This week we are going to focus on establishing or performing critical updates to our social media pages. Having a robust social media presence tells both clients and search engines that your business is active, relevant, and engaged. It can also take up a lot of your time, which is why I’ve worked it into my regular Monday workflow. This week we’ll perform necessary updates and set up to make Mondays a breeze this year.
Establishing Your Social Media
Chances are you already have social media pages established for your brands. If you do not (or you have been thinking about adding a new platform on which to market) here is where you start. Perform the tedious tasks associated with setting up an account on the platforms which you feel are important for your brand. A generic guide is that each brand should have a Facebook page. Brands targeting consumers or clients directly should also consider Instagram and Pinterest. Brands targeting other businesses or professionals should consider Twitter and LinkedIn.
Just because a platform is recommended doesn’t mean that you HAVE to use it. Use what fits your brand, your personality, and what you personally have the time to manage (or budget to outsource). Some platforms will require more time each week, so take that into effect as you create accounts. It may be better to not have an account rather than have a dormant one that is never updated.
Our wedding brand has had both an Instagram and a Facebook account since we started it 8 years ago. Last year, I added Pinterest to the mix. Since we diversified our brands, I also created separate pages for the 304 Collective. The new addition for this year is a LinkedIn account.
Updating Your Social Media
If you’ve had accounts on these platforms for a while, they might be in need of an update. Make sure that all relevant information is correct; especially your address (if listed). Search engines cross-reference this information. Accounts that have up to date and correct info are valuable additions to your SEO.
Check your header images and profile images to be sure they are professional and on brand. Take advantage of some of the newer options made available this year like Instagram’s Story Highlights or the Our Story Feature on Facebook.
Scroll through your feeds and feel free to delete anything that doesn’t feel like it fits you anymore.
Update Your About Page
We aren’t going to do a full website update right now, but do take a few moments to update the About page, social media links, and essential footer info like your address and contact info. Make sure that you actually look like your photo on the about page so your clients will know who to look for when meeting you.
Select a Scheduling Tool
Facebook has made managing your business page very easy. You can schedule everything for free, right within the platform. Beginning in the fall of 2019, Facebook launched their new Creator Studio, which allows you to schedule and post to Instagram and IGTV from your computer, and keeps a shared content studio for you to pull content from.
The Creator Studio is now my TOP recommendation for scheduling media for Facebook and Instagram. Full tutorial on using that coming soon!
If you would like to use another scheduling platform, here are a couple of options:
Hootsuite: Hootsuite is a robust scheduling platform that allows you to post on a myriad of platforms. The free account will allow you up to 10 social profiles (most other free plans allow only one) and 30 posts a month, including autoposting of photos. Their plans are a bit more expensive than others, but they offer a lot more. The free plan was great for me to use for several years to manage two brands on Instagram. Litereally the only reason I’m switching is to autopost video.
Later: Later is another scheduler that will work for several platforms. Their free plans also allow one account per platforms (Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest) and at least 30 posts per platform, so you’ll get a bit more bang for your (free) buck here. Paid plans are modestly priced.
Planoly: Planoly is hugely popular with creatives and brands who want to be able to see what their feed will look like before posting, as it uses the same grid structure as Instagram and allows you to move your scheduled posts around within that grid to achieve the look you want. Planoly is for Instagram only, and free accounts allow 30 photos posts on one account per month. Paid plans are modestly priced, and video is included in paid plans but can not be auto-posted.
Tailwind: Tailwind is a very popular scheduler for Pinterest (and Instagram). There is a free trial, but after the first month you’ll need to pay per month, per brand.
There are about a dozen or so other platforms out there. Find one that you feel comfortable with, get your account set up, and connect it with your social media so everything is ready to go for Monday.
That’s it! You’re done for this week! Congratulations! If you were doing your updates and noticed a critial lack of video in your online presence, now is a GREAT time to talk to us about a promotional video. Video is a powerful way to extend your reach on social media, improve the SEO on your website, and connect with your clients in a very authentic way. Drop me an email to start the conversation today!
Make sure you stay in the loop with this Business KickStart Challenge and all the other cool news from the 304 Collective by joining our email list!
This Challenge was first created in 2019, and is refreshed each year to contain the newest content and recommendations. It’s a great start to the year, but jump in any time you’re feeling scattered and need to organize your business a bit!
Complete the whole challenge:
Week One: Goals and Planning
Week Two: Take Charge of Your Email
Week Three: Establish or Update Your Social Media
Week Four: Prep Your Media
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