The #1 issue I hear from my clients, regardless of their industry, is that they have no idea what to post on social media. They know that they have to be online and posting content regularly, but between the sales and the blog posts, they have no idea what else to put out there. 

When it comes to a social media strategy, the big thing to remember is that content should have variety and consistency. 

For example, posting a motivational quote from the founder of the company is a great idea! Posting quotes from him or her several times a week? Probably a less positive experience for your audience. 

Another example would be around consistency. Posting once a week or once a month is not nearly enough to stay on your audience’s radar. Making sure you have a solid mix of content that’s 80% fun, engaging, educational and engaging with just 20% sales is your goal—so if you’re posting 5 times a week then only 1 of those posts should be a sales post! 

Think about it like walking in a retail shop. If you walked in, and there were 5 employees and 4 of them rushed at you as soon as you put your toes in the store? You’d probably run out of there! 

The same thing applies to your social media presence. Before you sell, you need to show your audience how you’re solving their needs and the value of working with you before you broach the subject of services. 

Always remember this:

People will get to KNOW you 
Then they will start to TRUST you 
Then they will BUY from you 

So don’t attempt to rush your online relationships. Build your relationship over time and offer a real human connection to your followers so they can feel comfortable when the time comes to offer your services or products to them. 

Quote: “Social media will help you build up loyalty of your current customers to the point that they will willingly, and for free, tell others about you.” --- Bonnie Sainsbury, Founder and CEO of Social Media Smarter

Now, how to fill up your posting schedule so you’re hitting that golden 80/20 rule? Today I’m talking about 10 types of posts you can schedule no matter what industry you’re in. 

1) QUOTES: HUMOUR, INSPIRING OR MOTIVATIONAL

Quotes work really well as everyone loves a good quote! Post them as text or use a program like Canva or PicMonkey to turn your quote into an image. While any quote related to your field will work, bonus points for using your own quotes and recommendations. 

2) FILL- IN-THE BLANK POSTS

If you had a million dollars what would you spend it on? If $$$ wasn’t an issue what would you implement in your business? Choose a fill in the blank statement for your followers to answer. Often you’ll gain insights on what their issues are and how you could be solving them. 

3) POLLS

Most people will click on your poll than answer a question! Include a few polls a month in your feeds. Both Twitter and Facebook have this option built-in, making posting one very easy. 

4) BEHIND THE SCENES

People want to see what happens in your business, they want the candids, they want to see your products, they want to see who else works there and what happens on a regular basis. Give them a glimpse of your day/week.

5) QUESTION AND ANSWER

I always tell my clients that if someone asks you a business question most likely someone else has the same question so answer it publicly! You can easily share 1 question a week and even have it as a recurring post such as Q & A with _______ every Friday

6) SHARE A HELPFUL TIP

Everyone has tips to offer! Related to your business, to work-life balance, to parenthood. People love tips and hacks! You know them? Share them!

7) REVIEW OR TESTIMONIALS

Encourage your followers/customers to share their experience. When someone has a good experience, you can share that via screencapping their testimonial, creating an image out of it, or even just retweeting/sharing on your platform. 

8) RECOMMEND A TOOL/APP

Do you have a tool or an app that you absolutely couldn’t run your business without? Share with your followers! They may even share with you an app or tool that could help you!

9) FAN PHOTOS

Ask your fans to share pictures of your product, brand etc. The more you share of their stuff the more they will do it.

10) PROFILE EMPLOYEE/OWNER

People love to see the people who work within a business, so make a point to profile them with questions around your business. Are you a solopreneur or self-employed and have no staff? Try profiling your pets or your family to give your followers a glimpse of your workday. 

Associate it with your business

With any general ideas like these, the key is to apply them strategically to your business. How can you take a generally engaging post like a poll question, and turn it into something that is both fun for your audience to answer, and useful for your business to learn? How can you take a quote and turn that into something that builds trust with your followers? 

I spend a lot of time building strategies with my clients that take their daily interactions and turn them into profit for their business. With the economy slowly opening, more clients have had questions on how to safely answer questions online. I’m offering Social Media Strategy Sessions that include a 1-hour call, detailed follow-up with a basic social media audit for $250 until June 15th. Book yours here or by emailing kerra@kasocialmedia.ca