Hatcha

Social media often gets a bad press - sometimes for very good reasons. But we don't always talk about the positives which also come from time spent exploring the online world. Or how the old and the new sometimes join together in trends such as 'booktok'.

Traditional book publishers report sales are up 5% since 2020 with many attributing part of this increase to 'booktokkers'. As the parent of a teen I've been surprised (and a little bit thrilled) to watch my child settling down with a book inspired by a video on TikTok.

Now if I could just get my husband to stop singing 2021 TikTok sea shanty viral hit all would be well!

Have you come across any unusual trends on social media? I'd love to hear more in the comments.

Did you know? Last week Instagram rolled out 2 new ways to view content.

Your Home feed, which is chosen by algorithm remains unchanged. But click on the Instagram icon at the top of the page and you'll find new tabs:

✅ Following - showing you content from accounts you follow in chronological order

✅ Favourites - a feed where you can choose up to 50 account whose content you don't want to miss.

Have you tried the new feeds yet? It will be interesting to see if it changes posting habits. Will people post more to boost chances of appearing in the Following accounts. Will we suddenly start seeing calls to action to 'Favourite' accounts. Or does this just mark a stepping stone to a pumped up algorithmic feed - much more like TikTok where you are often show content from accounts you don't follow (but TikTok thinks you might enjoy!).

Let me know what you think in the comments.

Back in 2016, Instagram changed from a chronological feed to one determined by an algorithm. 2022 looks like the year this is going to change - again!

Rolling out to users over the next month, it looks like your feed will feature two new sections 'Favourites' and 'Following' which will feature content chronologically. Your regular feed will still have content sorted by algorithm, but will increasingly show content suggested for you.

What will this mean? Take a read of this for more details, but my initial impression is that actual follower numbers will matter less and less while creating impactful content will be even more important.

This just happened. But I feel totally fine! So here's the question - what do I do with myself (isolating from the rest of the family) when Xmas TV gets dull?

🧐Finally do the garage courses I've been meaning to take?

🥷Become a video editing ninja (any recommendations?).

✍️Plan client content for 2022?

🎯Hit buy on the ad I was served teaching blockchain?

🌈 Inspire me!

It's always great to receive feedback like this. Do take a look at for some wonderful vintage picture inspiration.

Instagram shops are relatively new and different features are being added the whole time. Did you know for instance that you could share posts from other accounts which feature your products? Building up a fantastic showcase of authentic posts showing how people have used your products.

If you would like to find out more, drop me a DM.

Going Live on Instagram can be slightly nerve-wracking. Luckily two new features have just been released making it that bit easier.

First for those who like to plan ahead, you can now schedule Lives (and people who are interested will be alerted). Secondly you can now practise your Live. Great news if you haven't used the feature much before!

Have you seen the new Instagram collaboration feature which is rolling out? It will allow you to invite other accounts to share your post to their profile grid and with followers in their feed. If they accept, they'll be shown as an author of the post.

Sound like another great tool for my clients who work with influencers to create cross-promotions.

Any other ideas for how to use it? I'd love to hear in the comments.

Stuck for what to post in July? Not only are people starting to head off on holiday, but it's a busy month:

runs the entire month with a focus on how we can make our planet a better place

Tokyo Olympics - a year late, but (as of posting) still taking place and hopefully a chance to bring the world together after some tough times. Look out for the opening ceremony on 23rd July

World Chocolate Day - do we need to say more? Celebrating all things chocolate on 7th July

Have we missed anything? Let us know in the comments.

Yes, I know summer has (finally!) arrived, but if you are in E-com, chances are you are starting to think about the festive season. 🎄 With that in mind, held a virtual conference today, giving the latest insights around this.

If you're still in holiday planning mode, have a think about this: online retail was up 48% in 2020. Scroll through for the best tips:

1 Create an experience that works for mobile and ensure it's not just optimised for purchases but also brings joy, emotion and a positive experience.

2 90% of UK holiday shoppers made a spontaneous purchase last year, make sure you are set up to be discovered and it's easy to buy (no more than 5 clicks to purchase).

3 Does your brand have a purpose and understand the motivations of buyers? 90% of consumers will pay more for an ethical brand.

4 Make sure you have a strategy in place around the mega sales days, starting 2 weeks before.

5 Be wary of blind spots and not targeting a wide group of consumers. Our habits have been really disrupted over the last year and consumers are more willing to try something new. Experiment with new audiences and tactics.

Want some help developing your winning strategy? Drop me a DM.

Do I need to use hashtags? How many? Which ones? These are questions I'm often asked. Let's focus on Instagram where the hashtag is king.

What even is a hashtag?
They are a way of collecting together posts - on Instagram people can follow hashtags and you can also use them to search for information. You need to thank someone called Chris Messina for dreaming up the idea.

Why should I use them?
To get discovered! They are a great way of getting your content in front of a new audience.

How many should I use?
You can use up to 30 hashtags in a post, IGTV video and Reel and 10 hashtags in a Story. My advice would be to use as many as you can. BUT only if the hashtag is relevant.

Which hashtags should I use?
This depends on your post. The hashtags should be relevant to the content you are posting. is a really popular hashtag, but is it relevant to what you are talking about? Some hashtags are so popular (say over 3,000,000) your message is likely to get lost. While others (under 10,000) mean it's not feeding out to many others so you don't have as many chances to be discovered. Try to choose a range of hashtags, some popular and some more niche. The key is linking it to what is in your post. If you're posting about a plumbing business don't use the hashtag however popular it is.

Planning out your content for March? Take a look at what is going on this month and get some inspiration.

If you would like a copy to print out, please send me a DM. Let's get ready for Spring!

Did you know we provide one to one coaching to help business owners up-skill in social media and feel really confident posting on their channels?

We loved this recent feedback from Chix in the Sticks.

Get in touch if you would like to learn more. We offer bespoke training focusing on particular areas. Recent sessions have looked at:

How to create a content strategy
Get started on Instagram
Learn how to advertise on Facebook
Instagram tips and tricks, using the latest features
Building relationships on LinkedIn

It's easy to think of social media as another sales channel - a way of letting your customers and clients know more about your products and offers. But it's also a great way of telling the story of your business and making your followers feel part of this.

Try sharing a behind the scenes glimpse at life. You could:

🗣 Talk about a new product which you are looking to launch
👀 Give a look at life in lockdown for your business
🎤 Interview a key employee and let people find out more about them
💡 Let people know the inspiration behind your business

Do you use video on social media? Analysis shows that video posts tend to do better than still images. Both Reels (the new short video from Instagram) and Tiktok have boomed in the last year.

But producing video can be off-putting to people. How do you even start? There are some really simple to use apps out there which can really help you develop your skills and create polished and professional looking videos. Here's my top three to download:

1 Inshot is so easy to use and great for beginners wanting to edit together video. You can also add music, captions and stickers to your masterpieces.

2 Mojo is perfect for if you want to bring a Story to life, it's a fantastic way of creating a moving video from still images

3 Motionleap is my go-to when I want to have some fun. It's fab for adding movement to still images (check out the moving water feature and different skies) and really grabs the eye.

Yes! Gordon Ramsay really did cook lunch for me once a month. Before I specialised in social media, I worked at BBC Good Food magazine as Food Editor. Every month we featured one of Gordon's recipes and I was lucky enough to go along to the shoot which also meant helping to eat up all the food when we were done.

Tough job, but someone had to do it!

👀 Imagine cooking when you are visually impaired.

Some years back, I was approached by a charity to run cooking workshops for visually impaired people. It was a great opportunity, teaching important life skills. But, I was intrigued to how it would work.

Beautifully was the answer. Talking thermometers and scales, liquid indicators and braille measuring cups made all the difference. I couldn't have been more pleased when an older, recently widowed gentleman, who had never cooked before, said that he now had the confidence to try.

I was reminded of this the other day in my room (live every Thursday with ) on Clubhouse. A wonderful woman, who is visually impaired was talking about how much she enjoyed the new platform. BUT, while seemingly ideal for her, the interface was still challenging. It reminded me that we can all do more to make social media inclusive. Some of my suggestions would be:

🏷️ Alt Tags - people often add these picture descriptions as it boosts SEO. But it's also helpful for people who are visually impaired. If you can't add alt tags, try putting copy at the end of your post describing the picture (just a couple of words is fine) or maybe adding a second tweet on Twitter.

📹 Captions - apps like or allow you to easily generate captions to use on videos.

🐫 Camel hashtags - no not a typo! The expression for capitalising the first letter of each word in a hashtag. This makes it much easier for screen readers to access them.

Any other suggestions? I would love to hear them.


PIC CAP 3 IMAGES WITH QUESTION MARK AND ABSTRACT TEXT ON HOW CAN WE MAKE SOCIAL MEDIA MORE INCLUSIVE WITH ANSWERS

Confused about the difference between TikTok and Instagram Reels? Check out this useful infographic. The differences will probably get bigger as this week as Instagram has announced it will penalise videos shared with the TikTok watermark in the algorithm.

https://bit.ly/3aHmQad

TikTok vs Instagram Reels [Infographic] Will Instagram Reels become a genuine rival for TikTok? The Influencer Marketing Factory recently conducted a survey comparing the performance of the two options.

WFH - something which seemed so refreshing a year ago but now increasingly blurs the boundaries between work and home. There is a growing movement to protect our leisure time. Good plan? Never going to work? What do you think?

https://bit.ly/3a4ICFI

'If you switch off, people think you're lazy': demands grow for a right to disconnect from work Working from home can mean never being able to switch off, but could EU-wide regulation end the always-on culture?

We've all been there. That little message which pops up on Instagram telling you how well your post has done and encouraging you to hit the boost button.

Boosting can be useful - if a post has done well organically, it's likely to perform well as an advert and reach new audiences. So if you've got a limited budget, it can be great for growing brand awareness.

But using Facebook's professional tool, Ads Manager will ensure your advertising budget on Facebook and Instagram is maximised as the targeting and options are so much better.

If you aren't ready (or don't have the money) to handover advertising to a professional, consider getting yourself some training. I run workshops designed for beginners introducing them to Facebook advertising and walking them through the set-up of ads. Send me a DM to find out more.

Need an idea for a post this week? Why not ask your followers a question? You could set it up as a poll on Facebook or LinkedIn. Or on Instagram use the questions sticker in Stories. Then share the answers in another story and show people what you found out in a new post.

What question have you always wanted to ask your customers?

Have you tried out Clubhouse yet? It's the new audio-only social media app which is great for learning things, making connections and meeting new people. It's growing fast. Just today (5th Feb) Mark Zuckerberg from Facebook joined.

I'm hosting a weekly drop-in session every Thursday at 1 pm with Yolanda from Pink Leaf Social discussing a new topic, sharing our knowledge, answering any questions and hearing more from others who drop in.

This week a couple of key ideas came up when planning content on Instagram.

1. Research your hashtags
Using hashtags (especially on Instagram) can be a great way of finding new people to engage with. Yolanda from Pink Leaf suggested a great website - neontools.io for researching these.

2. Remember you can reuse your pictures
Don't forget when repurposing content you can reuse any great pictures. Try cropping them different in an app like canvas, using them in a graphic or make a slide video.

3 Understand your audience
This is such a key part of social media, but one which can be overlooked. You might be creating the most amazing content, but if it doesn't resonate with your target audience, you won't get engagement or interest in it.

Do you have any social media questions you want to ask? Send me a DM and join us next Thursday.

Is the hashtag dead? If you are using or then maybe it is. They are so popular there's little chance of your post remaining at the top of the page long enough for anyone to find. But with some strategic thought behind it, hashtags are still a good way of engaging with new people. Read here to find out more.

https://bit.ly/2CV77aD

The hashtag isn’t dead. You’re just misusing it. Despite the uncertainty surrounding the hashtag, it’s still an essential asset in any social marketer’s toolbox.

When was the last time you took a look at your bio on Instagram? Or the descriptive text on your LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter profiles?

Take 10 minutes to check that it's still relevant and all the key information is included.

A good idea is to show it to someone. Do they immediately understand precisely what you do? How can you simplify it and make the message clearer?

👀 Staring at a blank screen and wondering what to post on social media this week? Share an idea you are working on.

It might be a new product you are developing or service you want to offer. Go behind the scenes and let people see what is happening. You could involve your followers in the process - post a Story asking for feedback or give them a vote on two options you are thinking about.

Tell us about it in the comments.

Is Instagram dead? According to this article, the kids won't join, the silver surfers aren't interested and the rest of us want to spend our downtime doing something more uplifting than staring at pictures of perfection. What do you think?

https://bit.ly/3omkwuM

Instagram Is Dead (It Just Doesn’t Know It Yet) The first of the major selfie apps certainly won’t be the last

🎬 Imagine you've created a 45-sec video for Instagram. Where do you post it? On your grid? In a Story? Reel? IGTV? What about a 15-sec video?

The explosion of video has created lots of opportunities on the platform, but it can seem a bit confusing. According to this article, Instagram head, Adam Mosseri is looking to consolidate and simplify video content which can only be a good thing.

The answer, by the way, is 15 sec or under for a Story (although if it's under a minute Instagram will split the video for you) under 30 secs use as a Reel, under 1 min post on the grid. Anything bigger - but under 15 minutes post on IGTV.

Read more here:

https://bit.ly/3irFeHr

Instagram lead says he’s not happy with Reels yet and might ‘consolidate’ video formats Too many different video products in one app.

With the world feeling like it's in hibernation at the moment, it can be really difficult sometimes figuring what you should post each week. My tip today is a simple one.

Think about your customer and clients. What questions do they have which you can answer? Is there something which customers or clients repeatedly ask you? If you can't think of a question, just think of how you can make their life easier or better as everyone wants to know the answer to that!

Let me know your suggestions in the comments below.

✨ PS of course, this post is answering a question I'm asked ALL the time: 'what should I post this week, I've run out of ideas!' 🤣

Tea - obviously. But why am I asking the question? Because a really key part of social media is creating engagement. What does that really mean? Starting conversations basically - being social. A really good way of starting this is through asking a question.

So tea or coffee? Let me know in the comments below.

What we love about social media is when it throws up the unexpected. Did anyone think that Sea Shanty love would be shared by millions over on TikTok?

Go check out those duets - especially the ones with extra bass, or beards or both! 🎤 ⛵ 🧔

Then, if you've overlooked the platform until now, perhaps thinking it's just for kids (?) take a look at how some proper grown-up businesses are using the platform. Making authentic, fun and really informative content. are great places to start.

What I love about social media is when it throws up the unexpected. Did anyone think that Sea Shanty love would be shared by millions over on TikTok?

Go check out those duets - especially the ones with bass, or beards or both! 🎤 ⛵ 🧔

Stuck for something to say on social media? Why not post a review left by a client or customer? It's great for demonstrating authenticity and doesn't have to take too much time. In fact, I'd argue no need for fancy designs a screenshot can work well and keeps it feeling genuine.

Have you tried the new social media app Clubhouse yet? Possibly not, as you need to have an iphone to join. Also an invite from a member. It's in development right now, but has certainly stirred up a fuss in the social media world. Why is this?

Partly because the industry loves anything new, but Clubhouse is actually quite a new way of building a community. Or an old way of doing things, as it actually involved good old fashioned talking.

No more scrolling through images, videos and links. Instead you go down 'hallways' finding 'rooms' you might be interested in. All full of people talking about a particular topic like 'Ask the experts - Healthy Habits for Mental Wellness' or 'Getting your first 1000 Clubhouse followers'. It sounds like mayhem, but actually is quite ordered and if you find the right room, fascinating.

Where it goes from here will be so interesting to see. Moderation is clearly going to be an issue, hate speech and concerns over vulnerable people being exploited must loom large for the developers. It also requires more concentration than other social media channels and time, it's hard to dip in an out of a discussion. And there's no replay.

Let me know what you think and if you are on, come find me.

Is the new direction of social media going to be voice-led? The popular CLUBHOUSE app is booming with it's rooms of people chatting and now wants to experiment. https://tcrn.ch/39lxKBN

Twitter launches its voice-based ‘Spaces’ social networking feature into beta testing – TechCrunch Last month, Twitter announced it would soon begin testing a new social experience on its platforms involving audio-only chat rooms, similar to the sometimes controversial startup Clubhouse. Today, Twitter Spaces, as the product is now being called, is launching into private beta testing. During thi....

Is it possible to regulate social media and draw lines and distinctions between politics and power ? Or do we need to draw up new ways of monitoring? At the end of the day kicking Trump off (while satisfying for many) won't change all that much. Read this legal perspective from

https://bit.ly/2Xv6NWH

Trump’s social media ban in perspective – the unpalatable difficulties of regulating political and media activity in the internet age 8th January 2021 Once upon a time, and not so long ago, mass political parties and national media organisations were themselves novelties. Both were responses to the emergence of popular democracy …

Do you find you don't have enough hours in the day? It's difficult when you are running a business to find the time to post on social media. Let alone do this consistently AND keep up with the engagement and monitoring of how well you are doing it. This is where a social media manager can make all the difference to your business. Here are some of the ways I can help:

✅ I will produce a strategy especially for your business to make sure you're talking to the right people and saying things which will resonate with them

✅ Plan and create your content, including researching for great articles, videos and podcasts to share with your audience, researching key hashtags and writing and designing posts

✅ Scheduling - handover all the posting to me

✅ Engagement is tricky to find time to do, so let me answer your customer's questions and talk to them to keep them interested and informed about your brand

✅ Analytics, if you are spending time and money on social media, you'll want to track how well you are doing and find ways to do even better. I'll produce a monthly in-depth report for you each month.

Tell me about your issues, email below or drop me a DM.

https://bit.ly/3s0n43P

Have you ever thought about what your business sounds like? 👂 Social media is (the hint is in the name) is a social thing, which means you need to decide what your business sounds like to other people.

I like to talk through what I call 'tone of voice' with all clients. It's really important for me as a social media manager to have a clear idea of how they want to sound. So we talk about things like emojis and humour, does that add a fun feel to the page or does it seem a bit immature? We talk through if they want to sound authoritative or passionate or a bit irreverent.

Try to think about your business as a person. If you were having a conversation what 10 things would you want people to think about them. Now jot this down on some paper, stick it above your desk and try to remind yourself of it when you next write a post.

Do you have trouble planning content for your social media? I worked for many years as Food Editor of BBC Good Food magazine. We had to come up with ideas each month, decide which recipes and chefs would be featured and sort this all out about 6 months in advance.

The key to getting started was the monthly content planning meeting. We'd discuss what people might be doing that month; would it be hot and bbq weather? What TV programmes were coming up which we could tie-in too? Where there any special occasions we should mark?

I use this now with my own social media and for my clients. We try to schedule a call to talk through anything that's happening that month.- a promotion which needs to be pushed, a special awareness day, maybe they are attending a key event. Once you've jotted these down you can really start building out your content plan and finalising the messages.