Have you ever heard the quote “random acts generate random results?”
Well, if you’re familiar with my friend, Belinda Ellsworth, then you’ve probably heard it on multiple occasions.
It’s the idea that when you do things without intention, you can never be sure of the results.
And this is no different for social media.
How many of you set a goal to finally use your Facebook Business Page or your customer/community group page, only to get overwhelmed and fail a few days in?
Or you set an alarm on your phone to remind yourself to post, only to get little to no reach or engagement?
You’re not alone.
But there is something that can be done about it.
Here is another quote for you,
When you fail to plan, you plan to fail.
Social media on the fly only works if you feel really inspired by something or you have an a-ha moment. These posts can be really powerful and help people connect with you through storytelling.
But I’m talking about the posts we put up when we quickly remember we haven’t posted in days, or the post we through up there just for the sake of posting.
I’ll say it again – random acts generate random results.
On social media it’s important that we plan our posts in advance with our perfect customer in mind. Why? Because our visibility in the newsfeed absolutely depends on one thing…
Engagement (likes, comments and shares).
But people only engage with content that interests them.
And we can only consistently serve up interesting content when we plan in advance.
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How Often Should I Post?
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For your Facebook Business Page, I suggest posting three times a day. This way, you will reach more people at different times of the day, thus increasing your chances of appearing in the newsfeed.
And remember, the more someone interacts with your posts, the more likely they are to see your content on a consistent basis.
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What Should I Post?
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Using this three-post rule I suggest posting:
- 1 Inspiring/Motivational Quote
- 1 Facebook Live video
- 1 Blog Post/Article
Inspiring and motivational quotes are great for early in the morning when people need a little positivity. Quotes are also the most shared type of posts on Facebook, so it’s imperative that you plan for one of these every single day.
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The next thing you’re going to want to post is Facebook Live videos. Facebook is favoring videos in the newsfeed, which means you need to post them!
Facebook lives are great for building trust and likeability with your customers as well as teaching them tips about your product and industry.
And lastly, an interesting blog post or article (which doesn’t have to be written by you), is a great third post for your business page. Articles quite often have high reach and engagement because it offers up free information and value to your customers.
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How Do I Keep Coming Up With Content?
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Now I know what you’re thinking.
You’re doing the math. 30 or 31 days a month, x 3 posts a day = 90-93 posts a month.
When you look at it that way it can seem really overwhelming and almost near impossible.
But when you split up your posts into those three categories, the numbers get smaller and smaller.
You only need 30/31 quotes; 30/31 Facebook Live topics; 30/31 blog posts.
But let’s get even more specific than that.
In any given month, you can select a theme to help you narrow down content. For example, let’s say you offer organizational products. During January (new resolutions) and March (beginning of spring), you offer tips on de-cluttering and re-organizing your home. You can help your community go from one end of the house to the other, cleaning and getting rid of everything that they don’t need.
Creating a monthly theme makes it easier for you to stay on track and get really specific with your content.
But you can go even deeper than that.
Another option is to brand every day of the week with a different theme. That way you only need to come up with 4/5 ideas for each of the three posts.
Here are some examples for a food/beverage consultant:
- Meatless Mondays
- Twenty Minute Meal Tuesdays
- Work Out Wednesdays
- Three Ingredient Thursdays
- Freezer Meal Fridays
- Savoury Saturdays
- Sweet Sundays
By creating a theme for every single day, it makes coming up with content that much easier.
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How Do I Schedule My Content in Advance?
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Instead of wasting time every single day trying to come up with new content, I suggest carving out a day or two every single month where you plan, create and schedule. That way, you can move on to other areas of your business and let your social media run in the background (checking in using Belinda’s Power Hour to engage with your community).
Here are some options and applications you can use to schedule your content in advance:
One Final Gift…
But I want to take this one step further! To help you, use this free planner to keep you organized and focused.
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