Not Sure What to Say Online? Managing Your Social Networks: Tips for Small Business Owners
Another day of facing down your computer screen, rummaging online or in your archives for content to add to your social channels. What to post? Where to find inspiration which resonates with your audience — and how can you streamline this ongoing process? Keep in mind the basic principles illustrated below, that the goals of “good material” center around being able to share information which is relevant, helpful, useful and/or amusing to your readers.
You probably have exposure to the same daily news and articles that pretty much everyone else does, but it’s not a competition. It’s HOW you serve up the meat and potatoes that makes it an entree rather than a bowl of soup and it’s telling the tale of a journey which defined your work ethic and now sets you apart from the rest. Example: how did your company get started? What is the story of your family’s multi-generational retail business?
Let your followers see where you began, what moves you and show how your company has evolved and grown into the incredible brand it is today. Not all posts need to only focus on business! Example: consider offering an amazing recipe for stuffing that belonged to your great-grandmother, which you decide to share with readers as something meaningful to your family. That’s content as well, and more importantly, it will likely appeal to a wider segement of people than another photo of your products.
Do you have an exceptional employee that you would love to introduce to the world? It’s okay to brag once in a while (just make sure it’s about others and not you).
Get in the habit of saving good stuff for later. Begin the process by collecting great articles, relevant links, videos and images whenever you see them! Whether you are scribbling a reminder on a restaurant napkin or saving a YouTube video for later, be consistent with your search for material that rocks.
Do you ever pass along articles or blog posts from other sites or pages? Not everything on your feed should be from you! In fact, it’s highly recommended to diversify and share information from other sources.
If this sounds like a poster at a marketing seminar — well, it’s because you’ve likely seen it before — and it’s true. People won’t keep coming back to your blog or website unless you can offer them something worth returning for.
Brush up on your writing skills to deliver material in a format that is both enjoyable and easy to read.
Practice identifying and collecting material which offers the reader a benefit both now as well as something which would still be useful down the road.
In summary, always be working to deliver a quality mix of news, informative resources, perhaps a bit of company history, and don’t forget to mix in a personal connection from time to time. Perhaps an old photo of you starting out in the industry for Throwback Thursday, or a the first automobile you owned for Wheels Wednesday. Such tidbits offer followers a glimpse of someone who is just like them — a person they can relate to and feel connected with. Social media, after all, is basically a platform for interactions rather than selling, so crafting a premium feed is the goal. Experiment and find different options which work best for your engagement, but above all, remember to have fun with it as well.
Thank you for reading! I hope you found this useful and feel free to follow me on my other sites. Have a great day!
