We all know social media is a crucial component of any marketing plan. It's an excellent way to connect with your intended audience, improve brand recognition, and eventually increase sales. But let's be honest: creating compelling content to share with your followers can be tough. To make social media content creation a little less tedious, we'll explore a few ways to overcome social media writer's block and develop post ideas that will truly engage your audience, provide real value, and help your brand cultivate a loyal following.
When kicking off your social media strategy, we recommend taking it slow and starting small. Begin with just one or two posts per week, and remember that quality always trumps quantity. Providing value is the key, so don't feel pressured to share content that isn't truly valuable just for the sake of meeting a post quota. Building a strong connection with the community you serve is the best way to attract followers, engage and build trust with your audience, and ultimately grow your business.
Often, the goal of social media posts is to drive traffic to a website. When writing these types of posts, don’t give away all the juicy details in the caption. Keep things short and sweet, providing just enough information to pique your audience's interest and encourage them to explore further by clicking through to your site.
To make brainstorming social media content easier, try organizing posts in categories based on their objectives. Below are some examples of buckets you might use to organize your social media ideas:
Inspirational posts might be quotes, client success stories (with their permission), case studies, and testimonials. These types of posts can help motivate your followers to interact with your brand on a deeper level.
If you have an idea that lends itself to conversation, then start one! We sometimes assume what our audience is thinking or feeling, but directly asking them can provide valuable insights and spark an exchange of ideas. Remember that your followers and clients want to be heard, not just talked at. You can use features like Facebook or Instagram polls or simply ask readers to share their thoughts in the comments. Whether you invite them to fill in the blank or ask for advice, people love to share their opinions. Inviting them to do so can help your audience feel heard while boosting your engagement metrics!
Posts aimed at connection can be simple, like sharing a festive holiday greeting or media of your business participating in charitable, industry, or community events. These types of posts showcase the human side of your brand and tell your followers that you're more than just a business. By sharing moments that are meaningful to you and your team, you can build trust and foster a deeper sense of connection with your audience.
A great way to showcase your expertise and build trust with your followers on social media is to educate them! The education category is all about providing useful resources that position you as a thought leader in your industry. You can share a link to a blog post, answer frequently asked questions, or provide relevant pro tips. By sharing educational content like this, you're warming up your viewers to what you're selling and showing them why they should choose your products or services over competitors.
While it's important to promote your products or services, it's equally important to avoid appearing too “salesy.” After all, social media is about building relationships and creating community. To maintain this balance, aim for a 3:2 ratio of knowledge, value, and community-minded posts to sales-focused posts. In other words, try to make promotional posts about 20% of your social media content. Your social media mix might include, for example, promotions for your products and/or services, special offers, and invitations to subscribe to your email list or blog. This way, you can strike the right balance between promoting your business and providing value to your audience.
There will be times when your social media content accomplishes multiple objectives at once, promoting your products or services while also educating or sparking a conversation with your audience. These types of posts can be especially valuable for your brand.
Social media is an important tool for businesses to connect with their audience, boost brand awareness, and drive sales. If you’re struggling to come up with exciting and valuable content to share with your followers, try organizing posts into these different categories. You might just see a significant improvement in your social media presence! For more marketing tips like these, subscribe to the Blue Frog blog.