What’s inside this article: If you’ve been feeling as if your socials are on repeat, or you simply need more social media ideas for your small business, here are 15 fresh ideas that will keep your content flowing for months.
Has your feed been feeling all kinds of blugh lately?
You’ve been repurposing the same old content, your weekly themed topics have run their course, or maybe you don’t have the time to pre-schedule enough content so your ‘post-on-the-spot’ mentality is resulting in poorly planned posts and content that doesn’t do your small business justice.
If you’ve been feeling bored, confused or straight up overwhelmed by consistently showing up with high-quality content on a regular basis, you’re not alone. This is all too common, we’ve even been there ourselves.
Back in the day…
We used to use traditional media like radio or newspaper, events and word of mouth for marketing purposes. The content was expensive, it took months to prepare and small businesses tended to rely solely on a stack of flyers to get their promotions across.
Today, you can’t do ANYTHING promotional for your business without thinking of how you are going to showcase that singular idea a million different ways, digitally. Consumers want fast, highly absorbable, regular content by the click of a button, which can really make it hard for small businesses to keep up.
But, as small business owners, we must learn to use, utilize and understand social media marketing and content promotions in order to make an impact. Here’s what the Marketing Insider’s Group has to say about consumer’s behaviour habits for 2020:
“Customers are increasingly savvier and more discerning about which businesses they support. Before making a decision, they’ll do a quick search to browse your website and social media.”
So even though you may be feeling all kinds of blugh about your content lately, it’s incredibly important to keep up with it regularly. The more you are seen, the more people will start to recognize who you are and what you sell.
You came to the right spot.
Hey small business owner, you don’t have to do it alone!
If you struggle with content creation, the best thing to do is to have a set list of concepts, ideas and discussion topics and then create weekly categories to fit those overall topics into.
FYI, this is great for SEO too.
Aside from getting strategic with your social media content, and learning the basics of taking your business online, sometimes you just need someone to say – HEY YOU, use these ideas, they’re going to help you. So, that’s exactly what we’re going to do for you today. This article is going to give you so many social media post ideas for your business, you’ll be set for months!
STAY FEED FRESH WITH THESE 15 SOCIAL MEDIA IDEAS FOR YOUR SMALL BUSINESS
1. SHARE A PERSONAL STORY
Never underestimate the power of storytelling! Human beings are so connected to stories, and they have been since we’ve existed. Stories have been told from generation to generation, passed down in tribes, showcased in hieroglyphs, written on walls in caves and so on… Stories hold so much weight when it comes to promotions, because if you can connect on a personal level, you can get your audience to trust you.
PS – you are always building trust as a small business owner.
This is a great social media post idea because really, people just naturally love good gossip. So, get vulnerable and share a story about your brand or your product. Here are some good conversation starters to get the juices flowing:
- Why you developed the product or started your brand – the pain points you experienced to get from A to B
- A story where your product or service became a very valuable and integral part of your daily routine or even changed your life
- A story of how hard you had to work behind the scenes to launch your product and the quality that goes into each and every product
And if you’re all about utilizing new social media tools for your small business, Tiktok and Reels have become notorious for showcasing your small business in a creative and impactful way. Check out this article on how to use TikTok for Businesses in 2020.
2. BEHIND THE SCENES OR A DAY IN THE LIFE
Just like with a good old fashioned story, people like to get up close and personal to your life and what it is you do in your day-to-day, especially if you have a successful business. They want to see themselves in your success, they want to feel the blood, sweat and tears that goes into your passion AND they want to watch masters work their craft.
Here are some social media post examples to get you started:
- Do a live video on Facebook or Instagram that goes behind the scenes into giving tips, advice or making your product (whether it’s factory-based or DIY in your own home)
- Take a photo of the behind the scenes, whether you are at your computer working, your office or your studio (the messier, the better)
- Showcase your friends and family ‘outside’ of your typical work-day.
3. RUN A CONTEST OR A GIVEAWAY
When in doubt, give something away! We love running giveaways and try to incorporate them on a seasonal or monthly basis into our client’s accounts. They help with growth, engagement, exposure etc. and one of our favourite reasons for running giveaways is that they help with networking relationships and customer trust. You can easily do this by reaching out to brands that you think would be a good fit and simply ask if they would be willing to give away some product if you hosted or organized the giveaway on your business page. Most brands are willing to participate and if they say no, all you’ve really done is made another brand connection.
4. A PRODUCT IN ACTION
Product reviews & live demos, and especially videos in this instance are a great way to showcase what you sell, in a unique way. This type of content is similar to a behind-the-scenes post, however, you can make these a lot more creative. Check out some brands on Tiktok or Youtube for inspiration on how to get creative with live demos.
5. SHARE, REPOST OR RE-TWEET
Another social media idea for your small business (that has a little bit of stigma attached to it) is to repost, retweet or share an article or photo that’s not yours to boost engagement or create filler in your social media calendar. Just credit the original source PLEASE! You can use a tool like Reposta and make sure you add REPOST from (insert account handle).
6. COLLAB WITH A BRAND WHO HAS A SIMILAR AUDIENCE
Partnering with another brand is a great way to tap into new audiences and attract new viewers. The brands should add value to each other and create a campaign that targets both brands’ audiences to help them grow. We also love collaborating because it’s another great way to show that you are part of a community and encourage the growth of other small businesses.
7. 15 SECOND VIDEO CLIPS
Want to boost your social media engagement? Short videos are a great way to capture someone’s attention and interest and get them intrigued enough to find out more. People scroll fast and they have short attention spans, so make sure your cover image and the first few seconds are eye catching and you experiment with different kinds to find out what performs best and what your audience likes.
Here are some quick video ideas to get you started:
- Boomerangs
- 3x speed video clips or slow motion clips
- Photos edited together for a quick animation (stop-motion)
You can download a video editing tool on your iOS or Android to assist with creating high-quality video content for your social media channels.
8. TUTORIALS AND HOW-TO’S
Informative and educational posts such as tutorials and how-tos will get viewers engaged and want to learn more. Tutorials provide valuable content to your audience and you can even end with a question that encourages engagement. Plus, tutorials and how-tos are a great way to show your audience that you are an expert in your field. This is especially important if you are a service-based small business.
9. GO LIVE FOR A Q&A
Most Instagram posts don’t get seen. Going live on Instagram places your content at the top of your followers’ feeds, giving you a very solid chance of getting views. Going live also allows you to connect with your followers in real-time and it pulls people in. By giving them that “in the moment” experience, it builds a more natural relationship and they will want to learn more about your brand. Post your live video as a Q&A and get your audience members to pop on and ask questions/ engage with you.
10. MEMES & GIFS
Memes and GIFs need no introduction. They are both interactive, verY shareable and easy to create. Posting a relevant meme can get you a lot of interaction. Since this content performs so well, try and include memes every now and then, even in your stories.
Here is the best way to create animated GIF’s for your social media content:
- Search for your favourite GIF here
- Then download it here
- Now create a design in Canva that has a caption and your branding on it
Here’s some memespiration for your upcoming social media posts.
11. TRENDS AND THEME DAYS / SOCIAL MEDIA HOLIDAYS
Trends and themes can range from seasonal topics like pumpkin spiced lattes and national coffee day, to something more salesy like Black Friday. There is also a hashtag for pretty much anything, and every day of the week has its own theme – ex – #SundayFunday, #WellnessWednesday, etc. With some pre-planning, you’ll never run out of daily themes and national social media days. Also, be mindful of where the majority of your followers live. You can grab a Social Media Holiday Calendar here.
12. POLL IT!
Interactive content like polls generate a lot of engagement because instead of just scrolling past the content, users can respond to what you had posted in an organic and authentic way (because you’re asking them for advice). A simple this or that question on Instagram stories can help you test out new ideas or come up with a new version of a product that your followers would be more inclined to buy, helping your revenue.
13. QUOTES & INSPIRATION
If you’re running low on ideas, you can always design a quote using your brand style and colours as long as it has relevance. You will probably connect with a lot of your followers too. With a platform like Canva, you can easily create an Instagram Quote Post using a style-guide, creating consistency with the look of your feed.
14. INFORMATIVE GRAPHICS (INFOGRAPHS)
Users love pocket-sized information and the good news is that they’re super easy to make with a tool like Canva. And if you don’t feel like making one, find one to share (and give credit where it’s due).
“Infographics get shared more, viewed more, and loved more than most other content types. One study found that infographics were liked and shared on social media up to three times more often than other content.” (Quicksprout)
15. USER GENERATED CONTENT (UGC)
UGC is any content created by other users for your brand. If you’re a smaller brand, you can also give your followers an incentive to make content like free merchandise. One example would be to run a contest online and create a campaign hashtag that people can post with. UGC is a great strategy to source content for your feed.
Taking action with these social media ideas for your small businesses means mapping them out ahead of time in a social media calendar like Later. Get into a groove of having a consistent theme and coming up with creative content throughout the week and then refining your ideas at the end of the week so your social media can flow with your brand.
What do you think? Is there anything on this list we are missing?
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