There’s no question that your company needs to be active on social media. With 3.8 billion people on social media, it’s the best place to reach new and potential customers. So, if you’re not taking advantage of it, you’re missing out on an effective and inexpensive way to connect with almost half of the world’s population! For more information about the importance of being on social media, read: Should Your Business Be Using Social Media? And If So, Which One?
Once you understand why you need to be on social media, the question becomes, “What do I post on social media?”
This question is a little more challenging because deciding what to post on social media can often be time-consuming and overwhelming.
Tips for Social Media Marketing
Before we dive into the different content areas you should incorporate into your social media marketing, here are a couple of general tips to help you get started:
You need to mix up the type of content you share and make sure your audience stays engaged and interested. For example, you don’t want to promote your own products/services or share quotes every time you post. Remember people don’t follow business social media accounts just because they want to be sold to.
It’s not necessary to post 3 times a day to get results! Even though high frequency can work, it’s better to commit to a frequency you can consistently maintain. For some, that means posting a few times a week. For others, it means posting once a day. Decide what is manageable for you and stick with it.
6 Social Media Content Categories
To attract new followers and keep your current audience engaged, post a mix of interesting content from a wide variety of “content buckets”, or categories.
1. Educational Post Ideas
This is an important category especially if you consult, train, teach, or coach. Share small bits of wisdom with your audience so they begin to trust you and see you as an authority in your industry. When you share helpful content, people are more likely to trust your products and services. This creates loyalty to your brand.
Examples:
- Link to your blog posts
- Tips and Tricks
- Free Resources – guides and reports
- Answers to FAQs
- Live Video Training
2. Entertaining Post Ideas
One reason people spend so much time on social media is because it’s entertaining. In fact, humor is one of the most popular content types on social media. So, why not entertain and attract followers with some fun content of your own? Humorous content will entertain your followers, drive audience engagement, and allow them to see you as more than just a company or business.
If you’re worried about “not being businesslike”, remember that people aren’t on social media to be sold to but to be social. It’s ok to appeal to your target audience with entertaining content without trying to sell them anything.
Examples:
- Fun (daily) Holidays
- Memes
- Jokes
- Contests
- Puzzles
- Throwback and Nostalgia
3. Promotional Post Ideas
At one time, the 80/20 Rule was considered the “golden rule” of effective social media marketing. That means that 80% of your social media posts should educate, entertain, and inform your audience, while only 20% should openly promote your business. Even though that rule isn’t as effective anymore, you still don’t want to flood your social media feeds with only promotional posts. So, for best results, mix and match this category with the other content categories so your followers know you’re not just trying to sell them something.
Examples:
- Products and Services
- Freebies
- Webinars
- Client Testimonials
- New Location/Hours/Office Closed
4. Inspirational Post Ideas
Quotes are both inspiring and engaging! Most people like reading a good quote while they’re scrolling through their social media feeds. Try to keep the quotes relevant to your brand, and don’t post one every day. But sharing a good quote occasionally will help keep your engagement rates high.
Examples:
- Quotes
- Amazing Facts and Trivia
- Beautiful Photographs
- Personal stories of triumphs over challenges (especially if it’s yours or a client’s)
5. Connection Content Ideas
Connect with your followers on a personal level because, after all, people buy from people! You can add connection to most of your posts just by showing some personality in your captions and image choices.
Examples:
- Product Previews
- Behind the Scenes
- Occasional photos of your life – family, vacations, hobbies
- Community Service
- Nostalgia
- Employee Features
- Recognizing and complimenting other businesses or groups
- Thanking followers and customers for their loyalty and business
- Ask for feedback or opinions
- Company or Personal Events
6. Conversational Content Ideas
Your followers will appreciate it when you listen to them and not just talk at them. So, try to encourage conversation in all your posts no matter what the content category is. Here’s an easy way to make this work – post a quote or image, share what you think about it, and then ask your followers what they think.
This approach works well with educational content, too. You can ask questions like:
Have you tried this?
Which tip is your favorite?
What do you want to learn more about?
Ask questions to get your followers involved and engaged!
Examples:
- Polls
- “Caption This” Photos
- Questions
Bottom Line
It’s easy to understand that social media marketing is essential for all businesses, no matter how big or small. Knowing exactly how to start and what to post isn’t quite as easy and can often be overwhelming and time-consuming. Hopefully, these post ideas will help you strengthen your social media presence and drive audience engagement.
Social media marketing takes time you may not have. If you need a team to help you be effective, Impact Group Marketing offers multiple social media options. We can get you set up and then manage your social media presence daily.
Contact us today for a free consultation or to learn more about our social media management programs.