Today content is key for marketing on social media sites where users are spending the most time online. More content, in different formats with original messaging, results in higher engagement rates thus driving more traffic to your website.
Content creators also help you maintain an active content calendar that includes posts, tweets, videos, and infographics. This ensures all content stays fresh while still providing content at regular intervals regardless of whether you have a full-time or part-time blogger working on content updates or if it’s done in-house.
Proper content creation services can be particularly helpful if you don’t have someone in-house who can dedicate themselves full-time to creating blog content, Facebook status updates, and tweets that include links. This content is critical because you need highly relevant content that is unique in tone and style for each social media platform.
Social media is one of the most powerful tools when it comes to promoting your business online. With such a wide range of social media sites, there’s no limit to the opportunities you have for connecting with an audience and increase awareness of your brand.
While most social media marketers will be familiar with images and video as popular content types, we’re going to take a look at some other forms that might not immediately spring to mind. Rather than just focusing on what they are and how you can use them in your marketing campaign, we’ll also consider why they might be useful and when they work best.
The possibilities are endless when it comes to bringing content into your social media strategy – so let’s get started!
Infographics
Infographics are fun to read and provide you with a little more information than your average social media post. They can be very effective if you manage to find the right topic, as they really do work well when it comes to illustrating data or other facts that might otherwise be hard for people to understand.
What kind of businesses could use info graphs?
While they might not seem like the most obvious choice for your business, there’s no reason why an infographic won’t work. For example, if you’re offering time management assistance, this type of visual representation would be perfect. This is something that will appeal both to those who want advice on how to get their time under control and also to anyone interested in product development.
Infographics are popular regardless of the topic they cover, but that doesn’t mean they’ll work for everyone. You need to be aware of your target audience when you’re creating an infographic. If your customer persona is more creative than scientific, they may not find the content as useful or interesting. On top of this, infographics can often take quite a long time to create so you won’t want to waste time by sharing something that’s unlikely to gain traction in its own right.
Slideshows
Slideshows are another type of social media content that might not be familiar to some marketers and businesses, that doesn’t mean that using slideshows in your is ineffective – far from it. Depending on your niche or industry, they can be somewhat of a game-changer when it comes to engaging with your audience and igniting interest in the services you offer.
What kind of businesses could use slideshows?
Slideshow content works well for any sort of business that has something to share that would appeal to an audience looking for images rather than long paragraphs. This is especially true if you’re targeting casual browsers who are unlikely to want to trawl through text in order to get the information they need. With this type of image-led social media post, all you have to do is give people what they want without them needing to dig too far.
Slideshows are casual, so this is a great way to engage with your audience. It’s important, however, not to get carried away and only share slideshows that actually have some kind of relevance or purpose. For example, if you’re a food business looking to promote their latest products, this could be an ideal form of content. Slideshows are fun and dynamic – but remember they can’t carry the weight of everything for your brand so don’t overuse them!
Promotions
Running social media campaigns or competitions is a great way to get more interaction from your followers and gain traction in an otherwise saturated market. This type of content works especially well when you’re focusing on building relationships with potential leads who aren’t yet part of your customer base.
What kind of businesses could use promotions?
Promotions are particularly important if you’re looking to attract new customers or business partners who might otherwise be hard to reach. If you want to get your name out there and make a lasting impression, this is the type of content for you. It’s also a great way to reward your existing audience and turn them into brand advocates.
Promotions can look professional or informal depending on what you choose – either way, it’s important that they aren’t too long-winded. Keep them short and relevant – many people scroll past posts without reading them fully, so don’t add anything excessive that might put off potential leads from clicking through! Succinct posts with a clear call to action will do the trick.
Educational
Educational social media content is the perfect way to build trust and authority as an expert in your industry. This works especially well if you can offer practical knowledge that isn’t readily available elsewhere or helpful tips that are bound to come in handy for those following you on social media.
What kind of businesses could use educational posts?
Businesses and brands looking to establish themselves as reliable and authoritative figures online should stick with educational-led posts like this one. If you’re able to teach customers about something they previously had no idea about, it shows them what makes you stand out from the crowd – which is always a good thing! Educational social media posts also help to position you as a thought leader and increase your credibility.
There are no set rules for educational social media posts, but it’s important that you know what you’re talking about before sharing anything. If someone asks a question or raises an issue that you go on to cover in one of your posts, make sure it really does answer the issue fully or bring something new to the conversation. You want readers to come away from the post feeling like they’ve learned something new – not as though they’ve read a rehash of something they already knew!
Visual content
Visual-led social media posts are essential for businesses looking to engage with their audience online through eye-catching photos and images – much more so than text-based posts, anyway!
What kind of businesses could use visual content?
Visual social media posts are great for any type of business or brand – but they’re especially effective when you’re looking to make a big impact in the shortest amount of time. Keep your eyes open for inspiring imagery and share it if you can! You never know where that next viral post might come from.
The internet is full of beautiful images just waiting to be shared, so there’s no shortage when it comes to finding interesting visuals to put up on your own profile. This means there aren’t really set rules about what makes an image ‘good’, either – anything eye-catching will do the trick! However, it’s important that you don’t overdo things and keep your posts varied. It can be easy to end up sharing too many images, which gets repetitive and puts people off.
Company culture
It might seem strange to include company culture as a type of social media content, but it really can have a positive impact on your business if done right! This kind of post is especially effective for those looking to show how much they care about their employees – or, better yet, how much their employees care about them back!
What kind of businesses could use company culture posts?
A great way to bring a touch of personality into a brand’s online presence is through sharing snippets from daily life at the company itself. It shows customers that your business is run by real people, which can be endearing and put them at ease if they’re thinking about doing business with you. It also helps to humanize the brand to outsiders, especially those who’ve never heard of you before.
Some brands only use social media for announcements or updates – but it’s easy to make posts more interesting by sharing bits of company culture instead! For example, taking a few snaps during lunchtime might capture employees in an unguarded moment away from their desks, which would offer an insight into what daily life is like at your place of work that you’re Twitter or Facebook audience wouldn’t get otherwise.
Customer service
Customer service-led social media content is essential for building trust with customers – without it, you’re likely to lose them forever. Customers want to know that they’ll get fast and helpful responses if they ever need help or support, so make sure your social media presence reflects this.
What kind of businesses could use customer service posts?
You don’t have to work in the public sector, as local government services. To use customer service-led content on your social media channels! If someone contacts your business via Facebook or Twitter (or even email). Replying promptly will help strengthen the bond between yourself and that person. It also shows other customers that you care about them and are ready to help whenever they need it.
All businesses should be ready and willing to provide customer service wherever possible. So it makes sense for this type of social media content to crop up on a regular basis. This doesn’t mean you have to spend all day answering the phone or replying to messages. Your customers will understand that. However, getting back to people promptly is likely to make them feel recognized, which encourages loyalty.
Behind-the-scenes
Behind-the-scenes social media posts are similar to company culture ones in some ways. But they’re different enough that both could be used together without looking out of place! The idea behind these types of posts is simple: show the audience what goes on behind at your business. Whether that’s through pictures or videos, depending on your chosen platform.
What kind of businesses could use behind-the-scenes posts?
All businesses could benefit from sharing a few behind-the-scenes snaps with their audience. As it shows that they aren’t just putting themselves out there for all to see. They’re also happy to share the inner workings of the company too! Regularly posting content like this not only builds up brand trust but also helps customers. Feel more connected to your business on a personal level.
The point of behind-the-scenes social media posts is that you can be flexible with how you approach them. Quite often, these kinds of posts are shown through visual content (i.e. photos or videos). But it’s possible to go old-school and write up a blog post detailing what happened that day instead.
Relevant news
Some brands like to share relevant news with their audience – but if you don’t, it’s not necessarily a bad idea! The key is to research your chosen social media platform before sharing articles. They should be interesting to your followers, so think about who you’re talking to before hitting the ‘share button.
What kind of businesses could use relevant news posts?
If you run or work for a business that’s related in some way to current events (i.e. politics). Then it makes sense for this type of content to crop up on your social media channels now and again. When sharing relevant news on social media, it’s essential to be sensitive about the audience you’re trying to reach. If they already follow you on social media, they may well receive your daily content without any issues.
Most businesses that share relevant news do so by embedding an article into a post. (Rather than just sharing the link with their followers). This is because it’s then easier to format the content and add in any accompanying pictures or videos before publishing. Plus, there are tons of free tools out there that make the job even easier!
Inspirational quotes
As cheesy as it might sound, inspirational quotes can act as great conversation starters when shared socially. They also help people who are thinking about a specific topic to find the answers they’re looking for.
What kind of businesses could use inspirational quotes?
All types of businesses can benefit from sharing motivational and inspirational quotes on social media. As it shows that you care about your audience and what matters to them. Whether that’s through sales or customer service. Some brands choose to share these kinds of quotes more than others. But if you feel like adding one into your content strategy again, it shouldn’t do any harm at all!
Social media posts that contain an inspiring quote are often formatted in a certain way. They begin with the quote itself (in bold/larger text). Followed by who said it (so people know where it originated from). And then any additional information you wish to add (so people know why it’s relevant).
