Struggling with your choice of content? Is it making you feel 🙁 when you would much rather be: 😉

Don’t worry, you’re not alone! One of the most frequent questions asked by small business owners is ‘What should I be posting online?’. You have studied the success stories but your rear is not as big as Kim Kardashian’s and you don’t have nearly as many tattoos as Justin Bieber. There must be another way?!

We understand the difficulty of entering into the world of Social Media, not only is it tough to understand what content is best to post, you have to compete with over 30 million other business pages on Facebook alone. It’s not easy to stand out. You cannot sabotage the opposition. We tried. When I posted “You suk pepsi!”. No one paid attention and they offered me a free Pepsi to apologise. Not only did no one agree but they showed off their superb customer service.

With such fierce competition, we need more than just our products and services for us to stand out. Varied content is a must. We cannot just flog the product online. We must create compelling content where the audience wants more. Will you be as interested in following your favorite soft drink company on social media if they are merely plugging the latest flavours?

So how do you share content and stand out, without plugging your products and services in every post?

If you haven’t already noticed, Selfies are taking over Social Media. Some of the most popular content online has come in the form a selfie. It works! The most retweeted tweet on Twitter is a selfie, if that’s not proof, what is?

Taking a selfie can give your company a more ‘human’ look and make it easier for your following to relate to your brand. It’s informal and fun for people to engage with. People will rarely call you ugly on Social Media so you might be able to improve your self confidence in the process. If you are horrifically ugly, maybe avoid it. Do you have an attractive relative perhaps?

2. Behind the scenes

Behind the scenes photos are another great way to humanize your business. This will give your brand a more ‘honest’ and ‘transparent’ feel. Your following can gain a quick insight into the way your company likes to do business, this makes your brand much more relatable.

Posting pictures of your employees pretending to be happy will allow everyone to believe that you are not a horrific slave driver. If your employees are unable to muster a smile for even a split second, you can use photoshop to edit out the tears. Your reign of tyranny can continue while giving the impression that your employees are not crying themselves to sleep.

3. Funny photos

Of course, it depends on what you’re trying to achieve, but generally speaking funny photos actually work. Whether it be, creating your own version of a popular meme or sharing one that’d been made by another company. It is a great way to get your brands followers to positively interact with the brand. If you decide against making your own funny photo then use another companies; You can credit them when sharing the photo, this could encourage positive interaction with that brand and their following as well as yours.

Humour is very powerful on social media but it can be very tricky. Depending on your brand, try not be too edgy. Remember that you are representing the brand with every post. Let’s leave **INAPPROPRIATE JOKE THAT MAY OFFEND** jokes to one side, shall we?

4. Quotes

Posting quotes that are in line with your brand values is a great way to show your following what you’re about. If people can relate to the quotes that you’re posting then they’re going to feel that they can relate to you and your brand. It’s another great way to make your brand relatable without having to post original content or be plugging your products and services.

“If only I had checked myself” – Guy who wrecked himself.

5. Your own content

Of course, when running your business’ Social Media account you need to be posting your own content. Despite this, it’s best to ensure that the content isn’t too promotional. If you’re selling a product, take it out and share a photo of it in everyday life. Or, if you’re a digital based company, take yourself out and post some photos of yourself on your ‘company outing’. There’s a whole range of things you can do when posting original content that don’t need to be an obvious sale. Intrigue the customer and make them want to buy the product or service. Don’t try and force them, it won’t work.

If you create your own original content and the digital community engages/shares, it expands your reach. The followers who share your content will then become your social ambassadors. Leverage their influence to promote your brand. Word of mouth is the most powerful marketing tool and Social Media is the new word of mouth.

And the words coming out of my mouth are;

“I think you and your brand are great. So go out there and turn that 🙁 into a 😉 🙂 :)”

Do you need help creating and sharing content? Get in touch! & let’s do something awesome.

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