The popularity and importance of social media have skyrocketed in recent years. A platform once designed to connect business owners to their current clients has quickly evolved into a medium used to target audiences and connect with other brands. With these rapid changes, small business owners are often left feeling out of the loop, struggling to grow and maintain a strong social media presence. 

One of the best ways to engage and connect with your audience is through good content. If you can create content that is well-liked by your audience, they are more likely to view and share with others, thereby increasing your business visibility while building a strong following. Check out these 10 things you must do when creating social media posts. 

1. Know your brand.

Before all else, you need to have a clear vision of what your brand is and how you plan on marketing it. If you haven’t established this, your posts will not feel cohesive. Whether you are a new business creating your social media accounts or a company with an existing account, you need to identify what makes you unique. 

• How do you want your viewers to see your brand?
• How do you want to interact with them? 
• What type of posts will effectively convey your message? 
• Who is your target audience? 

2. Use Apps to make posting easier. 

Maintaining a social media presence can be exhausting and time-consuming. Luckily there are social media apps designed to make life easier. Platforms like Hootsuite and Agorapulse are able to connect to your social media accounts and schedule posts without the hassle of having to log in to multiple accounts. Most social media networks are compatible with these apps. 

3. Create a goal for each social media post. 

Steer clear from posting for the sake of posting. Your followers won’t notice if you miss a day, but they will see if you’re posting unimportant content. If you focus on creating purposeful posts, your engagement will continue to grow. Ask yourself these questions when creating social media posts:

• What does this post do for my business? 
• What could my business gain from this post?
• What does this post say about my business? 

4. Make sure your posts are tailored for each platform. 

 Each social network has different options for sharing your content. They not only differ in the number of characters they allow but also in image formats and space they provide for your shared content. 

• Make sure your text follows the word count guidelines within each platform. Not complying can result in your message being cut off and ultimately leaving your viewers confused and annoyed. 

• Make sure your image corresponds with the image sizes that the social media network uses. It’s essential to create specific dimensions for each platform so that your image and text aren’t cut off.  You don’t want your image uploaded in a distorted manner or incorrectly cropped to fit onto your feed, potentially resulting in a disaster. Below is a screenshot of an actual post I saw (which inspired this blog)!

5. Content is king.

You will need to consistently share content that you have created to show your followers the expertise you have within your industry. By creating this unique content, you can show the knowledge you have attained on the latest trends and how they are evolving. Don’t be afraid to talk about your achievements or engaging facts about yourself. Sharing this sort of information helps the audience get a glimpse of what you and your business are about. Just make sure not to overshare and keep the topics as relevant as possible.

6. Import your existing contacts. 

You may be surprised to see just how many people you already know are using the same social media networks as you. There may be hundreds of people you have yet to reach through your contacts. You can import your email contacts from Gmail or Outlook. Linkedin, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter all allow imports up to a certain number. 

7. Keep your posts positive. 

Creating and maintaining a positive image for your brand requires you to have high standards for every post you make. The same standard should be applied to your social interactions as well. Building trust with your audience is important if you want to sustain a long term business relationship, and creating a positive and helpful space is key to doing so. 

8. Join social media groups. 

Facebook and LinkedIn are both great platforms to utilize as they have thousands of groups you can join that are focused on specific topics and industries. As you gain knowledge on social media trends, you can search through each network to find groups that pertain to your particular area of interest and expertise. The bigger groups may be crowded with your competitors, so joining smaller groups may be more beneficial. 

9. Avoid the sell. 

Your audience will know when they are being sold to. Most people have developed a disdain for traditional forms of advertising. The key is to make your audience care about your content enough to consistently engage with your posts. Engagement increases your chances of gaining new followers. Social media is ultimately a place for sharing and connecting with others. If you are real, lively, and interactive, people will follow. 

10.  Share your social media posts at the right time. 

Only a fraction of your viewers will view your social media posts if you don’t post at an optimal time. Your reach will depend on the level of activity within your community at the time you publish your post. You will need to make sure you hit the rush hour of each network for maximum visibility. LinkedIn is generally visited in the morning, while Facebook and Instagram get the most traffic during the afternoon and evening. Twitter typically stays active throughout the day, allowing you to have more freedom when publishing your content. 

As your business grows, so should your social media presence. If you need any help creating your social media posts or establishing your online presence, shoot us an email at info@foleymarketingadvisors – We are always happy to help!