Content Marketing & Social Media

Social Media is a big topic and an entire course could be dedicated to it. However, in this lesson the focus will be on how to form a social media mindset and how this will help to attract people to your blog and website content with social media.

There are things that can be done using social media that can assist your content marketing efforts.

Social media is a set of tools. It is also a mindset. If you move into social media it is important for you to consider what your specific social media tool set will be and how to use the tool set.  It is also very important to have a social media mindset.

The Use of Social Media for Your

Business Has to be Coupled

with a Social Media Mindset.

The mindset concept . . .

Consider the example of one of your common business tools such as your computer or your telephone. With these tools we don’t worry about how we are going to use them. We don’t worry about whether we have the time. We simply use them. We have a mindset to use them. We increase our skill with them the more we use them. They have become a part of our business routine. Can you imagine saying “I don’t have the time to use the phone.” Or “I started using a computer but it was too time consuming so I stopped.” To have a mindset to use a tool means that you have the option to use it and also the willingness to learn how to use and make time available to use it and to learn how to use it better.

Social media tools are available to us. We need to learn how to use them but we also need a mindset that builds the use of them into how we conduct business.

Here are some ideas for how to leverage social media and to establish a social media mindset.

Create Shareable Content

The Mindset: Share . . .

Content marketing is all about creating delightful content and then sharing it. Social media is a great place to make people aware of your shareable content. If you create a valuable blog post then let people know – get people to link to it and ask them to share it with others in their social network.

Share Other People’s Content

The Mindset: Help others

If you share the content of others you are helping others to gain exposure. Once you start doing this then other people will help you. To be effective at business using social media you need to engage and help others. Do so willingly and without any expectation that you will gain something back.

Be Social

The Mindset: Be social not salesy!

Think of entering the social media domain as if you are going to a chamber-after-hours event. Do you go to these events with a big sign saying “buy my product”? Do you engage in conversations and make them all about you? A chamber event is a social setting (but related to business) where you are actually physically present. Social media is done virtually. You can engage but do it from the comfort of your office in your slippers. However, you still cannot enter by shouting about your product or service. You need to engage by listening to the conversation and offering to help with the idea of helping without any direct compensation. To be too salesy is counter to the social media mindset.

Entertain

The Mindset: Add a dash of entertainment . . .

Your content needs to captivate and the social media environment enables you to use entertainment more than other online platforms. Add a funny cartoon. Include and interesting and engaging photo(s). Link to an interesting and entertaining video or create one for yourself. Be creative and think about how to add entertainment value to your social media presence.

Be a Resource

The Mindset: Be a resource to help others . . .

This is where you can really leverage your content marketing materials. If you have a delightful set of resources on your website then you can answer questions to be supportive in the social media environment but make people aware that there are even more resources on your website or on your blog.

Content marketing helps you to achieve authority status and to be a resource that helps people in the social media domain further supports this.

Build Relationships

The Mindset: It’s all about relationships (not technology).

Just like with any social activity you need to have and then build relationships. I know people who come to my networking meeting each week and then they wait for other people to invite them to coffee or to lunch. They are not active in building stronger relationships. I hear statements such as “we have to get together” but then the next step – to actually schedule a lunch or some other activity just does not happen.

In social media, you need to look for opportunities to engage people and to build relationships. Invite people to watch an interesting video (provide a link). If someone create something special let them know how much you appreciate it. If someone is asking for comments or suggestion then provide your thoughts and insights. Ask questions. Show that you are interesting in others.

Show people that you value them and they will value you.

Participate

The Mindset: Be active – get involved . . .

I know plenty of people that simply do not participate in very much of anything. They sit and watch but do not actively engage. The go to meetings but seem distant. They do not say anything. They rarely volunteer. I am sure you know them too.

In order to be effective with social media you need to participate. Participate in something that you have a passion for and this will also help to reveal more about you. Be active in what you care about. Show support as a way of participation and this will help to lay the foundation for your social media business promoting activities.

This particular mindset activity (to get involved and participate) could be the most important aspect of all that you do in Social Media. If you have a facebook page for your business with very little on it does it provide value? Does it engage? Is it entertaining?

Your social media influence grows the more you participate. It will wan when you disengage. Could it be any other way?

Create Delightful Content

The Mindset: Always delight with your content . . .

Content is king in social media too. No matter what your business, there is always content that you can create to spark people’s interest. Write an award-wining white paper; create an entertaining video; host a webinar with other experts; develop a useful online tool. Today, we are all publishers and this is an important concept to embrace when using social media. Your delightful content can be presented using social media and this leverages your content.

Integrate Social Media into Your Business Planning

The Mindset: Commit to social media . . .

Do you ask the question “How am I going to use Facebook/Twitter to make more money?” If this is your present thinking then take a step back.

Ask instead “Can social media change the way I do business?” How can you use it to leverage your content?

Design Your Social Media Persona

The Mindset: Know how you want to project yourself and form it.

You need to think about how you want to project yourself. It is like the chamber event you attend. Do you dress up or dress down? Do you make a point to be friendly or do you remain distant. Do you go in with the attitude that people owe you or do you look for opportunities to help others with your participation. Do you make a point to speak less but also make a point to say something of value when you do speak or do you ramble on with less memorable items? Do you rant and complain or are you the quintessential optimist? Your approach to social media needs to be thought out and developed from a persona perspective.

Content Marketing – Social Media Summary

It is important for you to think out in advance your own mindset towards social media. It is a hot topic now and many people are climbing on board without thinking through a plan for social media.

Do you willingly share your content and do you do this frequently? Do you enter any social media opportunity with the mindset that you will be a valuable resource and be helpful to others. Do you share the content of others to help your them and to add value to your social network?

Content marketing and social media can work very nicely together once you have established a social media mindset.

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Content Marketing – Content Checklist