Marketing tip for teacherpreneurs #2: a cool tool to schedule your social media posts
At CottageClass, we’ve found that successful microschools post 1–3 times per day to social media.
I know what you’re saying…
Yikes! How on earth am I going to find the time to do that in my busy schedule?
Plus, whenever I sign on to social media, I get super distracted and end up wasting my day liking photos of cute puppies dressed up as unicorns
Well, I’ve got good news for you.
With buffer, you can schedule all your social media posts in advance!
In one savvy social media sitting, you can schedule your social media posts a week, month or even a full year in advance!
I think you will be delighted about how EXCITED your friends are to like and share the great news about your program!
The free plan lets you schedule 10 posts at a time, so if you’re feeling thrifty, we recommend putting aside 10–15 minutes a week to schedule your 10 posts for the week. If you want to upgrade, you can actually schedule a full year in advance which is so cool.
So put on your social media butterfly costume, and let’s get started:)
You’ll need
- An Instagram account
- A Facebook account
- A Facebook fan page
- A LinkedIn account
- A Twitter account
Here’s how to use buffer
- Create a buffer account
- Link your social media accounts
- Go to buffer dashboard
- Click settings
- Click posting schedule
- Times: 3pm is the best time of day to post. We suggest you schedule posts every day at 3pm, 1pm, 9am and 7pm for ideal results (in order of preference.
- Click content
- Create your post (BE SURE TO INCLUDE A LINK TO YOUR LISTING AND #COTTAGECLASS SO WE CAN LIKE AND SHARE IT)
- Click all social media icons that you want to post to.
- Click customize your networks (you’ll need to shorten your post for twitter and potentially linkedIn if it’s extra long and add a photo for instagram. Facebook and Facebook fan pages don’t have a limit)
- Create another post!
- Rebuffer your current post using the analytics tab.
- If possible, I recommend starting with Instagram, upload a photo, then put #Cottageclass @cottageclass so we retweet, then add a link and customize other networks. You’ll need to shorten your link for twitter and potentially linkedin.
Here’s a video I prepared to show you how it works.
What should I post? Here are types of posts we’ve found to catch attention.
- Announcement I’m so excited to announce that…
- Testimonials from parents, followed by a description and link to your microschool
- Event: We’re having a special open house on..
- Share content : “At our school, we value self-directed learning and he’s an article on self-directed learning”
- FOMO: We have 2 more spots let at xyz
- Food: People like posts that are connected to food or light up their 5 senses in some way. Mention food in your post.
- News: connect your post to current events.
- Boasts: Brag about how great you are or something you achieved. (I’m often surprised about how often people like super braggy posts.
- Always always always include the link to your CottageClass listing in your post so people can sign up! I’m often surprised by how often teachers don’t include the link to their listing. How are people supposed to sign up?
When you join CottageClass, we’ll set you up with some customized posts and tweets to get you started:)
And last but not least, BE SURE to tag CottageClass #cottageclass in all your posts and we will be sure like, love, share and retweet them! We will be your biggest fan:)
If you ever start feeling self-conscious about promoting yourself, Just remember — you are bringing so much value to the lives of children in your community and this is work that will transform the world forever.
It would be selfish of you not to do everything in your power to help those families who need you find you.
Once you’ve started fluttering about social media, check out :
Step 3: Join and post to your online parent groups Yahoo, Meetup and Facebook groups can be powerful channels to reach parents. Take a day to join these groups. It’s well worth it.
