If you have a new business, there are so many things to think about, that social media can often feel like an extra pressure.

Here are 10 top tips to help keep your head above water and ensure you are looking good online.

1. Consistency

You can go wild and post something on social media 5 times a week, however, in a month you might get burnt out and cause your followers to switch off!

Instead, you can decide how many times a week you can sensibly achieve, consistently.

Better to post less often and post consistent, varied content, than to stop altogether!

 

2. Tailor posts to the platform

It’s so easy to share posts from platform to platform or from a scheduling social site. Trouble is, Instagram loves hashtags but other platforms work better with just a few or none at all.

There is nothing worse than seeing a post on Facebook with 30 hashtags, as it tells me that this business has just copied and pasted and is not taking care to do it properly.

Also, annoying as it may be, how you tag other people or businesses on each platform differs. Therefore, even if you are sharing or scheduling posts, pop over to each platform and make sure the tags work for each of them.

3. Start using stories

Social media is constantly changing and ‘stories’ on Facebook and Instagram seem to be the thing at the moment.  When you are out and about, post a photo story or video in portrait mode, of what is going on. Try and be creative and have fun. These stories only last a day so give it a try.

4. Start connecting

I always say to clients that they need to be seen as active on social media and also an expert in their field. One way to do that is to connect with other organisations and if possible like and comment ‘as your business’. Get involved in conversations about your specialist area and get your name seen on every platform.

On Linked In you can follow business pages, Twitter you can set up lists of organisations to keep track easily, on Facebook, like pages ‘as your page’ and then just click ‘pages feed’ on the right of your page to easily view those businesses to like or comment.

5. Profile up-to-date

When a customer goes to any of your online platforms, they may be seeing your page for the first time. It’s their first encounter with your business and you have a very small window to convince them to stay.

Therefore, make sure your platform says who you are and what you do and that every platform looks consistent. Having a clear logo as your profile image will also make it easy for customers to recognise your brand too.

6. Have you claimed your google location?

I love Google Business pages!

Once you have claimed yours, make sure all the information is correct and add some great images, reviews and regular posts.

Not only will this attract attention on Google but you will be able to see how many people are looking for you, what they typed to find you and if they clicked through to your website or called you. And so much more!

7. Have you tried using Linked In?

Make sure you have a business page AND personal profile. It’s simple to set up, you can create your own unique url and can post on there as you would on other platforms. It is a superb way to share your expertise and build a good follow base. One of my favourite platforms.

8. Make a plan

If you are stressing about what to post, how about making a simple plan. Start with writing down ‘why’ you want to use social media. Then come up with a selection of content and how frequently you plan to post.

You can then plan some posts for the week and add a few spontaneous ones.

I often go back to my ‘why’ and check that what I am posting fits with my aims.

Not sure how well it is working? Set up a monthly spreadsheet to track how you are doing on each platform, it will help you to re-evaluate and tweak your posts as needed.

9. Don’t forget video!

This should be number 1!!
Video. Remember that 80% of internet traffic is video-based so it cannot be ignored.

People love people and video is a great way for your clients to meet the people and hear why you are passionate about your business.

10. Build your reviews

It’s a bit of work, but if you can, encourage your happy customers to leave reviews on Facebook, Google, Linked In, Trip Adviser or if all else fails, ask them to email a review. You will be able to share them with your audience on social media and prove that you are worth using. Recommendations can be very powerful.

So, be brave, be consistent, and if you are not sure about something I have mentioned, drop me a line.

Clare – info@clareherriot.co.uk