Wasting Time Trying To Figure Out What To Post On Social Media?
In this digital age, there’s no denying that when the power of social media is harnessed the right way, it can be a game-changer for your business.
But where to start?
Knowing what to post, when to post it and how is the magic question. Today we’re going to talk through 7 steps to turn your overwhelm, dread and fear into confident content creation.
1 – Client Stories
Storytelling goes back as far as the stone age. It was used for early human tribes to define who they were, tell future generations their history, and encapsulate their journey, turning normal people into myths and legends.
So how can you use this in your social media strategy? First, start by breaking down stories into 4 categories.
The success story – Simply share a story of a ‘win’ from one of your clients or transformations. When people can see the outcome of your work, you’re building trust.
The transformation story – Sharing a before and after transformation story. This shows your Dream Clients that it could be them. If they can do it, why not me?
The problem-solving story – Sharing a specific challenge that you helped a client through. Using relatable problem solving is a great way to build rapport and trust. When others see the solution to the very same issue they’ve been having, it resonates and builds a connection to your service.
The conversation re-cap – Sharing a recap of wisdom you provided to a client. We all have conversations where there are so many golden nuggets that could help others. Try to capture these at the moment and put them in a simple ‘twitter quote’ style post.
2 – Your Stories
People buy from people not from a simple logo. So many now are even more conscious of who they buy from, not just the what. They need to feel a connection to not only those behind the scenes but with the brand’s image and what their values are.
Stories from your past – Share your origin story and other stories that share how you got to where you are today. How many times have you seen the backstory of a big brand and thought, that’s so relatable. Remember, relatable + rapport = Deep relationship.
Stories from your present – Stories from things you’ve accomplished, experiences you’ve recently had. You’d be surprised to hear that your Dream Clients are going through a lot of what you are now! Take them with you on the journey and they’ll soon join you.
Stories from your future – Your dreams of the future – What are the changes you want to make? How can you create relationships to do this?
Values-based stories – How do you live your core values? Show your culture, what you stand for and why. By using this method you’ll attract only those that share them too, and in doing so, attract only those you want to attract.
3 – Your Tools
How many hours do you find engrossed in your favorite documentary and podcast? The reason? You love to see how it’s done. By showing others the tools you use to run your business, you show how much value you are adding to their lives.
Your Map – Share details about your processes and frameworks. Show snippets of what you use that enable you to run your business effectively.
Your Toolbelt – A specific tool that you use to help your Dream Clients. Maybe you have some special sauce? A unique method that is specific to you and your map?
Super-power showcase – A story sharing how you use your gifts and superpowers to help your Dream Clients.
Best practices – Share strategies and tactics that help your Dream Clients succeed.
4 – Q & A
Why? Why? Why?
When we were children it was our favorite word. Allowing prospects to ask you about your business, processes, and transformations reassures them that they’re in safe hands.
FAQ – A great way to cover your most recurring questions. You’ll find your Dream Clients have a specific ‘Customer avatar’, meaning they’ll all have similar concerns, queries or problems.
LAQ – The least asked questions that you wished more potential Dream Clients would ask you. This is a great way to show your prospects anything they may not have considered, but feel reassured now it’s been raised.
Submissions – Asking your community where they need the most help and support right now, and answering the submissions. This is an awesome way to identify where your Dream Clients are struggling in their own business or journey. Armed with this information you can readjust your offer to be able to solve even more problems.
Client questions – Questions that come up during client conversations (AFTER they’ve started working with you). Sometimes there are things you don’t think of.
You don’t know what you don’t know!
This is such a great way to get even more feedback and develop your future FAQs.
Step 5 – Curated Resources
What resources have you used that came from your community that has been so important to you and added real value to your processes? Share them! This is also a really good way to support your community and lift others up.
A book you endorse – A book you’ve read that would help your community. You can post your top 5 from the past month or year. This is a great way to engage with your audience to see what they’re reading too!
A tool you endorse – A tool you recommend that would help your community. What tools do you use that make your life so much easier? Is it a scheduling tool? Maybe an automation system?
An expert you endorse – A complimentary expert that would help your Dream Clients get further down their path. People helping people! If you think your Dream Clients can benefit from learning from others, then let them know. It’s a really good way to build up your community of peers too.
An experience you endorse – An event, class, workshop, or program that would be useful to your community. How many times have you completed training or a program and thought of someone else that would really enjoy it? Chances are that if you can think of a friend that would benefit, then your audience definitely would.
Step 6 – Behind The Scenes
Who doesn’t love an inside view or a fly-on-the-wall style documentary? To see how the nuts and bolts of businesses work can be so inspirational to others. If you know your audience struggles with some of the things you do so well, show them how!
How to run your business – Showing ‘a backstage pass’ of how you run your business. Think of it as a window to how your business operates.
How to help your clients – Showing ‘under the hood’ of how you support your clients. You can go through each step of your client’s journey working with you.
Daily routines and rituals – Habits, processes, and systems you use every day in your professional and personal life. Think of this as a day in the life of. People love to see the exact steps, even if this is to the dinner table!
Relationships – Stories of key relationships (partner, children, friends, stakeholders, etc). This is so important. Remember, community-made not self-made. Show your audience who your relationships are, how you support each other and how this affects your business.
7 – The 4 M’s
Finally, The 4 M’s. This is a really simple but effective content creation method.
Myths – Common myths people have about your industry. What do you hear all the time that makes you feel ‘icky’ that is just not true? Debunk the myths and give your audience assurance.
Mistakes – Common mistakes people make and how to avoid them. If you can save someone from making a mistake, why wouldn’t you? By doing this you’re also building trust and authority with them.
Misconceptions – Misconceptions people have about using your products and services. You don’t want people to think you do one thing when in actual fact you do another.
Milestones – Milestones clients achieve on their journey with you that can be celebrated. By showing any small wins or progress your clients make, it makes it feel achievable to your potential Dream Clients.
And there you have it! 7 key steps to building your content creating machine.
To make this even easier, we’ve created The Content Machine™ Social Media Planning Checklist. Every one of the 28 different types of content is included above in a simple, easy-to-use checklist.
If you’re ready to simplify your content creation process, you’re going to love this checklist.
Yours,
Giovanni Marsico
