One of the lessons that the last few years has taught us is that small businesses
must be active online. Even a few years ago it was okay to not have much of a web presence, but that’s not the case anymore.
Social media does seem to be the preferred method for most small businesses,
but there is a lot more to do than just creating a Facebook page. It can be easy to become complacent and post sporadically. It is very important to get these pages established,
but the bulk of the work comes after, creating your content. Many business owners and employees fall into the trap of being diligent with posting for the first few weeks, and then falling off.
Below are five tips to ensure continuous content creation to keep your page engaging and helpful to your audience:
Make a Content Calendar
Planning out your posts for weeks, months, and even the entire year can seem like a tedious and daunting task at first. But in reality, it just takes some strategic planning and brainstorming. Does your business always host specials during a certain season? Or
when do you anticipate your events taking place? Make yourself a schedule to plan out when these posts are going to happen, so that you can see the times that your business does not have anything timely to post. This is when you can brainstorm other types
will likely always capture new people when you repost it. Repeating content is a great way to build your content calendar to be more robust.
Use scheduling features
Facebook is very popular for small businesses and organizations, and it has a scheduling feature for your posts. You can schedule out up to 6 months’ worth of posts, and designate
the date and time of day they become live on your page. There are also several
scheduling apps available that can schedule content, and post it to several social media platforms at one time. These do cost money, whereas Facebook scheduling is free. But if
you are running your organization’s social media by yourself, this may be a justifiable business expense. Designate small amounts of time to focus on content every week
Starting by setting aside an hour or so per week to focus on your content calendar is great way to improve your social media without being overwhelmed. If you can dedicate more
hours as time goes on, that is great. But small, repeated chunks of time over an extended period are already a great way to build out your content calendar for repeated success.
It always helps to be proactive instead of reactive!
How can you help your audience?
This can seem like a trick question at first. You may likely answer by saying your services, of course, help your audience. But studies show that your online audience is less likely to engage in your posts, if they are only promotions of your services. Mixing in posts on useful tips and tricks regarding your industry is a great way to build trust with customers. One example of this would be a cocktail bar showing a quick recipe for a classic Moscow mule. A hairdresser could share a tutorial on how to take care of your hair color between appointments. Donnelly- Boland offers monthly webinars on different back office services for our community and clients. At first, this may seem like giving away free services,
but it could actually win you over a client’s trust. Showcasing your organization’s knowledge is a great way to highlight your reputation, and entice customers to reach out.
Utilize repeatable content
Repeatable content applies to a post, article, tutorial, or anything generated by your business that’s content is timeless. Did one of your employees write a great article on tax season that got several shares? Or, have you found success with a particular post
that highlights your services? Our posts can easily be buried on timelines with the algorithms for these platforms, which is why repeating content is a great idea.
If you or your organization has any questions regarding your social media, please do not hesitate to reach out to us.