Social media has become essential in the world of content marketing, especially when it comes to promoting articles on a blog.
This is a long-standing fact in the freelancing world; posting to a collective site where others can easily share your post is the hottest new “word of mouth” advertising available.
As a tool, there are ways to use it effectively and a few simple ways to make it work better for every blog post you create, increasing your readership.
1. Use Optimal Share Times
This tip comes first because it is most important. Marketers have researched the best time to share content, and as a blogger, you should be taking advantage of this research.
Many bloggers use trial and error to discover the best time to post, but a combination of pre-built research combined with personal research is the best way to discover when your friends are most likely to share content you’ve posted.
2. Tailored Posts
This tip works twofold – tailor the posts to the audience on the social media site, as well as to the specific site. Some sites are more formal while others are more laid back, as are the people that use them.
Consider the blog post, its content, and where it would benefit the most people. Look over your friends’ list as well; are these people the type that would enjoy this content?
Perhaps there is another social media outlet that would accept the content faster. Posts should always be tailored to audience and forum.
3. Post More Than Once
Use this suggestion with caution. Over posting anything will turn the audience off to all posts. However, there’s no reason to not share more than once. Posting a blog article more than once will increase traffic as more people have a chance to see the post.
Time the double posts, however; perhaps consider an early morning and late night posting. You’ll reach the early birds and the night owls.
4. Ask for Feedback
Don’t be shy – ask your audience what they love about your writing. If you think your writing is great but no one else likes it, it will go nowhere. We all love what we’ve written, and as writers, we are giving a piece of ourselves away.
However, if we want the attention that turns into revenue, we must bite the bullet and ask our audience what makes them pay attention to us. Adjust as necessary in response to the comments.
5. Test it Out
A/B testing is very popular in social media tests, so go ahead and use a popular post to test your audience. Rework the post to test if certain language or topics work better or worse for your audience. Paired with feedback, testing in an A/B fashion will help you understand where your writing should be going.
Remember that time is n important factor in this type of testing, as is the posting strategies mentioned above.
How will you improve your social strategy? What improvements have you already made that are working for you? Let us know in the comments below!
