Have you ever had to look up the meaning of an acronym you found on social media? It’s not fun to feel out of the loop when words get lost in translation. Social media acronyms aren’t just used for casual conversations–businesses, Influencers, and others use them daily. There are countless abbreviations, but this post covers the top social media acronyms you need to know.
What are Social Media Acronyms and Abbreviations?
Social media acronyms and abbreviations are shorthand for common phrases. For example, “lol” is a super common abbreviation for “laugh out loud” or another common one is “brb” for “be right back.”
Acronyms first originated through texting. Texting the first letters was much faster than typing out the entire phrase. Now, acronyms aren’t just used for texting or chatting with friends. There are so many acronyms all over social media that you’ll find in posts, comments, dms (direct messages), and other places.
If you are a business owner, you may know some of the common business acronyms and abbreviations. Businesses use abbreviations to explain lots of different concepts and it’s important to know what those acronyms mean–especially if you are an influencer and/or content creator–so you can stay in the loop.
Business Acronyms
B2B – Business to Business. Refers to companies that serve other businesses.
B2C – Business to consumer. Refers to companies that sell products or services to customers.
CMGR – Community manager. Mainly focuses on nurturing the influencer’s online community (separate from a social media manager).
CMS – Content management system. The software you use to edit, schedule, and publish any form of written material for your website, blog, social media posts, etc.
Social Media Technical Acronyms
Can you spot the acronym?
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CPC – Cost per click. This refers to the amount you pay for every person who clicks on your ad.
CPM – Cost per thousand impressions or cost per mille. This measures ad impressions rather than clicks.
CR – Conversion rate. The number of people who took action on your invitation divided by the number of people who could have.
CRO – Conversion rate optimization. This refers to your plan to improve your conversion rate.
CTA – Call to action. A statement that invites your followers to take a specific action.
CTR – Click-through rate. The percentage of people who clicked on your link(s) when they saw them.
NFS – Not for sale
ROI – Return on investment. This term refers to your earnings vs. expenses.
SMB – Small and midsize/medium businesses
SMP – Social media platform
SMM – Social media marketing
SMO – Social media optimization
TOS – Terms of service
UGC – User-generated content. Refers to any form of content in any format created by social media users.
CF – Close friends. This is an Instagram feature that allows users to share exclusive content with a chosen group of followers. This is a great tool to use if you want to personalize customer engagement.
CFS – Close friends story. This is an Instagram feature that allows you to create a private story that is entirely separate from your general stories. You do this by selecting a specific list of friends who can see and comment on your private stories.
CX – Customer experience
DM – Direct message
ESP – Email service provider. The software you use for sending emails.
GA – Google Analytics
ISP – Internet service provider. The company that powers your internet service.
PV – Page views. The number of visitors landing on a specific page.
SaaS – Software as a service
SEM – Search engine marketing
SEO – Search engine optimization
UI – User interface
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Common Social Media Acronyms Used By Influencers
AFAIK – As far as I know
AMA – Ask me anything
BFF –Best friend forever
BRB – Be right back
BTS – Behind the scenes. You can use this when you’re giving a sneak peek of something in your business, the bloopers to a reel, or anything in between.
BTW – By the way
DAE – Does anyone else…?
DYK – Did you know…?
DFTBA – Don’t forget to be awesome
Find the acronym!
FOMO – Fear of missing out
FTW – For the win
FUTAB – Feet up take a break
FYI – For your information
GOAT – Greatest of all time
HBD – Happy birthday
HTH – Here to help or happy to help
ICYMI – In case you missed it
IDC – I don’t care
IDK – I don’t know
ILY – I love you
IMO – In my opinion
IRL – In real life
JK – Just kidding
LMK – Let me know
LOL – Laughing out loud
OOTD – Outfit of the day
POTD – Photo of the day
QOTD – Quote of the day
SFW – Safe for work
NSFW – Not safe for work
ROFL – Rolling on the floor laughing
TBH – To be honest
TBT – Throwback Thursday
TIL – Today I learned…
TL;DR – Too long; didn’t read
WFH – Work from home
3 Tips for Using Acronyms and Slang on Social Media
Stay true to your brand.
First and foremost, you want to stay true to your brand no matter what. Only use the acronym if it feels like you. Do not use it just for the sake of jumping on a trend. While following trends is a great way to get more views, you want to make sure you’re appealing to your ideal audience.
Have fun with the acronyms and abbreviations and try using them in your captions for your stories, posts, etc. as long as it feels natural to do so. Your followers will love it!
Know what acronyms and slang your audience uses.
Try scrolling through the comments section of your last couple of posts. Do you notice any abbreviations used by your followers? Take note of them and try using them in future posts. This will help you relate to your audience and share content that resonates with them.
Assess the situation first.
Depending on the situation, social media acronyms can be used seriously, humorously, and sarcastically. Before you use an acronym, make sure to assess the situation first and ask yourself if it is appropriate to say.
It may be more appropriate to use some acronyms in a group setting and others in a one-on-one conversation. As far as which one to use when, that is up to you, my friend! Stay true to yourself and true to your mission which is to share your product with your ideal customer so you make their life better.
Main Takeaways
- Social media acronyms and abbreviations are shorthand for common phrases used on social media platforms and more.
- There are acronyms for business terms, social media technical terms, and common phrases used by influencers and consumers you need to know.
- 3 tips for using social media acronyms and abbreviations:
- Stay true to your brand.
- Know what acronyms and slang your audience uses.
- Assess the situation first.
Social Media Acronyms You Need to Know
There you have it–all the social media acronyms you need to know. This is a huge list, so make sure to save this one to reference later when you need it! Using acronyms will help you be more efficient and relate better to other businesses and your followers. Take time to incorporate them into your content and I promise it’ll help your strategy!
If you want more tips on relating to your audience on social media, check out these posts:
- 3 Ways to Connect With Your Audience
- How to Use Reels to Sell and Build an Audience
- Instagram Captions to Stop the Scroll
- The Complete Instagram Image Size Guide
Thanks for being here and if you liked what you read here, make sure to follow me on Instagram @iammichellegifford. I share the best tips and strategies for growing your business on Instagram and beyond. You don’t have to do your business alone, so come on over and we’ll go on this journey together.
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