ArkSocials

My new and improved Free content kit is here!

If you are a small business owner or creative who:

- is unsure about what to post
- hasn't been consistent on socials
- feel burnt out and can't think of content ideas

Then this is for you!

I originally made this over a year ago as a way of helping out small businesses and creatives take their first steps in gaining clarity around their content as well as getting better organised.

What's included:

- A content roadmap
- content strategy tips and framework
- call to action list
- grid post layout template
- planner templates
- a list of free resources to get you started

Check it out and let me know what you think!

Ps. Although I'm not terribly active (at all) on this account with having a few others on the go, thanks for following along and for your support! Hopefully I can get to sharing a little more here too again! I'll make a strategy for it ;)

🌍 Main active page

Calling all product based small businesses gearing up for Black Friday this year!

Don't leave your planning to chance.

Grab a FREE Black Friday schedule planner to help you get ahead this year!

https://subscribepage.io/jMpP4E

And here it is!

Your content cheat sheet - format and benefits!

I’d love to know which feature you use most commonly and why!

Happy Friday 🥰

Instagram loves when you dive into all the amazing features they offer. Each feature has its own special reasons for use and benefits! That's why I make sure to include a diverse range of content formats for my clients throughout the month, always keeping it relevant and fitting.

Your content format strategy plays a part in your account’s growth (the stats don't lie!)

Do you use a range of features or do you tend to stick to one?

I’ll be dropping a format cheat sheet in my next post (my mailing list will get sent a copy - sign up in bio if you haven't done so already!)

I learned something new this week!

I knew the name section of the bio was searchable but i didn't realise that the first line was too! So make sure your Key words are in there!

If you struggle with this consider:

What do you do?

What is your mission?

Use my key word technique and make sure you mark them all off when creating your bio! (If you didn’t see my last posts this technique involves making a list of your Key words and use this list for everything! Your bio, captions, blogs.. anything!)

Did you know about how to optimise your bio?

In my previous post, I took you through the significance of going back to the basics. Now, let's delve into a crucial aspect: understanding your audience.

Knowing who you're addressing allows you to create content that truly resonates with your specific target audience. You might be thinking, "I've heard this advice countless times before." This is where I encourage you to take it a step further though and embrace a continuous process of learning and listening to your audience.

How? By leveraging the invaluable raw data provided through every interaction and using it to give back!

Use it to gain deeper insights into the needs, desires, and challenges of your audience and tailor your content in a way that sparks genuine connection and engagement.

It's not just about superficial demographics; it's about understanding their aspirations, pain points, and aspirations. By doing so, you unlock the ability to provide value, guidance, and solutions that truly resonates.

So, go beyond surface level and take time to continuously refine your understanding of your audience.

Have you taken time to create your follower profile or buyer personas?

Recently, I had the incredible opportunity to guest host a business webinar series. Not only did I have the pleasure of networking with exceptionally talented individuals, but it also opened my eyes to the challenges that many small business owners face on social media platforms.

Throughout the webinar, I took attendees through Instagram success strategies & those present had the opportunity to ask questions. This brought to light struggles such as limited time, financial constraints, creative roadblocks, confusion, lack of confidence, and of course one most of us struggle with; imposter syndrome.

I also extended an invitation to those who watched the replays to reach out with their questions and it was those responses that sparked me to embark on a new series that takes us back to the very beginning!

Now.. I know you may have heard about the importance of understanding and knowing your audience: who they are, what they need help with, and what challenges they face. However, it’s my belief that the journey actually starts with YOU! Yes, YOU are the key to effectively communicating and creating content for your audience repeatedly. It's crucial to take the time, if you haven't already, to deeply reflect on the questions presented in the second slide.

I'm excited to continue this discussion and delve deeper into these topics, so stay tuned for more updates! So check back soon as we explore strategies to empower you on your social media journey.

Bonus points to those who caught that sound of music reference!

The second post in our Repurpose content series!

Repurposing content, also known as content recycling, simply means taking existing content and reusing it somewhere else, in a different context.

There are so many benefits to repurposing your content! Besides the fact that it saves you a LOT of time, considering that the hard work is already done, repurposing content can allow you to reach a completely new audience.

Here are a few simple ways you can repurpose your carousels (post with multiple images).

Are there any others that you can think of?

Save this to come back to!

Whether you have your own images and graphics or not, at times having access to a great stock of free images and videos is an incredible resource!

When mapping out a client's content these sites can also prove to be very helpful for inspiration and image or video composition.

Many of these are great for lifestyle, nature and city life so go ahead, check them out and save this to come back to again!

Days of awareness for this week

Some great days to be aware of within the children's brand industry that you can implement in your content this week! I spotted some kids with some odd shoes on the way to school today (taking those odd socks a step further!) 😅

Happy Monday Everyone

Everyone would love to have many, many followers.. we all seek validation and that's completely understandable. It can make us feel seen, heard and make us feel that our content is being enjoyed and that it means something to someone.

But in business, and especially on social platforms, there are metrics that matter more.

So, what does really matters here?

Building a sense of transparency and an ENGAGED community...and a brand people can relate to!

If you gain customers & clients who use what you're offering then you are certainly better off.

Nurturing a community and building a strong, relatable brand people love takes time and a solid strategy! I know this because I have grown pages that have had large followings but I have also nurtured small businesses who now enjoy an established brand presence within their niche.

Take time to consider what is valuable and work on nurturing this.

If you need guidance and support with your social media marketing strategy DM me for more details!

Days of awareness for this week

Will these be implemented in any of your content this week?

Coming up this week!

Don't get caught out missing on an opportunity to talk about a product or service relating to any of these awareness days!

Bit of Friday Fun!

Money is no object.. you can offload one of these social media tasks RIGHT NOW.. what would it be...

Go!

Fun fact about me, I ran before I could walk! It's in my nature to go a million miles an hour and to want it all done yesterday. When it comes to social media though, it's so important to take one intentional step at a time, especially for a small business owners like us who cover every role in the 'other baby' in our lives that is our business.

For those just starting out, or in the early stages of your business, then consider the following if you're thinking of posting to multiple platforms -

▪Time - you need time to curate, engage and post your content & the risk that you end up spreading yourself too thinly.
▪Energy - social media is most effective if you are consistent in the long-term. Do you have the energy to be posting on every platform consistently, ongoing?
▪Audience - Different social media platforms attract different demographics. Is your audience on other platforms?
Content Styles - different platforms favour different styles, so it can be very time consuming optimising content for each one.
▪Keeping up to date with Social media changes - are you able to keep up?

Focus on one main platform (ideally one where your target audience is active in) and work on establishing your presence there. In time, of course you can look to expand elsewhere, repurposing & curating content to suit that platform.

Focus on your strategy, build you brand awareness and more importantly, don't burn out!

Now, I am very interested to know... how many platforms do you post to?

Marketing and social media is a constantly changing field, always requiring revision, learning, and adapting to the times. Staying on top of this becomes a significant task that can be a huge drain on precious time.

As a small business owner you will have a lot of responsibilities! I know you will be wearing all the hats ... any of these sound familiar?

👒manufacturer/creator
👒copywriter
👒Sales
👒bookkeeper
👒CEO
👒customer service

(to name but a few)

Your social media and email marketing often falls to the bottom of this list with more necessary tasks that are constantly needing your time and attention. It just doesn't seem that important in the grand scheme of things - until it isn't there and you realise that you're missing out on opportunities for business growth.

A social media manger can help to offload that work for you! Want to know more about the services I offer? Send me over a DM!

Repurposing content, also known as content recycling, simply means taking existing content and reusing it somewhere else, in a different context.
There are so many benefits to repurposing your content! Besides the fact that it saves you a LOT of time, considering that the hard work is already done, repurposing content allows you to reach a completely new audience.

Reformatting your content to other platforms can mean reaching larger audiences. Newsletters, podcasts, ads & much more can bring new eyes and eyes to what you have available.

Here are a few simple ways you can repurpose your single posts images (or static posts). My absolute favourite as a social media manager is cross posting to other platforms.

Are there any others that you can think of?

Save this to come back to!

Your Friday Tip!

Comment below if you find this helpful!

If you need help creating & levelling up your content then DM me or head to my website via the link in my bio!

Why do you need a strategy?

👉🏼 ​You're posting sporadically
👉🏼 ​Your engagement has taken a hit​
👉🏼 ​Your content isn't generating the sales you are hoping for
​👉🏼 ​It's not clear from your profile WHAT it is that you do and WHO you are a benefit to and HOW people can make their purchase from you! ​ ​

So, what can you do about it? Well, a great place to start is by having a solid Instagram strategy!​

A strategy can help you establish values, your purpose, define your audience and create campaigns to bring new eyes to your content as well as being hugely beneficial in order to grow your brand, rid you of overwhelm and drive your business forward with clear vision.

If you're needing support with your social media strategy grab my ONE remaining Strategy session slots for August! ​Your personalised master plan and 1:1 coaching which will leave you armed with all the knowledge and confidence to move your social accounts forward! ​

Check out the link in bio for more details!

6 posts to pin!

Over the last few weeks, with the roll out of the new feature, I have had a few clients & other small businesses ask me what content they should pin!

I absolutely love this new feature and think it will be such a useful tool to highlight important information to your followers.

There is plenty of your content which would benefit from being pinned at various points and here are a few examples:

- Use these to highlight an important business update (upcoming busy period, delivery issues?, out of office?)
- A carousel of your products & services
- Any promos & codes currently running
- Your top performing post (show that off!)
- About me (someone coming to your page can find immediately come to find out more about you).
- Launch - new product or new service? Help it be seen by pinning that to the top of your page.

Although you have the option to pin 3 you don't have to use them all!

Let me know what you think about this feature and what you have been pinning on your grid!

New Features Alert!

Yes, more new ones but i think these are ones most can really get excited about!

Which are you keen to try out first?

If you hadn't noticed, there has been a lot going on with Instagram lately!

Have you been keeping up?
One thing we have been made aware of is that IG has been making a push to enhance its search functionality.. this can only be good news, right? Makes all those changes worth it, doesn't it?

We're certainly in a phase of testing and finding out what new strategies we need to implement to help optimise our content to gain higher reach and engagement. Here are 3 basic tips to help with that!

Do you use Instagram Insights to gain a further understanding into your business or personal brand?

Do you check your insights and wonder what a lot of the figures and terms even mean?

They can be quite overwhelming at first, you're not alone in feeling that way! I hope to post a mini series breaking these down and taking you through the main stats; what they mean, what to look for and how to use them to make your content work harder for you and drive the success of your account!

So tell me, which insight do you find most valuable?

What's new on Instagram?

There have been so many changes in the last few months!

You can check out some of the latest below:

▪️New feed views - chronological feed for people you follow, algorithm based ordered based on engagement & favourites! Tip - Remind people to favourite you!

▪️Collabs - you can now collaborate with other creators! Why is this great? Your audiences and engagement is shared and the option offers a much more fun way to be creative and meet new audiences.

▪️Creator Subscriptions - this is currently only being tested out on a few accounts in the USA. This offers creators the opportunity to monetise within the platform.

▪️Scheduling lives - this is such a beneficial feature. There are now new options along the side bar when creating a live. You can create a notification for your page to show your audience when you are going live.

▪️Increase your name in your bio field - this is hugely beneficial for increasing your page search engine optimisation.

▪️Add extra links in your bio - can we ever have enough? Link you shop, your blog, your other social platforms!

Have you seen these rolled out on your IG yet?