I had the opportunity to see Michael E. Gerber, the author of the E-Myth, speak the other day. I have read his book, but hearing him speak was a entirely different experience. Inspiring, thought provoking, and motivating don’t even begin to describe it. His message was so much bigger than just how to make money or run a business. It was really about taking a step back and looking at the big picture. Even bigger than your business. To take a look at your life and the work you SHOULD be doing, not just the work you ARE doing.
However, with that said, the biggest lesson that he hammered home in his speech and in his book(s), is that you should not work in your business, but ON it. It made me think a lot about social media. So many business owners just log in to their Facebook or Twitter accounts and sit at the screen figuring out what to write. This will always be futile and end in frustration. Take a step back, and think about what you are doing. Think about why you are using your Facebook page or Twitter account. Create a plan, and stick to it.
Here are three simple ways to to be smart about your Social Media efforts.
1. Stay Focused.
Social Media can be full time job. It doesn’t have to be. Choose 2-3 channels to use and focus on them. Pick ones that make sense for your business. If you are a videographer, YouTube should probably be one of them. If you are a business coach, then LinkedIn might be one for you. Run a restaurant or have a retail space of some kind? Yelp and Foursquare will be valuable. Think about what you do, where your customers are, and connect with them there.
2. Create Content
You need to be creating content. Whether that be writing a blog, taking pictures of what you do, or filming a quick video, you need to be creating content! That is an absolute necessity to having success on social media. The beauty of social media, is it doesn’t have to be of professional quality. People love seeing the quick snapshot of what you are doing, or the video clip of you sharing an idea. Keep it real, and keep it raw, just be sure to keep it between the proverbial lines. Take one picture or video a day and you will have so much content, you won’t know what to do with it all.
3. Share Your Content.
Once you have created your content, share it! I think blogs are great because they are linked to your website (at least they should be). Write a blog post, then share it on your social media channels. Post your video or picture on your blog and do the same. This drives traffic to your website, increases your SEO, and ultimately brings in more business. Again, do this daily. Once you get the hang of it, it will only take a few minutes to complete.
Photo credit: @Maurbay
