When I first started on social media, I never knew what to post. And it showed. Half the time I just threw up a photo and hoped for the best, and the other half I ran out of time and ended up with no post. Sound familiar??

If you’ve ever felt stuck, you’re not alone! One of my best social media tips for small business owners is to have a clear content strategy. That’s exactly what we’re going to create right now.

Start by thinking of your ideal client or customer: what do they need from you to move from “just checking this out” to “loyal customer?” All brick & mortar businesses need to include:

• posts that make you relatable
• posts that position you as an authority
• post that invite folks to buy

Be Relatable and Yes, Authentic

One of the best social media tips for small business success is to humanize your brand. People connect with people, even (especially) on social media. There is no shortcut here, and it’s why I recommend that you show up on your socials at least some of the time.

There’s lots of space here for your personality, including:

• What you think is funny
• A couple of hobbies or personal characteristics
• Where you live
• Your family or pets

Be careful to just pick a couple here—we’re not sharing our entire lives on socials. What’s most relevant to your ideal customer? What’s pivotal to how you operate your business?

via GIPHY

Position Yourself as an Authority

One of the simplest yet most overlooked social media tips for small business growth? Teach your audience something!

What’s super basic to you, is life-altering to your customer. So share it. Share your knowledge, your expertise, your values, and your passion. Strategically, consider what the knowledge is that your customers need in order to buy from you, and then share that.

Examples of authority-building posts:

• Educational posts & industry insights
• Reels showing how a product is used or why it’s superior to others
• Sharing problems that your service resolves
• Breaking down industry trends or news

Remember, you’re at the forefront of an evolving field, and your customers count on you to know what’s new and coming.

Sell Your Stuff

Many of my clients shy away from this one, but you don’t want to skip it. People are following you for a reason. They know you can help them, so tell them how! Withholding that information is actually doing your audience a disservice.

Sales posts can include:

• Soft sells ? Highlighting new products or services, showcasing displays, behind-the-scenes footage, or you using products
• Direct sells ? Invitations to events, promotions, or purchases. These need to happen at least weekly!

One of the most effective social media tips for small business owners is to make buying as easy as possible. Keep putting yourself out there and inviting your audience to take action.

One Last Thing…

Social media is only one piece of your business marketing plan, and it can be hard to keep it from usurping your time. But if you stay focused on posting these three types of content regularly, you will see a growing and more engaged audience.

If you’re interested in getting content suggestions specifically tailored to you, the Strategic Profile Review can help with that! During it, I look at your feed and note content suggestions for you to round it out. We also have a 30-minute call during which we can focus on specific content ideas and how to implement the optimizations!