Social Media has become a huge part of our lives – whether we like it or not. In fact, entire businesses are built on services and courses that will teach you how to use Social Media effectively.
But with a platform that moves at the speed of light, how are we supposed to keep up?
New platforms, strategies, and features are popping up every single day, and that’s why having the right tools and resources in place is so huge.
But before we dive in, I want to be sure it’s clear that you do not have to “be everywhere” on social media. In fact, you shouldn’t even try – at least not in the beginning. How our social media strategy is set up and run has taken us years to build, and so if you’re just getting started with building a social presence, it’s best to choose just ONE platform where you know your audience is hanging out at, and focus all of your social media presence energy there.
Once you start to gain traction, THEN you can go out and start building a presence in multiple places.
Here are the tools and resources we use to stay on top of our Social Media presence.
Google Drive for creating
How I use Google Drive
Because our virtual team manages the actual posting of our social media, we share a Google Spreadsheet with them to make sure we’re all on the same page when it comes to the type of content being shared.
For example, we have a single sheet that is Social Media, then individual tabs for each platform (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc). Within each tab, we have sections – for Twitter, we have a section for The Freedom Journal, and under that section is where our team can copy / paste the most up-to-date content for our social media.
Why I love Google Drive
We create the content for them, and they have access to it anytime! It’s great to know we’re always on the same page in terms of what we’re sharing on social media. Plus, Google Drive is free :)
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I’ve talked about Google Drive a couple of times now in Season 3, but for details on comparisons, check out Episode 2.
BigStock for stock images
How I use BigStock
BigStock is where we go to purchase licenses for stock images we use, which isn’t too often these days. However, it was super helpful back when we didn’t have the funds to hire photographers and designers to create our own images that looked great.
Why I love BigStock
It’s pretty easy to search BigStock and they have a pretty sweet subscription that gets you 5 images per day for $79 / month. To think you could stock up on that many images in 1 month and have full license to use them on your site and in your marketing is pretty sweet.
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Unsplash: I was just turned on to this site this past week by Jodi Flynn of Women Taking the Lead and I cannot believe what an incredible resource it is! Get high-resolution images for free (but be sure to read their license agreement first.) This site offers Thank you, Jodi!
MeetEdgar for scheduling
How I use MeetEdgar
Our entire team plays a role in using MeetEdgar, and we use it to schedule out our social media content in advance. This helps us automate a huge part of our process.
Why I love MeetEdgar
What’s so great about MeetEdgar that you can’t find with other social media scheduling tools is that it recycles your content for you. So instead of uploading a Tweet and sharing it one time – or creating and FB post and having it go out once – the content you upload to MeetEdgar continues to be shared over time on a schedule that you set.
All of this said, it’s not cheap. MeetEdgar is $49 / month.
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Hootsuite: Hootsuite is what we used to schedule our social media for about 2 years (until MeetEdgar was created). Hootsuite is great because it allows you to perform bulk uploads of content plus schedule things out in advance, which saves a ton of time. Best part: it’s free for up to 3 accounts! (Switch to Pro for $9 / month, billed annually)
Buffer: I haven’t used Buffer myself but I’ve heard from several people who use and love it. Buffer is free for 1 social media account, and then the plans start at $10 / month for multiple profiles.
IFTTT: If This Then That also allows you to set up automated social media sharing. For example, one of your “recipes” might be: If I post a blog, Then share it on Twitter. I’ve talked about IFTTT in Season 3 already (click here for reference), so you know it allows you to do so much more than just social media.
Facebook for Groups
How I use Facebook
Facebook is a great platform for connecting with others, but what I believe Facebook is most powerful for is Groups.
Why I love Facebook
The fact that you can search for targeted groups filled with people talking about and focused on a specific topic is something that is grossly under-leveraged.
Want to find out more about your avatar’s pain points? I can guarantee you they’re talking about those pain points – maybe outright, or maybe via questions – in a Facebook Group.
Want to provide your community a platform to come together? We created a Facebook Group for The Freedom Journal, and the engagement and encouragement that takes place in that group every single day is gold!
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Of course, there are other platforms that offer groups, and those other platforms might be best for you and your business. It all depends on where your ideal client is hanging out at. Are they on Facebook? LinkedIn? Meetup.com?
All of these are potential options that might be best for you and your business.
Twitter for feedback
How I use Twitter
I find that Twitter is the best place for honest and easy-to-consume feedback. I love to share my Twitter handle on podcasts – including my own – to request feedback, because I know that with the 140 character limit, it makes it easy for people to reply.
Why I love Twitter
I get so much great feedback on Twitter through engaging with those who are reaching out. For example, if someone Tweets that they loved a post or episode I’ve released, then I’ll ask them more about that – something like, “What was your biggest takeaway”, or “What would you like to hear more about?”
It’s a great way to get quick feedback on a platform people are already using to reach out to me on.
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Twitter nailed it in the unique category. The fact that you can only use 140 characters to express something really sets this platform apart. I wouldn’t know what else to compare it to in the social media space.
Instagram for inspiration and motivation
How I use Instagram
I tend to use Instagram for more inspirational / motivational thoughts. For whatever reason, I personally feel that these thoughts are best expressed with a visual.
I also know that Instagram just came out with Instagram Stories, which is similar to SnapChat, so it’s also a great way to “pull back the curtain” and allow your audience to learn more about you personally.
Why I love Instagram
Instagram is my favorite social media platform because it allows me to be creative and share a bit about myself personally, all while still providing value to those who follow me.
When I post on Twitter, I don’t necessarily feel “creative”, but when I post on Instagram, I do. Plus, I’m able to say a lot more than I can just on Twitter :)
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SnapChat: John LOVES SnapChat, and I definitely see the value in this platform as well. John uses SnapChat to create stories and his “JLD Rants” to share a quick lesson around inspiration and motivation. SnapChat is one of the only platforms I’ve seen that allows this super intimate connection between you and your viewers – they’re literally walking through your day with you when they watch your story.
Pinterest: I compare Pinterest to Instagram in that it’s another platform that is primarily visual. Pinterest is an incredible platform for anyone selling physical products, and also for anyone who knows their audience appreciates and consumes content via visuals.
Share Link Generator for creating quick share links
How I use Share Link Generator
Share Link Generator allows you to input a title, text, and image and generate a single link for easy and quick sharing on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, and Pinterest.
Why I love Share Link Generator
Share Link Generator makes it super easy to make the BIG ask! Looking for others to help support your next book launch, the podcast episode they were featured on, or a course you’ve just finished creating? Imagine being able to share a single link they can click that pre-populates all the info, and all they have to do is click share!
Plus, it’s free :)
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Click to Tweet: Create Tweets that can be shared by others with a single click. Get advanced tracking and other great tools when you upgrade to Pro for $5 / month.
Bit.ly: Create short links for LONG URL’s using Bit.ly. You can even upgrade and get your own bit.ly URL (i.e. eofire.co)
Recommended resources for Social Media
Social Media Examiner: A daily post and a weekly episode about all things social media? This is the top resource for someone looking to consume highly valuable content about all things social media.
Wallaroo Media: Done-for-you social media strategy and marketing.
Facebook Ads: They’re all the rage, but who on earth actually knows how to create and run them effectively? Rick Mulready does. In fact, he has 2 courses you can choose from that will teach you how:
Up next in Season 3
I’m really excited for our next episode, which is going to be a bonus episode where I share my Top 5 Favorite tools and resources.
