 We see it all the time. Businesses think that Instagram is the end all be all of their creative marketing efforts.
SPOILER ALERT - it's not. Algorithms change all the time. One day a post can go viral the next you get 3 likes. If that's not a mindf*ck then we don't know what is. A lot of people out there will tell you there's a formula. For every one business related post you should have three memes. They'll tell you to mix up the content and make it fun and personal. That's all mostly true but our biggest tip for Instagram - well it's the same as the other platforms - consistency and engagement. A LOT of business pages are really boring though. We know that's a tough pill to swallow. You made this amazing graphic to promote your webinar and no one is liking it. Why? Well, sometimes people don't want to be sold. Think about why you get on Instagram. Are you actively looking for webinars to participate in? We're guessing no. So, if you see a webinar post - are you going to double tap it and light up that heart? Nope. The good thing is that you're getting the resource out there. In our previous post we talked about having awesome resources on your website and not sharing them - so you're already headed in the right direction. Just don't rely on that one Instagram post to make you millions of dollars [unless you spend a ton of money on paying to promote it and you still probably won't see millions but it'll get in front of a larger audience. If you're not sure how to do that let us know - we can teach you]. Here are a few things to consider before you decide to post and pray on Instagram that will help you get more likes:
Circling back to what we said in the intro about memes and mixing it up - it's a good idea. Not every post should be about your resources. If your company specialized in machine learning then go out and find some funny memes. People get on social media to be entertained [and informed but again, think about why YOU get on to the platforms and what YOU would actively double tap]. Don't get bummed if your post doesn't go viral. Instagram is a HUGE platform and it changes all the time. Try and be like Dory. Just keep posting, just keep posting, just keep posting posting- what do we do? We post, post, post.
0 Comments
One of the biggest problems we see with companies is their lack of social media engagement. They have libraries full of amazing resources but once they post them they don't actively DO anything to spread the word. So what's the point? In the words of Katrina Kibben, Founder & CEO of Three Ears Media, "Posting and not engaging is like going outside and yelling something." You aren't going to attract much with that approach. It's like the 'post and pray' technique you've probably heard of. Or our previous analogy about throwing a baseball into an empty field. What's the point if no one is there to catch it?  That's basically what happens when you have resources you aren't sharing. Getting people to engage with your content won't happen if you just post it to your site and hope for the best. There are several factors to consider like images, SEO, keywords, tags, snippets and meta descriptions. Then there comes social media. You need variety. You need strategy.
A few things to consider when developing your social media strategy:
We know all about the heavy hitters like Indeed and LinkedIn to help find the next step in a life change when it comes to jobs. What surprises us is the lack of knowledge regarding Facebook when it comes to job seekers [in our experience]. If you're not sure the best way to navigate Facebook to find your next role here's the most basic breakdown: Navigate Facebook for jobs.
Next, you can narrow down your search in the box at the top that says 'search for jobs' with the magnifying glass next to it. Underneath that box you'll see options for location [and you can adjust the distance from your location here as well], job type, and category. You can search by job title or simple enter your location and hit the magnifying glass to see all the jobs in that suggested area. Once you set your search you'll get some relevant results to look through. When you find a job that strikes your fancy simply click apply. You'll get a pop up that shows your information. Here you'll be able to add or adjust the information that said employer will receive about you. Once you've adjusted your information and apply you'll receive a message indicating that the job has been applied for. For an extra step - not required - you can reply to that message and attach a full copy of your resume if you don't think the information you provided is enough. Pretty simple, right? Happy hunting!   Have you ever hopped on your social pages and noticed that on every single platform the same person or company posted the same damn thing? By the time you've seen it for a second time you're so over it. We'd venture to say it's not a great strategy but - it's not a strategy at all.
Posting the same thing across all of your company platforms at the same time is like hitting REPLY ALL to a company email. No one wants that. "But I have really great new content I want to share." Great! We want you to share it! We want you to shout it from the rooftops. But there's a way to share it so you don't annoy your entire audience all at the same time. How do you share similar content across multiple platforms? We aren't saying that you can't post the same thing everywhere - you can. In fact we encourage it because you have a different audience on LinkedIn than you do on Facebook or the other platforms. In fact, we're big fans of posting to our Instagram then sharing to our Facebook so we can kill two birds with one stone. It saves us some time so we don't have to formulate a new post for each platform. What we don't do is turn around and post the same thing that day on Twitter and LinkedIn and Snapchat, etc. We wait a few days, rewrite the post, maybe share a new image, and THEN post. Let it ride on your other platforms, see how it performs, then post away on the other channels. Now THAT is a strategy. Remember:
Oh, and stop hitting reply all.  Nowadays, most companies have some type of online marketing efforts. Whether it's organic or paid social media marketing, they're creating and sharing content that reflects their brand. Most companies understand that when it comes to employer brand, their employees are the front line. In order to keep your brand intact and continue putting the best foot forward, your employees need to be engaged with the content you're posting.
Here are some ways your employees can (and should) be sharing your company content:
If your employees aren't sure how to craft the best posts give them some examples. Feel free to provide them with some templates to follow (just make sure you make it very clear that they have to customize the posts or it'll be very obvious when everyone shares the same thing).
Also worth noting is that not all of your employees are going to be comfortable with sharing company content to their personal platforms. Don't force it. You don't want to lose top talent over some tweets.  Can't think of one? If you can, how new or relevant is it?
A lot of companies can't afford billboard space. What they can afford is social media marketing. The only thing you need to market anything online is, well, the internet. A monthly subscription to your local internet provider is a lot more cost friendly than a one time fee for a billboard. Sure, you can pay for online ads but getting your content out there isn't that difficult. Have you ever looked something up online and the noticed ads for it almost immediately on all of the apps that you use? That's called retargeting. Companies pay to set up ad campaigns and then use the data you've looked up to keep their brand top of mind when you head to other apps and platforms. When you head to a site and get that pop up that asks you to click accept or decline? That's usually asking you about content sharing and cookies. That's how they're able to use the cookies to retarget their brand to you across multiple platforms. Not all companies use retargeting as a marketing strategy. Some simply use their online presence. They actively share their content, their employees are engaged, and they know who their target audience is. Consistency is key. If your company is posting but your employees aren't actively helping to push the content via their own platforms - you're basically throwing a baseball into an empty field [there's no one there to catch the ball]. Regardless of whether there's a paid strategy in place, social media presence it key for companies to keep their brands top of mind for buyers today. Oh, and billboards don't have cookies. |
RSS Feed