What to say on Social Media
Marketing your business through social media can be a simple, low-cost and effective way to find and win new customers. The key to using social media effectively is knowing:
- who you are trying to attract,
- what you want to say,
- where your potential client/customer hangs out.
Wherever I am the question I’m asked most often is:
“What should I say on social media?”
Watch and Learn
To begin with, I recommend you watch and learn from what others are sharing and posting and see what kind of engagement and response they get. I also suggest that you answer questions and be helpful, this can often be by recommending others as either @ or + mentions.
The Formula
I like to use 3 E’s and 3 Q’s to summarise the type of content that I believe works best when you are trying to work out what to say. However, it is important to remember to promote your own business too!
3 E’s |
3 Q’s |
Educate | Questions |
Entertain | Quandaries |
Empower | Quotes |
Promotion |
How to Write Social Media Posts That People Respond To
It is important to write social media posts, particularly for Facebook and Twitter. Posts are what keep your social media active and your audience engaged. However, it’s imperative that you have a strategy and a plan to get the most out of your social media interactions. For the most part, your social media strategy should involve building your email list or sending them to your website so that they can become customers.
Understand Your Customers
You need to know who your target audience is so that you can recognise what type of posts will get more traction with them. For example, some audience members will be insulted by certain types of comedy. Others will respond very well to it. Know who they are so that your posts can be targeted.
Watch Your Competition
It’s always a good idea to check out what your competition is doing in regard to social media posts. Don’t just copy what they are doing. Instead, observe whether or not the competition is getting a result or not from their actions, and note how you can do it better or differently.
Know the Goal of the Post
What action do you want your customers to take when they read the post? Do you want them to click through to read more? Do you want them to like, follow and share? You need to be clear about what you want them to do in order to get action.
Think about what action do you want your customers to take when they read your social media posts? Share on XAdd a Relevant Image
People respond best to relevant images on social media. You can make memes and infographic using free software like Canva.com and the images in our Collection for your social media posts. A nice image, complete with a relevant quote will do wonders.
People respond best to relevant images on social media. You can make memes and infographic using free software like @Canva and our images Share on XWrite a Blurb that Gets Attention
When you share a meme or a blog post or other type of post on social media write a blurb about it, and what you want your readers to do about it.
Link to the Rest of the Story
Don’t just post most of your updates without linking to the rest of the blog post, more information about the meme, a newsletter sign up, or your website.
Don’t just post most of your updates without linking to the rest of the blog post or more information Share on XAsk Your Audience to Share
Never forget to ask your audience to share your posts. You can also invite them to take memes and infographics from your website to share. Just set up a new page that lists all the watermarked images that your audience can share.
Respond to Comments
Don’t just ignore the interaction happening on your social media pages. Always respond, and add comments to the discussion. Answer questions, and be kind. Even if someone is rude, don’t respond rudely. If you have to, delete the rude comment and let it go.
Don’t just ignore the interaction happening on your social media pages. Always respond, and add comments to the discussion. Share on XWriting social media posts that get a discussion going and inspire people to share and interact is an art. You’ll need to try different tactics to see what works for your particular audience. But, be sure to always have a call to action on the post so that your audience knows what to do. Remember that your goal is to get them on your email list so that you can market to them on an ongoing basis.
Still need inspiration for what to say?
If you’re still struggling with what to say on social media and need inspiration, we have the answer for you!
Sammy and I are producing a series of Monthly Planners for social media full of ideas that you can use. Our Monthly Social Media Planners have everything you need to make your Social Media awesome!
With our Social Media Planner, you’ll never be without an idea of what to say again. You’ll know what, where, and when to post on social media to attract your ideal clients every day. January’s Planner is ready now and has over 200 ideas for you to try! Click this link to find out more.
Takeaway Tip
Today’s takeaway tip is:
Use our 3E’s and 3Q’s formula to know what to say on social media and our monthly planner for ideas.
Takeaway Tip: Use our 3E's and 3Q's formula to know what to say on social media and our monthly planner for ideas. Share on X
If you like the images in our blogs, these elements are all available for you to buy and download from our Collection, together with instructions on how to make your own images in our How-To section.