures of random objects that have no message or meaning. Wanna bore your audience to tears and brand yourself as a Snapchat Dud? Post pictures of your shoe, your front door, or the dog sitting on the floor. That will guarantee you a spot on the "who-not-to-watch" hall of fame list. If you're going to post a picture, give it meaning. And make it a meaningful part of your story or theme.

So there you have it. If you see yourself doing some of the things I've mentioned, make yourself a solid plan to improve. Take notes, and write down your plan of action. Stay tuned because I'll have another set of 5 things to avoid that keep you from growing your viewership.

Now that you know what not to do, check out my other posts for ideas on how you can produce and direct an entertaining Snapchat story line like a Hollywood mogul! Now get out there and create some awesome content, and start growing your following!

Carlton Flowers
The SnapPro