1. Choose the right platforms
Social media is how you show the online identity of your business. First work out where your audience is, then pick the right platforms based on that. LinkedIn suits a business audience better, while Instagram and Facebook are more informal. The newest trend right now is TikTok, for example. For us as an internet agency that platform is not very interesting, but if you sell children’s clothing, say, it is worth a look.
2. Decide what you want to share
Good content is the foundation of a social media strategy. Think blogs, projects, reviews, news and so on. Start by thinking carefully about who your audience is. Are they really waiting for cheerful photos on Instagram? Or would they rather read formal blogs on LinkedIn? Creating content is where you can let your creativity out, and it does not have to cost much. As content specialist Saskia de Laat points out in an article on Frankwatching, it helps to bring emotion into your stories, so consider adding humor to your posts. Showing personality is another good way to handle social media. Show who works at your company and what it is like there. Tips & tricks are another solid option: explain things in blogs and link straight through to your newsletter or the products in your webshop. Just do not stray too far from the products and services you offer, because it should not feel forced. We are happy to give you a few post ideas for inspiration. Better well borrowed than badly invented, right? Make the most of them
- Meet the team…. You see this one fairly often: a team member gets the spotlight for a moment. Important, because it shows the faces behind your business
- New project Show what you are working on! Introduce new projects or products in a post. Maybe you can even make this a monthly recurring post?
- News from your industry What do your followers really need to know about your industry? Has a revolutionary new product launched in the beauty sector? Post about it as a beauty salon. Are there new rules for car tires? Give it some attention in a post as a car manufacturer. Industries are always developing, so there is always news to find
- Throwback …. Look back at the days when you had far fewer employees and were maybe still sitting in an old, dusty office. Show how your company has grown!
3. Find the right hashtags
Adding the right hashtags to your posts gets you more reach. Instagram in particular makes heavy use of hashtags. So go wild with the #, but make sure the tags are relevant so visitors actually find what they are looking for. Before you publish a post, scan Instagram to see which hashtags are being used a lot at that moment.
4. Build a content calendar
It is great to have good ideas ready to go. But schedule them properly! Look into which platform suits the content best. LinkedIn works better with business clients, while Instagram does very well with consumers. Note in your planning where the story will be published, when it goes live and which visuals you have for it. That way you avoid rushing your posts online and making mistakes. Also settle on a fixed number of posts per month. That gives clarity to you as the creator and to your readers. Extra tip: use a tool like Hootsuite to schedule your posts in advance and automate the process. One more extra tip: design your feed. Use templates for your social media. On a platform like Instagram especially, a beautiful feed is a joy to look at, and templates play a big part in that. By sticking to one style that matches your brand identity and tone of voice, your audience will recognize you much sooner. Take a look at our own feed, which we are rather proud of. So put time into the design of your posts. There is nothing better for your social media followers than a clean, good looking overview. And that happens to be exactly what we can help you with! We are happy to design templates for your company, or maybe even a completely refreshed brand identity. In our blog we explain what to look out for with a brand identity and what it costs. Have a look at what we can do for you.
5. Integrate your webshop
Integrate your webshop with Facebook and Instagram. There is something called ‘Facebook and Instagram Shopping’ that lets you display and sell products on those two platforms. Very handy! Especially since they are two hugely popular social media platforms in the Netherlands. You can set up a nice ‘shop’ where people browse your products and make purchases.
Outsourcing your social media
With these tips you can get started on your posts and your feed. Not sure yet what you want, or no time to handle social media yourself? We are happy to do it for you! We put together a content calendar for you, complete with a format and copy. We respond to current events and make sure your feed looks great. Read more. Interested in promoting blogs and news items on your socials? We can write those for you too. The complete package, in other words!
