It’s all very well creating good quality content but it’s what you do with it that makes the real difference. Social media has the power to turn your lonely blog article sitting quietly on your website into one which gets found and shared, engaging the minds of your potential clients.
We’ve compiled a list of top tips for making social media work for your business.
1. Share valuable content.
‘Everyone loves a generous person sharing information freely. Share information on social media that your customers will value, and people will follow you.’ David Gilroy, Conscious Solutions
2. Share other people’s content. It doesn’t have to be all your own content, in fact it shouldn’t be. As long as it’s helpful to your type of customers it is valid content to share. This practice is known as ‘content curation’. Become known as someone who offers things up to others.
‘Make ten Tweets about others for every one Tweet you make about yourself.’ Chris Brogan
3. Keep down the sales talk. We like to think of Twitter as a bit like a chat in a cafe. You wouldn’t hand out sales catalogues and you wouldn’t bore people by only ever talking about work all the time. Likewise, social media is not the place for a stream of pushy sales messages.
4. Vary the content you share by platform.
‘LinkedIn updates are more business-like than my Twitter ones, and that feels right to me. I Tweet a lot, and don’t want to fill up people’s LinkedIn timelines with chat. LinkedIn is like a forum. Twitter is like a cafe.’ Sharon Tanton
5. Join the conversation. Be sociable, communicate and show up regularly.
6. Be human. Get people to know a little more about you – not just the work you do, but the whole of you.
7. Talk around your area of expertise. Let the golden thread shine through your message so it’s clear to those that follow you what you stand for and where you play.
Valuable tips for your Twitter profile:
8. Keep it short and sweet. With only 160 characters to play with, you need to get to the point fast.
9. Focus on how you help your clients, rather than a dry summary of your experiences.
10. It’s fine to add a bit of personal detail, if you want to attract followers who share your interests outside work.
Valuable tips for your Facebook profile:
11. Adopt a conversational tone.
12. Keep it light, and focused on your clients. What will they gain from following you on Facebook?
13. Make it visual. Upload your logo, and add photographs, Facebook is very visual.
Valuable tips for your LinkedIn profile:
14. State what you want. Make it clear what kind of projects you’re looking for – this will make it easier for potential clients to find you. Use the keywords your clients will be searching – this will give you more chance of being found.
15. Tailor your experience to fit the kind of work you want to be doing – treat it like an online CV.
16. Be succinct. Think in headlines rather than essays.
17. Think about clients needs first. A section on ‘how I can help’ makes your profile stand out.
18. Keep it up to date.
>> Wondering how to use social media for business? Take our free online course at the Digital Business Academy
Related articles:
- 10 valuable tips for your marketing
- RT, @, #, DM? Twenty Top Twitter Tips
- A valuable guide to social media and content
- Should your business be on Facebook?
