Social Media has become one of the top advertising components for businesses. However, sometimes it is normal to find yourself feeling overwhelmed or in a rut when it comes to posting. Never fear, here's a run down of some easy tips and posting ideas to grow your business.
It's all about engagement.
First things first, stop chasing follows and likes. While it is nice to see your following grow it is more important to gain engagement from your audience. Engagement is more likely to result in a sale or a referral. 1000's of followers with low likes on posts is less effective than 500 followers with 50 likes on a photo and 25 comments or social shares. Ask your audience questions, ask for their input, let them know that you appreciate them sticking around.
Human not Robot.
Humanize your posts. I have discussed before (probably a bit too much) that your
brand + personality is a match made in heaven. As much as people want to see what your business has to offer they also want to connect with you/your brand. Let your audience know your plans for the start of the week. Use Instagram or Facebook stories to show the behind-the-scenes of your business day. Give your followers a change of topic every now and then.
Image sourcing.
Finding the right image for a post can be tiring and repetitive. Take advantage of commercial free and stock images. As a Graphic Designer I would run out of content if I only posted images of my designs or current projects. Sometimes I can be working on a project for a month or more. There are plenty of FREE commercial licenses of images that can accompany your blurb for your post. Canva is a great tool for curating your own adverts or quotes that you can use. Don't let not having an image stop you from getting your message across to your audience.
Plan your topics.
You don't need to get your calendar out and plan a months worth of posts but write a list of topics that you are comfortable talking about. You don't need to hammer your feed with business and sale pushes, remember getting personal won't hurt your business. For example, if you are a Personal Trainer (and have used your before and after photos to death) plan a #flexfriday or #mondaymotivation, highlight fitness inspiration from another person in your industry. Or if you are a designer use #moodboardmonday and curate your own mood board on...you guessed it, Monday!
Remember Google loves content. When you post on social media/blogs/guest blogging you are improving your ranking in Google. You don't need to write a novel but as long as you are writing relevant new content you are away laughing!
Posting Ideas.
1. Holidays - Almost every month has a Holiday whether it be something fun like National Donut Day or something traditional like Thanksgiving - it can be as light-hearted or serious as you like.
2. Introduction - From time-to-time take a selfie and introduce yourself to your audience (you know, that personal thing).
3. Run a giveaway - You can run your own giveaway or link up with other businesses to create a loop giveaway.
4. Guest blog for someone in your industry.
5. Use your hashtags. #motivationmonday #moodbaordmonday #followfriday - create your content around a hashtag.
6. Your upcoming events - advertise any upcoming events your business might be holding or local to your area.
7. Weekend update - Get personal about your weekend plans/ what you did in the weekend.
8. Product post - don't overwhelm your audience but post your products or services every few days.
9. Post a customer review.
10. Quote of the Day
Check out my portfolio here or if you want to talk more about Social Media contact me below.