What to post on social media (and other problems you need to fix)
Does managing social media for your business make your head spin?
Do you feel under constant pressure to pump out ‘quality’ content five times a week across three different platforms?
STOP!
It doesn’t need to be like that. And I’m here to help.
In this blog I’ve outlined the three most common problems I see businesses struggle with and have given my top tips on how to solve them.
By the time you’ve finished reading, you’ll know how to save yourself a whole heap of time, energy and frustration on social media. And you’ll be able to create impactful posts your followers love.
So let’s get stuck in.
# Problem 1: You haven’t got time
As a busy business owner, you’ve got enough to do without spending hours messing around on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and now even TikTok.
The solution: You don’t need to be on ALL the platforms. Pick one and put your energy into that.
There are two things you need to consider before committing to your platform of choice.
The first is whether your audience is there. There’s no point posting 20 Tweets a day if that’s not where your ideal customers are.
The second is, do you enjoy it? If you hate Facebook don’t use it. If the thought of creating imagery for Instagram fills you with dread, use a different platform.
And if your target audience is on a platform you’re not mad about, or you simply cannot find the time, call in help. At Social Elements we offer full organic social media management. You can choose for support on one platform or multiple platforms. We can take it all off your hands. Now wouldn’t that be nice?
#Problem 2 You don’t know what to post
I probably should’ve put this first, because seriously, everyone struggles with this.
The solution: Don’t leave posting to the last minute.
Posting on the fly heaps extra pressure on your shoulders and I know you can do without that.
Instead, when you get intentional about your posts, not only will you create better content, you’ll speed up the content creation process by batch-creating posts.
Here’s what to do:
- Set aside one day a month (or a few hours a week). Put it in your diary and commit to it
- Plot out four content pillars – these will be themes for your content that you keep going back to. For example, one content pillar might be ‘Products’ and will include posts about specific products or services you want to promote over the next month. Another pillar might be ‘Behind the scenes’ and these posts will help your audience get to know you and your business
- Once you have your pillars, plot out three post ideas for each. Voila! A month’s worth of content
- When you’re writing your posts, try to imagine you are the customer. Think about what they want to know and what will be helpful to them, rather than what you want to write.
#Problem 3: No one engages with your posts
Is there anything more soul-destroying? But don’t panic, all is not lost.
The solution: We’re constantly told that engagement, not followers, is the true sign of success on social media. But when the only person who ever gives you a thumbs up is a member of your team, it just makes you feel even worse!
So what’s the answer?
Firstly you need to look at the content you’re creating. Are you giving people a reason to engage? Are you asking questions and including a call to action on every post?
Are you using your platform analytics to look at what IS working so that you can do more of that?
Are your platform bios fully optimised so the people can find you in search?
Be honest with yourself, would YOU engage with your posts if you saw them on your timeline?
Are you being social and engaging with other accounts? Admittedly this is hard on Facebook, but it’s a must on the other platforms.
OK, tough love over, here’s the good news. There’s more to engagement than comments and likes.
Direct Messages (DMs) are engagement – so if people are getting in touch, well done. Saves are engagement and show you’re providing value to your followers; shares are a form of engagement too.
Start thinking about how you can create content that provokes some of those actions too.
If you’d like help with any of the issues above, why not book a call and pick my brains? I can answer your questions, help you with content ideas and arm you with tips and tricks to make your life easier.
