~by Haley Lynn Gray~
A vast array of social media platforms are out there. Google+, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and the list goes on. If you’re a small business owner, you want to get as many clients as possible. But trying to be everything to everyone on every social media platform is going to drive you to the looney bin, and ultimately burn you out.
So what is a business person to do?
Come up with a solid, cohesive social media strategy that works for you. Sit down and figure out where your ideal client lives, which platforms you really want to be on and which you are most comfortable with.
Next, pull out a calendar and a sheet of paper and start brainstorming. On that calendar, you’re going to create a theme for each month and then create a schedule for how you’re going to fill out each month’s theme.
For example, I generate a weekly blog post and I also have other guest posts. I create a pile of quotes and memes at one sitting on Canva and then use them one by one for the next several weeks.
Then comes the fun part: generating content. I actually batch my blog posts up and then write several in a night. I am almost embarrassed to admit it takes me less than a half hour to create a 500-word blog post, which I save to a particular spot. We edit and schedule later. Once it’s posted, it is automatically shared on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook and we do additional sharing from that point.
You can also use software like Edgar or Hootsuite (my staff uses them for Extension of You Home Care) to schedule posts, so you don’t have to physically be on the computer to post at a particular time.
By creating a spreadsheet and uploading it to Hootsuite, you can batch content creation and make it happen in one short block of time. My staff monitors social media so if something happens, or we get comments, they can respond to them. But they aren’t actively making social media posts ALL the time.
Another simple tip is to have a list of the hex codes of the colors in your logo and know which fonts you consistently use. That way, you can create graphics that match your brand and your logo perfectly.
Social media can be a wonderful tool, or a nightmare of a time-hog. If you can manage it, and manage your usage of it, it can be a beautiful thing.
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Meet the Author: Haley Lynn Gray
Haley helps female entrepreneurs create a strategy plan for their businesses – so they can make enough money to spend quality time with their family, pay for their children’s dance lessons, pay bills – and not worry about where the next client is coming from.
Haley is a serial entrepreneur and founder of Leadership Girl. She helps other entrepreneurs build their businesses by sharing the benefits of her business education and experience through Business Coaching.
Whether you want to get a new business off the ground or expand an existing business, Haley can assist you.