Secrets to the Perfect Social Post

Quarantine has everyone stuck inside—and understandably bored—so how are people managing to stay sane? A lot of us have begun to spend more and more time searching for engaging posts on our favorite social media platforms. Social media usage has gone through the roof ever since this pandemic started, and it’s an opportunity for businesses to grow their business online and reach new markets. Take a look at this list of tips to help maximize your online efforts!

Keep Posts Relatable and Down to Earth

There’s nothing worse than stuffy, overly formal social media pages. Just because you’re a law firm or a doctor’s office doesn’t mean your social posts need to lack creativity and passion. Regardless of the industry you’re in, it’s important to use down-to-earth language, humor (if appropriate), and a friendly tone to get your message across. If you saw these two posts, which business would you be more likely to contact?

"We offer financial planning services and retirement advice to people in the Raleigh area. Click the link to learn more about our reasonably-priced service offerings and the process of getting started."

"Planning for your retirement can be scary… but we’re here to help! We focus on providing you with fantastic financial planning services and retirement tips, so that you can focus on the important things in life like relaxing on the beach and exploring your hobbies! #Retirement"

Learn How to Speak Emoji

While some people see emojis as childish symbols that preteens text each other instead of expressing their feelings with words, they’re actually very powerful. The saying, "A picture is worth a thousand words," is incredibly relevant to today’s world, where posts have to stay below a certain character limit. Emojis can help you communicate emotions quickly and efficiently, which is important when you’re trying to keep your social posts short and concise. According to Professor Albert Mehrabian, only seven percent of a conversation’s meaning is derived from the actual words. The rest is gathered from non-verbal communication like tone of voice or body language. Written communication lacks the ability to incorporate these aspects, but that’s where emojis come in! Emojis can communicate emotions, objects, humor, ideas, and so much more. Incorporating them into your posts will help communicate your message more effectively. 

Include a Call to Action

You can write cute and engaging social media posts all day long, but if you don’t frequently include a call to action, they lose a lot of their utility. When I’m creating posts, I start by thinking of the call to action, and then I create the rest of the post around it. If I’d like people to sign up for a subscription box, my call to action might be something like, "Click here to start gifting yourself monthly." Around that, I would add in a few fun facts about the subscription box and maybe throw in a joke or two. My post might sound like: 

"You work hard every single day of the week, so now it’s time to play hard! Our monthly subscription box sends you awesome video games, tickets to fun events in your area, and candy—because candy is awesome! Click here to start gifting yourself monthly! #TreatYourself"

Calls to action should communicate the benefits of your product or service; use active language (action words like Buy, Register, Subscribe, Tweet, Like, Favorite); and include a link to where the customer can get started. 

Let’s Finish Up

Social media isn’t rocket science, so don’t overthink it. Try some things out, and if they don’t work, change up your strategy. It might take awhile to find your company’s online personality, but you’ll get there with time. Have fun posting, and consider contacting me at Parklife for extra help if you need it! (Hint, hint. That’s a call to action, by the way!)

About the Author

Annie Astraikis is Parklife’s Social Media Manager.