So you think you can “Social Media”, huh? Having an account with amazing and inspiring pictures is just part of the bigger game that is the online world. You can have the best pictures the National Geographic has yet to see, but if you haven’t marketed yourself to put yourself in the best light, in front of the best audience, and create those quality engagements, you will be a small fish in a giant sea of hungry online sharks fighting for the same result – exponential social media growth. So, how does one achieve this? If you’re asking yourself this question more times then not, then this post is for you!
Consistency & Originality
First things first, be original. I say that as I am building my brand to be part of the teeny tiny industry that is a travel/beauty/lifestyle influencer. It’s a new trend on the market. Maybe you’ve heard of it before. Anywho, the key to standing out is not to have a specific niche that’s incredibly specific to the point where no one has done it. The key is to take whatever category you’re wanting to focus on, and make it your own. I absolutely love traveling and intend of making it my full time career one day (very soon!) when I am ready for that leap. While the world and that industry has a ton of travel influencers worldwide, the one thing it doesn’t have an abundance of and is my biggest advantage is very unique, one of a kind, and has a vision and purpose no one on earth has had, is doing, or will do – me.
Consistency is important to stay relevant with your readers and followers. If you post something new and exciting once every 3 months, good luck trying to build a following. Posting 3 times a week? There’s the ticket to rapid growth. You’re showing your followers that you have important messages to say, and a lot of them. If you’re like me and may or may not procrastinate a tiny smidge more often than you’d like to admit, having tools that help you by posting your story for you at a time that you scheduled ahead of time is very helpful. If you’re looking for some awesome tools I use to create my posts as far as timing and scheduling, check out this post!
Know Your Market
What are you passionate about? What sets your soul on fire? Is it all the latest fashion and beauty trends? Or how about a passion for rescued animals finding homes and DIY projects to make their lives happier and healthier? Maybe it’s paragliding in every country and state in the world? Whatever is your absolute passion, make that your lifestyle. That’s the simplest and most powerful advice I can offer when folks ask me what they should focus on for their new blog or social media.
I encourage them to do this exercise. Write down on a piece of paper every thing that makes you happy – absolutely everything. No matter how insignificant it may be. If you’re a mom and your happy time is one whole hour alone and away form your kids while driving a Starbucks latte in Target, write it down. If your happy place is seeing just how much you can tear your muscles in the gym to get that amazing pump, write it down. No matter how extreme, or how simple, write it all down.
Then, once you have your list of things, choose 5 line items that is your absolute favorite. One or two lines might stem from one single subject. Example) One line is you love the rush and excitement of a new place that may or may not require a passport, another is experiencing and cooking exotic foods, and another might be your weekly night class for Mandarin lessons. Your three items could be summarized into Traveling.
Once you find your top 5 items, next comes the really tough one. If you had to choose – life or death had to choose – between all 5 items and could only live your life focusing on one of those 5 items, what speaks louder over the rest? That one thing, whatever it is, is your main topic. The rest of the 4 items can be supporting topics. But now knowing your main focus, you can create a very focused plan of attack. No goal was accomplished without a clear vision.
Social Media Links – Everywhere
Here’s the thing. In order to gain followers as a whole, folks have to know how and where to find you. You absolutely have to link every single platform you have. For years, I neglected a Twitter account. But, because of my goal and vision, guess who has a Twitter account?! That’s still a battle I am learning best strategies for little by little, so me and my strong army of 11 followers are crushing it so far. Insert awkward thumbs up. On my home page on the blog, you will see follow buttons everywhere and previews of some of the social platforms. I want people to associate every social media platform I have with one another. If someone is looking for a DIY project on Pinterest and happens to stumble upon a post of mine from my own DIY project, they’re going to see a post about it and can click on the link to head over to my blog where I explain what I did in full detail. Connect everything! The time to be a hermit has come to and end, folks. If you want to get the attention of the day and age as it is now, you have to be online – everywhere.
Follow Influencers and Share Content
Monkey see, monkey do, right? Remember that whole chat earlier about the hush hushed market of influencers? I know you may have never heard of it, but just to make sure you’re not embarrassed at your next get together with a younger generation, an influencer is basically the new way to do advertisement for big companies. There’s a very stablished influencer in almost every major category imaginable. In my specific niche, there’s one or two ( or a couple thousands) of travel influencers, some more established than others. Find the influencers in your niche and follow them. Share their content. Engage with them. Engagement rate is a huge strategic advantage when pitching to clients. They want to see that you’re not just sharing your messages online and leaving them be. Why else would they want to partner with you? You MUST engage with your following and create those genuine relationships.
Sharing and engaging with influencers in your niche will catch the eyes of others that are following said person and will potentially encourage them to check out your own page and hopefully generate a few likes and a follow. Showing love and appreciation for that move can be shown by doing the same for them. Remember, women build each other up, while girls fight and tear each other down. Let’s be a community and generation of building each other up and winning at life together which brings me to my next point!
Engage With Your Followers
Nobody wants to check in daily with someone they don’t feel like they can relate to. There are influencers online right now that if I don’t see a daily IG (instagram) story from, I feel a little hollow. Pathetic in a way, I know. But I truly enjoy coming along the journey with these people. Every message, comment, email, or shoutout, I will respond to. I have taught and continue to teach my followers that I will listen – so don’t be afraid to reach out to me, beautiful!
Engaging with your followers on a business standpoint means that your engagement rate will increase which is super important when trying to pitch to clients. If you are just a pretty face on a screen, chances are you’re not going to get really far unless you’re someone like Cameron Diaz. Everybody knows her. She can literally not say a word, and just pose with XYZ product, and gain business. You have to be a story behind that pretty face of yours. Let the followers know who you are, what your interests and quirks are, what you’re passionate about, etc.
Then, you will begin to build an audience that not only is genuine, but will feel like they can communicate to a person, and not just a empty social media handle.
What are some tips you’ve come to find help you?
