When I speak to groups about social media, typically people want advice as to what to post.
Here are my top 5 tips to use as a guideline:
Interesting :: Only post something that you find interesting. If you think it is dull, imagine what your readers will think?
SME :: Write posts that position you as a SME, that is a subject matter expert. You can never go wrong posting things that show off your expertize.
Limit Sales Talk :: Limit posts that are too salesy. I think 20 percent is the limit. If every post says what a great deal you offer, people will quickly start ignoring you, unfollowing, un-liking and un-everything 🙁
No Politics :: On business accounts, stick to your business. Don’t post political rants. (unless of course you are a politician or in an industry that works with political parties) Otherwise you piss off those who who have opposing views. In this business climate you want to conduct business with everyone you can.
Mix it Up :: I try to have a mix of helpful tips, occasional relevant quotes, company news, information about offerings and occasional sales content. Once in a while we brag about something, but keep the bragging to occasional as to not sound obnoxious. Pictures are great and when I launch new site I always post a screenshot and link to the new site. Images are especially effective on Facebook as people love to go through photos and these are the most popular posts on that site.
So an often asked question is: How do I know if I am effective? I use re-tweets in twitter as barometer. If I am re-tweeted on a regular basis, chances are people like what I am posting. In Facebook, likes and shares are a good measure. In Google+, plus 1s are a good indicator, though I don’t see this practice in use much.
Please let me know what you think are are good tips for social media posts by commenting in the form below.
Note: Barry Roos is available to speak to your group on Social Media strategy as well as other web topics. Contact us to schedule.
Of course this silly title is a play on words of the age-old question: If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it does it make a sound?
It seems pretty elementary, but most people have social media pages and no one seems to know about them. In many cases, people actually seem to be hiding their social media pages.
Here are five places your social media links absolutely need to be:
Your Social Media Links should be on your business cards
Your Social Media Links should be on your website
Your Social Media Links should be on all print collateral
Your Social Media Links should be listed in your office or store. A simple tent display, with Find us on facebook, follow us on Twitter, etc….
Your Social Media Links should be in your email signature. And if you do bulk emails, you should absolutely have links to your social media pages there as well.
While these things seem like common sense (they are), I guarantee most people do not have their bases covered. Before you look to increase your social media following, first do these simple 5 things I mentioned. These are the low hanging fruit, and so easy to implement. And as my readers know, I don’t give any advice that I don’t try out myself first. As you can see from the back of my business cards (at the bottom of this page), I have all my links there.
Once you have these done, contact us to discuss our website management services and how we can help you grow your following and take advantage of social media.
Practicing what we preach: back of my business card
