5 things to do

Social media algorithms change, new platforms emerge, and trends come and go. But even though all that can overwhelm you, social media remains an essential tool for entrepreneurs, coaches, and consultants to reach their audience and grow their businesses.

When you have a strategy in place, you don’t need to worry about showing up every day on every social media platform. Here are five things to do for a successful social media strategy:

1. Build authentic relationships: Instead of focusing on promoting your products or services, take the time to engage with your community. Respond to comments, ask questions, and create conversations. “Memories” is one of my favorite features on Facebook. I love seeing how I used to connect with my friends. If you hop back into the social media time machine, you’ll remember how you used to show up and leave comments on each other’s walls. You were showing up and CONNECTING with one another. By building genuine connections with your audience, you’ll build trust and loyalty, which will ultimately lead to more sales.

2. Embrace video content: Love it or hate it, video content is quickly becoming the preferred form of content for many social media users. Use it to showcase your personality, share your expertise, and create engaging content that resonates with your audience. Remember, people want to buy from people. You don’t need to be perfect. And if dancing, lip-syncing, or pointing doesn’t feel authentic to you, then don’t do those things. Find your own style. Whether it’s through live videos, pre-recorded videos, or stories, make sure to include video content in your social media strategy. Pick one and be consistent.

3. Prioritize value over sales: While you can drive sales on social media, prioritize driving value. I like to stick to the 75-25 rule. For every fourth post, offer a way to have someone get your lead magnet, sign up for your newsletter, or a way to work with you. Other posts should provide your audience with valuable content that educates, inspires, and/or entertains them. By providing value, you’ll build trust and authority, which will lead to more sales in the long run.

4. Listen to your audience: Social media works not just as a message broadcast tool but as a listening tool. Monitor your social media channels for feedback, questions, and comments. Use this feedback to improve your products, services, and content strategy. One of my favorite ways to get feedback from my audience is through polls on Instagram stories. They are a quick way for some of your closest followers to quickly give you feedback that can be incredibly valuable.

5. Diversify your content: While you should focus on creating content that resonates with your audience, that doesn’t mean it all has to be done the same way. Some people love to read, some enjoy listening, and some enjoy watching to learn new concepts or be entertained. To keep a wider segment of your audience engaged and interested, show up in a variety of content formats throughout the month. Don’t be afraid to experiment to see what works best for your audience.

By following these five tips, you’ll have a solid social media strategy to stay ahead of the game and build a strong, engaged community of followers.

– Katie Brinkley

Hear more from Katie at this year’s Creator Economy Expo (May 1-3, Cleveland, OH) in her session, Show Up LESS on Social and Build MORE Business. Use coupon code TILT200 to save $200 off any in-person pass.

5 things from the tilt

Equality and equity are not the same. Women make up a higher percentage of influencers with sponsored content deals, but men typically bring in higher rates. It brings up an interesting distinction to consider. (American Influencers Council)
Joe and Robert think the proposed US TikTok ban goes too far. [This Old Marketing podcast]
Joe talks the five critical strategies he’s employed that have made his journey a success. (Content Inc. podcast)
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Savannah, Ga., leaders have an interesting chat about attracting the big business of the independent creator economy to their region. (savannahnow)

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5 things to know

Money

F’s sake: YouTube eased up on its recent foul language restrictions that prevented creators who used profanity from earning ad revenue. Among the changes: moderate profanity (lighter than an f-bomb) gets all ad revenue and strong profanity (i.e., the f-bomb) in the first seven seconds gets limited ad revenue. No ad revenue available for titles and thumbnails with profanities. (Search Engine Journal)
Tilt Take: If you give an F, this is good news.
Series cash: TikTok creators can now charge 99 cents to $189.99 for a “Series,” aka collections of premium videos up to 20 minutes long. These clips also won’t show up on the for-you page or be able to be shared as usual. (engadget)
Tilt Take: Creator control over their revenue and pricing on a third-party platform is a smart decision for the platform and creator.

Audiences

Not passion first: “Your unique interest is what sets you apart from the crowd. You don’t need a million followers to earn money from your content. Create for a specific audience, and the money will follow.” (Giveo)
Tilt Take: We agree – always start with the audience.

Tech and Tools

No goose: DuckDuckGo got chatty with a new feature called DuckAssist that uses generative AI developed in partnership with OpenAI and Anthropic. (Mashable)
Tilt Take: Don’t squawk too much. In its infancy, it relies on Wikipedia so the results aren’t that different.

And Finally

Advertising overtakes: Among Elon Musk’s recent visions for Twitter – advertising as the core revenue stream (yes, from the self-proclaimed hater of advertising) instead of paid subscriptions. (CNN)
Tilt Take: The switch makes sense for general creator businesses. Subscriptions must be sold one by one, and that takes a lot more sales to earn the same as a single ad.

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the tilt team

Your team for this issue: Joe Pulizzi, Pam Pulizzi, Ann Gynn, Laura Kozak, Marc Maxhimer, and Dave Anthony, with an assist from Katie Brinkley.

Social Media Friend – March 10, 2023