Illustration by Campbell Pearson
At the agency, one thing we usually recommend to our smaller clients is to believe in the power of three and invest in them. The same can be held true for ourselves as bloggers. For this month's 101 I'm going to lightly go over social media platforms and hopefully point you towards the three you can essentially own.
There are so many different social media platforms, we could exhaust all our energy updating them every time a new post goes up. Not only that, we wouldn't be able to fully interact with the community in those social channels. Not only will I tell my clients this, but I'm going to let you guys know as well... If you don't have the funds/time (cause time is money) to manage all of them, then pick three that represent you. Not only represent you but also come as second nature. For instance, if you decide to focus on Twitter as your main three but constantly forget to tweet then you're not going to have successes in building up that channel.
Pinterest
It's the channel for discovery & storing. Best for DIY, fashion, weddings, family stuff and recipes
Twitter
It's micro-blogging at its best. Great for links, quick news, conversation & wit.
Facebook
Social sharing giant and a great way to connect through all mediums. It's also a necessity when building up your blog (IMO).
Instagram
Social sharing revolves around images and videos. Use of hashtags can also help people discover your blog.
Google+
It's the network most neglected but has great SEO benefits if you learn to use it right. Also, it connects to all the other google sites seamlessly.
Youtube
Another great channel for discovering and sharing content. Also, a great way to build up your influence and considered to be the next big thing in social media advertising.
Vine
Twitter's video sharing app that runs on a loop.
Tumblr
A great way to share visuals and posts also have a longer life span.
I'm sure as bloggers you understand all the different social channels and know what works for you best. I do however would like to challenge you to pick your top three and focus on them. Curate or create amazing content and post it to your channels. And make sure the social channels you use make sense: i.e. You're a photographer but you main social presence is on Foursquare when you should be on Instagram or Tumblr. In the end you'll find yourself less stressed when it comes to social, and once you're ready to take on a channel do so but at one channel at a time.
To be honest, I do have logins to all of the channels listed above (strictly work) but my personal three that I consistently update are Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
For last month's 101 check it out here. If there's a topic you'd like me to cover next or if you have any questions please send me an email.
