Taking over a group

If you're a regular reader of my newsletter you know it's always about usable tips or important Social Media updates. Today, it's a little different because last week I was part of a takeover week on the Network She's Facebook Group.

What happened?

As a Network She Diamond Member, I get a whole load of perks, one of which is a Power Pod - also known as a Whatsapp Group. The idea is for it to be our support system, our brainstorming platform, or whatever else we want to make it. We chose to accept a challenge - to take over Network She's Facebook Group for a week. We could do whatever we wanted but of course, the idea was to give us an opportunity to promote ourselves.

The group has 1.7k members, most of which are my 'ideal client' - it was a no-brainer for me to take on the challenge.

If you have the chance, should you do it?

All eight of us in my Power Pod loved the takeover week. Loads of people got involved with our posts and we now have a better idea of the kind of posts that worked best. Not to mention, we can repurpose the posts onto our own platforms now! Honestly, if you get the opportunity to do something similar, I wouldn't pass it up if I were you.

My advice though would be to make sure you pick a group that aligns with your business and that you plan to stay active on. If you already have a favourite group, reach out to the admins - they might have never considered letting people do a takeover week.

If you own a group, should you do it?

As a group owner, there are a few benefits to allowing people to take it over for the week. Firstly, that's a week that you don't have to prepare content for. Secondly, they might attract their fans to your group. Thirdly, it's a great way to change things up. Just make sure that the person or group of people who take over have something to offer to your group.

What makes for a great takeover week?

If you're planning what to post about on a takeover week, the first question you need to ask yourself is: why are people in this group? With Network She, people are in the group to promote their businesses and support each other. So we decided to ask them a question every day. All the questions were vaguely business related and they all allowed us to share more about ourselves or our businesses.

Next, you need to ask yourself what are you comfortable creating. Don't plan to go live if you've never done it before. What content are you good at creating? Play to your strengths, you don't have long to make a good impression.

Finally, remember to just be yourself. You're not taking over a group to try to do the same as what the admins usually do.

What if it's overwhelming?

As always, I'm here to help if you need me. If you're planning a takeover week and want it to be as stress-free as possible, I can provide you with some short-term Social Media Support.

Special Shout-outs

Network She, thank you for this opportunity.

The members of my Power Pod (Helen Phipps Watson, Lynette Sargeant, Susan Grace, Sue Henry, Jackie Thomson, Deb Sima and Chrissy Smith Patricolo), thank you for a fun week!