Everyone’s on social media these days, but most businesses are just throwing content at the wall and hoping something sticks.
They post randomly, use the wrong formats and wonder why they’re not seeing any results.
Meanwhile, the social platforms keep changing their rules, and it feels like you need a degree in social media just to keep up.
In this article, we’ll look at the biggest mistakes businesses make and how you can position your social media for success.
Optimising your social media profiles for growth
When it comes to social media marketing, there’s one key factor a lot of people miss, and it comes before you even share your first post.
Getting the basic foundations of your account profile in place is crucial for your social strategy to be effective. Ask yourself:
- Do I have a strong profile picture and cover photo (where necessary)?
- Is there a clear path to the website?
- Can users contact me easily through my social profile?
- Is it clear what my business does and the services it offers?
Without optimising your profile with the answers to these questions, you will lose out on a lot of followers and customers.
When someone visits your profile, whether it’s on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn or TikTok, you need to make sure it tells a clear story of what your business is, what your services or products are, and who you want to interact with.
Keeping an up-to-date profile also helps the algorithms on social platforms push your content and account to the right people. All social media channels allow for a short bio to be included in a profile. This is an easy way to include keywords related to your business and give a brief description of your services.
By having an optimised account profile, you know that, when someone clicks through to your account (either from a post, an ad, or elsewhere), you’re giving your business the best chance of an interaction and not a bounce.
Different content formats and what works best on each platform
At first glance, the content formats for each social media platform can feel like a maze. With constant updates and differing shapes and sizes, it can soon get confusing.
These platforms all follow a similar style in terms of the content users can share, with some platforms favouring particular types of content over others.
Across Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and TikTok you can share the following content.
- Stories
- Static images
- Carousel images
- Video (short-form and long-form)
- Stories (that last 24 hours)
- Live hosting
A study from Buffer found that the best formats per platform are:
Images (35% more engagement than text posts)
Video reels (39% more reach than carousels and 122% more reach than single image posts)
Carousels (this is your educational, document style content)
TikTok
Video, largely short-form (less than 15 seconds)
How often should businesses be posting on social media?
With so much information out there, and a lot of differing opinions, it can be very easy for businesses to feel overwhelmed and under-prepared when it comes to the frequency of sharing content.
Many forums and blogs talk about the need for posting as much as possible, with multiple posts per day being shared with your audience. But if you’re just posting for the sake of meeting a certain quota, you could be doing more harm than good.
Your audience needs to feel like you understand them and their needs, and that starts with sharing quality content they can connect with.
It’s better to post 2 or 3 times in a week with strong content pieces and insightful information than it is to post every day but with content that doesn’t align with your brand and values.
The trick is to understand what you’re capable of maintaining. Despite common belief, organic social media is more of a marathon than a sprint and businesses should focus on consistency in their posts rather than reaching for that viral moment.
By sharing posts regularly you can start to build momentum in your profile and your audience. Once you find that rhythm and begin to plan your content monthly, you’ll find it gets easier and easier.
What makes the best social media content?
Before you begin posting on social media, you need to know who your audience are and what you want to achieve.
Are you looking to generate some brand awareness? Do you want to build your audience further and connect in a more relaxed setting? Perhaps you’re looking to drive more people to your website and in turn increase conversion rate? Or maybe it’s all of the above!
Organic social can do all of those things – it comes down to the content you share. Organic social media largely favours 3 types of content: to educate, inspire and entertain. Based on this, businesses can use their profiles to share:
- Key insights, advice, and information about the services or products on offer.
- Case studies of existing clients, customer testimonials through image or video
- Behind the scenes style posts of the team, allowing your audience to get to know the faces and values behind the business
Ultimately, the content you post should always tie back to your goals and resonate with the people you’re trying to reach. By mixing education, inspiration, and entertainment, you create a well-rounded presence that feels both valuable and relatable to your audience.
What external factors impact social media performance?
As with any marketing activity, you need to make sure you have the right foundations in place. And this goes beyond making sure your social profile is up-to-date. Taking a step back from the social media platforms themselves – think about your end game. Where do you want your audience to end up? It’s more than likely, your website. That’s where the majority of conversions occur and it’s the hub of your online presence.
So, you need to ensure your website is in its best shape. Having up-to-date content, a clear navigation and strong calls to actions are all fundamentals of a good website that performs. And once you start driving users from your social media, to your website, you want to give yourself the best chance of turning that user into a paying customer.
Your tone of voice plays a major role here. While there are some nuances to how you portray yourself across different channels, there should always be a clear link and voice between your activity.
How can QBD help your business thrive on social media?
Social media has become a big part of everyday life. Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok and a plethora of other social media platforms have transformed the way that people interact with their friends, families and the brands they love.
If you’re serious about growing your business in today’s digital age, you cannot afford to ignore social media. However, there’s a vast difference between simply doing social media and doing it well.
Social media success doesn’t come from trying to do everything at once. It comes from doing the right things consistently.
Start by optimising your profiles so they clearly communicate who you are and who you help. Focus on the content formats you can realistically manage and commit to posting with purpose, even if that’s just twice a week.
When your website and brand foundations are strong, your social presence will actually drive results. Remember, it’s a marathon, not a sprint and sustainable growth takes time.
If keeping up with constant platform changes feels overwhelming, that’s where working with a specialist can make all the difference, giving you consistent momentum without the stress.Rich Brown, Growth Specialist and Head of Lead Generation
How QBD Pulse can help your social media strategy
Marketing momentum doesn’t come from a one-off post and the hope to go viral. It comes from consistently showing up to your audience.
Whether you’re launching new products, keeping your community engaged or driving leads to your website, you need momentum.
That’s exactly what QBD Pulse offers. A consistent monthly marketing programme covering all types of activity, including organic social media.
Our team of experts will unify the look and feel of your social accounts with optimised branded graphics specific to each platform. We’ll then post on your platforms weekly sharing key information about your business, your brand values and how users can benefit from your products or services.
Remember, when you stop marketing, you stop growing.
Get in touch now or learn more about QBD Pulse here.
About the authors
Molly Sneath
Molly is our PPC & Digital Marketing Specialist.
As well as managing QBD’s marketing activities, she supports multiple clients and projects with her skills in SEO, social media management and Pay-per-click, specifically Google Ads. She also has strong copywriting skills and writes blogs for clients who have a monthly subscription with us.