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06/13/17 post featured image

How to Pick the Best Social Media Channels to Kickstart Your Online Success

Social media is impossible to ignore. And with all the chatter and content wrapped up around how to use social media, I think it is critical that we get back to the basics.

Today, I want to talk to you about how to pick the best social media channel that will kickstart your online success. This post also contains a free workbook that we will be talking about a lot! So make sure you CLICK HERE to get your free download before we get started.

Still not convinced that you need this workbook? That’s fine. Handing over your personal information, even if it is just your first name and email address can be scary when you don’t know someone! So if you want to learn a little bit more about me, head over to the Meet Cath page. And then make sure you hop right back here to get started with your social media!

But if you are ready to kickstart your social media success by choosing the right social media channel(s) for you or your business, then it is time to get started!

Fasten your seatbelt, kid. You’re in for a wild ride! Okay… it’s not going to be that wild, but it was fun to say.

Pick the Best Social Media Channels for Online Success | Social media is confusing. Stop searching for social media How To's and learn how to find the best social media channels for you or your business! Plus a free workbook is included to help you get started with social media today!

Now if you are one of those people that just scrolled to the bottom to find out if this is a post that you actually want to read, don’t feel bad! I often do the same thing. But I want to stop you to clarify.

Creating an online success is not easy-peasy. You need to work for it! And picking the right social media channel(s) for you or your business is not easy either. There are a few critical steps that you need to follow. And each of these steps will bring clarity to your selection so you understand why each social media channel is or is not best for you!

So if you are willing to put in a little work to better understand what social media channel(s) you need to use, then let’s jump into step 1.
Navigate the Maze of Social Media promo

Step 1: Find your ‘WHY’

If you have a curious soul, one that constantly asks ‘why’ to everything around you, then this step will come naturally.

It is important to reflect and figure out the why to your actions. And in this case, your action is related to social media. So take a few minutes to answer the following questions. Each of these will help you to understand why you are reading this blog post. And why you think you need my help to navigate the maze of social media.

1. Why do you want to start on social media?

Like I said at the very beginning, social media is impossible to ignore. It seems as though everyone uses it on a daily basis. But that is not a good enough reason as to why YOU want to get started on social media.

So right now, I want you to think deeper. It’s okay to start broad, but then ask yourself why. And continue to ask yourself why until you have an answer that is unique to you or your business! I want to see specifics here! Take as long as you need until you get there, my friend.

2. Why start right now? What sparked your interest?

Ask yourself: “why do I want to start with social media right now?” What sparked your interest to read this post and find the right platform? Have you been using social media for awhile and it’s just not working? Or maybe you have every social media channel possible and you’ve hit a breaking point trying to keep up.

Whatever it is, there is something that led you to meet me here. I want you to dig deep and find the answer to this ‘why’.

3. What do you want to accomplish with your social media account(s)?

You need to set an underlying goal to your social media accounts. Remember…You can’t just get an account because everyone is doing it!

This needs to be specific to you. Maybe you want to grow your audience or connect with them on a personal level. Maybe you want to drive traffic to your website or promote your brand in a way you haven’t before. Whatever it is, I guarantee that it is a great goal!

So continue to ask yourself ‘why’ and force yourself to think deeper. And at the end, you need to have a final goal for your social media accounts that encompasses what you want to accomplish.

4. What does social media success look like to you?

This is the last question I’m going to ask you that makes you look deep into your soul. I swear, it will get (a little) easier from here.

That goal that you just determined in #3, it goes beyond just a goal. It is part of what social media success looks like to you. And this is important to understand so that you can see your return on investment (RIO) on your social media efforts.

So take one last time to think deeply. What does social media success look like to you? Is it having 100k followers? Do you want to have 50% of your website traffic coming from social media?

It can be anything! So please, just 1 last time, dive deep and come up with an honest answer that is unique to you or your business.




Step 2: Set your target audience

If you don’t know your target audience yet, then it is time to determine who you want to attract. Have you ever heard of the saying “Your vibe attracts your tribe”? The way you act online and on your social media will attract your audience.

So if you don’t know who your audience is, then you are wasting your time on social media! And I don’t want you to do that!

So let’s run through a few questions to bring clarity to what tribe you are trying to attract.

  1. How old is your target audience?
  2. Are they male, female, other, or all sexes?
  3. What is their occupation, income, or marital status? Is this important to you or your company?
  4. What social media channels or websites does your audience frequent?
  5. Are there any personality traits that are important? Think about how they act, what do they like, what do they do in their free time, etc.
  6. What problem does your audience have that you can help them with?

And if you don’t know specifically who your audience is yet, take a look at your website analytics. When you use Google Analytics, you can see who is active on your website from their age, geographic location, device, and more. This is also great to see if the target audience you have in mind is true to the vibe that you currently attract.

Navigate the Maze of Social Media promo

Step 3: Determine your commitment

Social media is a full-time relationship. You need to determine from the very beginning how committed you are to making it work.

If you only have an hour a week to designate to social media, then you know that you need to select social media channels that are low maintenance! And you need to think about channels that you can schedule posts for so that you don’t need to suck time out of your schedule every day!

So when you think of your social media commitment, I want you to think about how much time you have to post a day. Do you have time to post 15 times a day? And if you do, are you going to be committed to reaching that goal every – single – day? How much time do you have to create content and posts a week? Are you willing to spend 3 hours a week to create an amazing video to share on Facebook and YouTube?

Take some time to be honest with yourself once again and determine your commitment. No B.S. allowed in this section! If you lie to yourself and over commit, your social media is more likely to fail. So get real and set yourself up for success from the very beginning.




Step 4: Clarify your preferred method of communication

Similar to your commitment, you need to determine your preferred method of communication. If you have a fear of speaking to a camera to record a video, then you know that YouTube will not work for you!

But if you love to take and edit high-quality photos, or if you already have a stock of photos waiting to be shared, then Facebook and Instagram might be great for you!

Each social media channel is unique in the way that it prefers its audience to communicate. And if your content does not match that method of communication, then your social media is likely to fail. So from the very beginning, I need you to clarify your preferred method of communication! And if you don’t know right away what this method is, that’s okay! Just take some time to write down some ideas of what you could share. Do you have videos or images saved that have never been shared? Do you have a lot of ideas that run through your head but you never put on paper… or the internet? This is a great place to start if you are feeling a little overwhelmed.

Step 5: Create your action plan

All the steps you just completed were setting you up for success with your action plan. If you haven’t done so yet, then you need to download my FREE 8-page workbook. This is becoming real and I need you to get focused!

1. What social media channels do you already have?

Do you already have social media accounts? And I’m not talking personal accounts. I want to know what social media channels you already use for your website or business. List all of them right now.

Then I want you to think about what ones are working and what ones aren’t. Are there any other channels that you would like to be using but don’t know if they would help your online success? I don’t want you to act on anything yet! I just want to pick your brain so you are thinking about what works, what doesn’t, and what might work better in the future.

2. How much time do you have to designate to social media?

With the social media accounts that you already have, how much time do you designate to each? And how much time would you like to designate to social media in the future? You should already have an understanding of your commitment from Step 3 above.

3. How many platforms do you want to manage?

Think about how many social media platforms you manage now and how many you want to manage in the future. Can you take on more work? Or are you already overwhelmed with social media and you need to dial it back a bit?

I don’t want you to pick more than 3 social media accounts for now. Start with 2 or 3 and then build your way up. It is better to have 2 successful social media accounts than 5 that all look like Ghostlands with the last posts shared in 2015.

4. How many posts will you share on social media a day?

This goes back to your commitment. Nothing new here.

5. What content do you already have to share?

Think about what you might already have on file to share. This could be videos, photos, blog posts, etc. Whatever content you have on file that you can use right now without creating anything new!

6. What type of content can you create to share?

Now think about what content you would like to create in the future! Have you wanted to dabble into videos? Do it! But remember to stick to your commitment so you don’t become a burnout.




Step 6: Pick the right social media channel(s)

FINALLY! I know, I know. This has been a long ride for the both of us. But it is now time for you to pick the right social media channel(s) for you or your business!

Are you ready for this?

All your hard work leading up to this point has set you up for success. You can now pick the social media channel that matches the location of your audience, your commitment, and preferred method of communication.

In Navigate The Maze of Social Media Workbook, I created social media dating profiles for you. Because who said getting down to business can’t be fun!

This is designed to help you analyze each social media channel to pick the best ones that fit all your answers above! When you read over each profile, make sure that you are honest with yourself.

  1. Does this channel have my audience?
  2. Does my commitment match the needs of this channel?
  3. Does this channel abide by my preferred method of communication?

If you answer ‘no’ to more than 1 of those questions, then forget about that channel!

Only pick the ones that are truly best fit to you or your company! And remember, that in the end I only want you to have 2 or 3 social media channels that are best fit for you!

Navigate the Maze of Social Media promo

Congrats, my friend! Give yourself a big high-five for a job well done!

I can tell that you just worked your butt off to get 1 step closer to creating a social media success! And as you know, this is not an easy task. But with that fire in your eyes, you can accomplish anything.

Pick the Best Social Media Channels for Online Success | Social media is confusing. Stop searching for social media How To's and learn how to find the best social media channels for you or your business! Plus a free workbook is included to help you get started with social media today!

What is your biggest struggle with social media? I’d love to chat with you in the comments below!

Want to learn more?

Sign up for my FREE 5-day email course, the Social Media Kickstarter!

Are you overwhelmed by social media? Whether you are just starting on social media or you’re stuck in a rut trying to grow your social media presence, this e-course is for YOU!

Social Media Kickstarter: Create a social media success

In just 5 days, we will cover…

  • How to pick the best social media channels for you or your business,
  • How to get your account(s) set up for success,
  • How to create a strategy that will actually succeed,
  • How to attract and retain a kick-ass following,
  • PLUS… I’m sharing the key to social media success and how you can us it to your advantage!

This course is loaded with information and action items to get your social media accounts where they need to be. And you’ll get access to a free workbook to maker sure you get the most out of this program.

So what are you waiting for? Start to kick some social media booty with the Social Media Kickstarter!


Keep Reading…

Do you have a Twitter account? Twitter is great to share your website content and generate more traffic to your website. And with this post I'm sharing 3 ways that you can drive traffic to your website with Twitter! Click on the image to read more! Use Pinterest to drive traffic to your website today! Here are 3 Pinterest tips to get you started on generating website traffic in no time. So what are you waiting for? Grow your website with Pinterest with this blog post! Is your social media working for you? Follow these 3 tips for a winning social media presence that you can be proud of!  


About the Author

The Content Bug - Cath Headshot 4Why, hello there! I’m Cathrin, the creator of The Content Bug. But since we are already virtual best friends, you can call me Cath. After working in the digital marketing industry, I decided it was time to share my love for online content creation, social media, and SEO with the everyday hustlers of the world… like YOU! You can almost always find me at a local coffee shop writing, reading and working on new things for The Content Bug. But when I have some free time, I love hanging out with my dog, going to a yoga class, and being outside. Stay connected with me on Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter to see what I’m up to!

 

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