Social media is a powerful marketing tool, but it can also be overwhelming. How do you decide what to post? How often should you post? How can you make sure your brand stays consistent across platforms? Don’t worry — we’re here to help. Check out our ten best social media organization tips and tricks below.
Use an Editorial Calendar
If you’re managing multiple social media accounts for your business, a content calendar can save you time and help organize your social media content. An editorial calendar helps ensure that your team is always ready with fresh content, which means more organic reach, better engagement, and more sales opportunities.
Create a Content Plan
Once you’ve got your editorial calendar set up, it’s time to create a content plan that details what types of posts you’ll be sharing on each platform over the next few months (or years). A good rule of thumb is that 80% of your posts should be informative or educational; 20% should be promotional. This ratio will ensure that people don’t get tired of repeatedly seeing the same kinds of updates.
Create a Social Media Posting Schedule
Now that you know what type of content will be shared on each platform, it’s time to create a posting schedule for each one. This will determine when you should share each type of post and how often you post it.
Be Consistent with your Tone, Voice, and Personality
Consistency is key when it comes to social media marketing. You want your followers to know what to expect when they click on your posts or follow one of your profiles. It’s important that you maintain a consistent voice across all platforms so that fans or customers don’t feel confused by different styles within the same account or across multiple accounts. The same goes for tone: If it’s funny on Facebook but serious on Instagram, perhaps you should consider keeping things consistent rather than fitting every platform into one style.
Keep it Short and Sweet — No More than 2-3 Sentences per Post
A lot of people get caught up in overthinking their posts and trying to cram as much information into one post as possible. But this can be counterproductive because it can leave people feeling overwhelmed and confused about what you’re trying to say. Instead, keep things simple by keeping each post under 100 characters (140 characters for Twitter). You don’t need every detail for your audience to understand what you mean — just give them enough information to get the gist of what you’re saying.
Include Relevant Hashtags for Maximum Exposure
Your goal when using hashtags is to increase the number of people who see your content, so make sure they’re relevant to your brand and audience. If you’re trying to reach moms, use #momlife or #momswithinkykids. If you sell products for babies, use #newbornbaby or #babiesfirstyear — both are specific enough that people won’t feel bombarded with irrelevant posts from companies that don’t sell baby products.
Repurpose Content Across Multiple Platforms
Repurposing is a great way to keep your content fresh and relevant, incredibly when short on time or resources. If you have a blog post that’s been well-received, consider repurposing it as an infographic or video for your social media channels.
Keep Tabs on your Competitors
It can be helpful to keep an eye on what your competitors are up to so you can stay on top of what’s happening in the social media space. You may not be able to monitor all of them simultaneously, so create a spreadsheet and rank them by importance based on industry relevance, number of followers/fans/likes/subscribers, etc. Then set up alerts for keywords related to your industry (e.g., “content marketing tips”) so that when they publish something new, you’ll know about it right away.
Engage with your Audience
Remember that these are real people behind those posts and tweets, so treat them like humans. Engage with them in a meaningful way by replying to comments, answering questions, sharing information that might interest them, or even saying hi.
Learn from your Mistakes, so you Don’t Make Them Again!
Don’t be afraid to make mistakes – everyone makes them! But it’s important to learn from them, so they don’t happen again. If something goes wrong, take time to analyze it to correct it. Don’t make the same mistake twice! Remember to think through your actions and take your time to establish an effective plan for each platform that you adopt. Here’s to being social!
