Social media tips I uncovered from experts at a Be More Social event (in Leeds)...

After much thought I decided to attend a learning event in Leeds on Monday. The lesson: social media. The bane and love of my life, simultaneously. I spent a while deciding if I should attend because I'm sure you know the reality. These events often feel like hard-selling, textbook standard cookie-cutter presentations or mindless and fluffy basic lessons where a topic is never fully engaged with. Stuff that you already know.

But this event wasn't like that at all. It felt like a long time sat in the meeting room, because I was exhausted. I had merely four hours sleep, due to spending the night (until 2am) dealing with a Russian investment company. We're all familiar with customer service (ahem, disservice, grrrr). Nonetheless, from what I was able to focus on, gem after gem of solid social media advice was presented in an accessible, honest yet simplified manner. I only managed to get half of it. This excellent presenter with around 25 years of experience was nonother then Rik Courtney.

Below are 20 short, piffy tips that I gleaned from attending a Be More Social event I almost didn't attend.

1. Post frequently.

These tips are in a rather random order but this one is rightly first. Posting frequently is your 'bread and butter', it's the base whereby you build your social media around. The other tips are generally useless if you're posting only a dozen times a year. You shouldn't be going overboard to get noticed as it can ruin your reputation, but you definitely need to be active to get the results you want and deserve. So post away, friends. Relevant, factual, insightful, helpful and original content will help you get the best outcomes. Create your own audience and keep it.

2. Use scheduling tools only with LinkedIn.

Having been privy to these seemingly useful tools myself (e.g Hootsuite) and other social automation tools, this one was interesting. Rik informed me that the algorithms and 'crawlers' on many social sites in general don't like scheduled content as the code is not as linked to the sites as when content is created within the website. However, luckily I've not been doing much of that in regards to sites other than LinkedIn. Here it's ok to use a scheduling tool as it hasn't got the negative effects, the algorithms still pick up the important bits.

3. It's all in the strategy (but ensure that it's natural).

You should be strategic about what you share, with what audience, when and what you expect. It's not rocket science if you think about it. Posting and sharing any old thing is fine from your personal accounts but professional accounts are another case entirely. It's acceptable and somewhat encouraged to add a personal touch to your posts even here in LinkedIn i.e family time and major celebrations. But always make sure that you're strategic about it, providing value and being helpful. However, there is always a risk of it seeming unnatural so to counter this you should only be sincere. Ensure this is the case by being equitable in what you give to people and what you get back. Be human, but be professional.

4. Plenty of pictures (algorithm's love 'em).

It shouldn't surprise you that as social media gets more and more visual-focused, so do the algorithms. In tandem with the rise of video and animations, Facebook and Twitter have wholly embraced visual elements (almost as much as Instagram). Don't be afraid of repurposing content into infographics, quotes and graphs. Anything that clarifies an informative point is a great choice for being highlighted in a more visual form. Try keep your pictures in line with your brand as it's a great idea to define the visual strategy for your brand from the get-go. Decide what colours they'll trend towards and what era's they should and shouldn't evoke. Remember that text should cover only a small part of the image to perform optimally online.

5. Become more digital. Engage more.

It's important to keep on top of developments in the tech world. Whether it's digital marketing or back-end code. Javascript or Google Ads. Even having an understanding of these things in this day and age puts you at an advantage. Many of us have had the experience of working with tech professionals only to feel like we've got the short end of the(very long) stick. But for social media, having an arsenal of skills at your disposal is good. If you can write posts, edit them in a tool, complete the appropriate SEO tasks and duplicate content into your own website and blog, then you rock! You'll be able to save precious money, learn skills, have greater control over creative direction and separate the wheat from the chaff when working with digital professionals. No one likes a job badly done. Engage more with the entire digital world and you'll thank yourself endlessly.

6. "Think of the job to be done". A direct quote from Rik.

Always bear in mind, why you're doing what you're doing. Remember what the overall direction of your marketing is leading to and think strategically about how you'll get there. Each post is to accomplish a task or improve a situation in some way or another. Also, remind yourself not to be too 'helpful', generally it's a good idea to always be adding value to the online world, but if it's taking too long and the words are fluffy and it's eating into your revenue, then it's too much. Work on adding meaningful value, quality over quantity. Frequent quality is the sweet spot.

7. Consider what you post (and why?)

See previous points. Try to be consistent with topics/themes so that marketing messages are clear to your audience.

8. Have targets. Written targets.

Write down what you're aiming for whether it's likes ,shares, views or engagements. Think about your content format, think about the context and take your social seriously. By quantifying your actions, you're taking a lot of guesswork out of performance measurement. There are countless studies showing that successful individuals write down their targets, so for social media, it's no different. When data comes through you can compare and see what you can try out to perform better next time. Practice makes perfect. It's extremely apt to mention the famed phrase 'fail to plan and you plan to fail' in regards to social media.

9. Glean the insight.

Check your Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn analytics (even if you only have basic accounts). For me, checking these has been indispensable to understanding the content users look for and want to engage with. As you may already know there are a multitude of metrics available on these tools allowing users to pinpoint exactly where there are problems and where things have gone right. Use the information and you'll see better results in the future.

10. Think with your value proposition in mind.

Consider your value proposition. Think about how you're helping stakeholders and what you're providing. Bear this in mind when it comes to the terminology you use and the tone of voice. You need to ensure your audience understand what you're saying. This is basic copywriting 101, but it's a very common issue with copy written by non-writers. If you want me to help, get in touch. Make your value digestible. So we've concluded that what you share is of value and that it can help your audience, building loyalty over time. However, a common caveat here is the content doesn't disseminate the knowledge in the most effective way. As you would with your business, you need to think critically about the audience of your content and create it accordingly. Think of your value and let it not go to waste.

11. Long-form content.

Create more meaty posts from time to time, ensuring that they add value to the consumers of the content. Long-form articles, post and webpages offer several benefits. Authoritative long articles for example can be excellent for SEO, as an 'evergreen' or 'cornerstone' piece from within your site. I offer these as a service. Resource lists relevant to your niche are good to have on your social media as they are guaranteed to be seen if genuinely helping users find the information they're after. Get in touch to find out more.

12. Create a visual (YouTube) fanbase.

So many video streaming sites allow users to upload their own content. Most of the time, it's free. Take advantage by making thoughtful and valuable videos to build up an engaged fanbase. This decade's digital marketing will be dominated by video, so by being on the cutting edge you'll be well positioned to benefit from this already dominant trend. If you need help with video transcripts/ideas give me a bell.

13. Build your social proof. Be active most days at a minimum.

At a minimum you should be on social media most days. According to Be More Social you should look at spending 30 minutes per day on your hustle's/organisation/personal social media. This includes viewing, browsing, creating and posting. Simple posts at first are all you need, it's far more attractive to appear to be rustic and realistic than polished and 'fake'. However, that's no excuse for sloppy work. A business that active, living and screams 'energy' on social media is a business that appears to be that way in reality.

14. Value. Value. Value.

Always be on the lookout for ways you can deliver value to your audience. This includes how-to's, useful content from similar influencers, solving audience problems, tutorials and so on. It is this type of content that often garners the highest engagement.  

15. Have a monthly theme.

This has worked when I've managed social media projects. It makes organising your posts far easier and promotes things staying relevant and focused. Establishing a theme also ensures that audiences know what to expect and pay more attention to you.

16. Power to the People.

Enable your audience to share your posts, encourage them to engage and be reciprocal when they do. This is a recipe for building a natural, organic audience over a sustained period of time. Be sincere and helpful and soon the favours will be returned to you.

17. When it works: stick with it. Consistency. Repetition.

When you've found a style of posting or method that is gaining traction and/or results, stick to it. Give your audience what they've come to expect and witness their increasing loyalty! Repeat your key messages without being monotonous and boring so that your audience have a clear action(s) that they can take. Be consistent with your methods and over time your efforts will pay off.

18. Facebook is a must.

Be prepared to learn Facebook. It's a huge platform with many different functions and an audience of over one quarter of the global population. If you're not on there, then you're doing it wrong. Plus, it's free.

19. #Hashtag #Strategy #####

Have a hashtag strategy. Learn all about how they work and select a key few (e.g about a dozen) that cover most of your topics and expertise. Find ones with a medium following and try to establish yourself in that feed. Don't cram your posts with hashtags and keep your choices professional.

20. If you make your posts as long as this one, have a solid reason for it.

As you can see I learned a whole lot from the session with Be More Social. And so my implementation of proper social media practice will start from now on. The fellowship begins...