Tag: consistency

#AwesomeConsistency – The Value of Blog Routines

Consistency is relevant to your brand in regards to ALL of your content, not just social media. When a business owner thinks about social media marketing, a blog isn’t usually top of mind. However, blogging + social media can be a powerful promotion combination!

You’ve probably heard of other businesses that have been successful either as bloggers or on social media. This is not an either/or scenario as having a content plan for both will boost each individual effort.

Blogging

A company blog accomplishes a great many things. In this world of content marketing, it’s difficult to justify not having one. A blog is great for SEO purposes since it keeps your page looking fresh and consistently updated so that the search engines crawl it on a regular basis. It’s WAY better than an About Us page when it comes to showcasing your brand to your audience and allowing them get to know you – and what you do. It’s an organic, non-pushy sales, marketing and branding tool that often requires little in the way of monetary investment but, when done well, reaps rewards.

Blogging + Social Media

There are a great many benefits to blogging but my favorite is that it makes creating social media content so much easier! Pulling content directly from the blog can be used to great graphics, infographics, quotes, etc. A regular blog means consistent, but still relevant, content to pull from without staring at the screen and wondering what to post next, or posting from the same well over and over. This keeps the content fresh and interesting for everyone involved!

Blog Promotion

Many bloggers experience the same problem and that is their audience doesn’t necessarily think of hitting their website on a regular basis to read their blog. How do blog owners expand their reach and consistently get their content in front of people? They post their blog on their social media platforms! Linking back to your blog on various social media sites gets the information in front of the right people so that they drift to your website organically instead of relying on them to remember to visit your website. This also opens up the opportunity for people to share the blog with their own followers, boosting the reach that could have been achieved by the blog owner alone.

Blogging Routine

Since this month is all about #AwesomeConsistency – understanding the value of setting up a routine is essential. Your audience is being inundated with content – content consumption is at an all time high. Between algorithms, competition and short attention spans, it can be difficult to achieve the viewing numbers small business owners are hoping for. How do you stack the deck in your favor? Consistency. As with social media, having a consistent schedule trains your followers to expect your content on a regular basis. It keeps your brand, image, and content in the running and helps people find you. Having a break in content may convince viewers that you are no longer serious about what you do – that you are on hiatus – or that you are no longer putting the same focus into your work. Since there is more than enough content online to choose from, the potential that they will drift to your competition is high.

There is different advice when it comes to frequency and that it really depend on a lot of factors including your niche, your industry, and your time commitment. We recommend posting a blog at least once a month (at a minimum). The best results tends to come from businesses dedicated to posting weekly. Daily is too much and waiting longer than once a month is not enough. Find the middle ground that works for you so that you can commit to being consistent.

I can’t wait to read what you post and watch you #BeAwesome using the combined powers of blogging, social media and consistency!

 

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Hollie Clere of The Social Media Advisor is a “#BeAwesome” Developer, Social Media, Brand Builder, Content Manager, Trainer and Author in LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Blog, Google+, YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram and the tools to manage them.

#AwesomeConsistency – How Consistency Makes Your Brand Stand Out

In our last post, we talked about why consistency is essential to your social media strategy. The focus was mostly on what your audience expects in terms of presence. However, there are many reasons why posting consistently is a game changer for your social and one of them is brand impact. Not only are you vying every day for your target audience’s attention, you are competing against other brands to earn influence and credibility as well.
With our shortened attention spans and the flood of content being directed at us daily, standing out as a brand on social media is no walk in the park. Without consistency, it is difficult to adequately get your vision across to your viewers.  If you haven’t managed to deliver this in social, you can bet someone offering something similar has cracked the code. 
The businesses that are doing this will be instantly recognized – at a glance. You don’t have to read an ad to know if it’s coming from Nike or Apple or Disney. Your peripheral vision, and this instant recognition of their brand, is enough for an audience to immediately pinpoint whose marketing it is. 
How can you switch up your social postings to make them more consistent – and instantly recognizable? 
Schedule
The first step is putting together a solid editorial calendar. Having a set schedule for your posts will help you when creating content but also helps your audience know what to expect from you. Brands can also post above and beyond what their calendar entails as long as they stick to the consistent schedule. 
Style Guide
Having an overall idea of what your brand will look like online is a good idea but having it all put together into a branding style guide is even better. If you are investing any amount of time into developing your brand, then a style guide is necessary for maintaining consistency. Here are some examples of what a style guide looks like to give you an idea of what you will need to pull together.
Tone/Voice
Writers (and copywriters) fully understand how essential developing the right tone for copy can be. Having a brand “voice” will remind you how to remain consistent. Are you sassy? Professional? Informative? If you could describe your brand in three words – what would they be? 
First you have to define your voice and then you have to ensure that you are using the same tone in all your branding. Here is an article to help you get started.
Graphics/Images
Last, but certainly not least, is developing visual content for your online presence, marketing, and social media. 
“Visual content has become so prevalent that it’s no longer just a piece of the marketing industry, but its core.”
Kimberlee Morrison
To get attention today, you have to invest in visual content. Videos, graphics, memes, infographics, slide shows – all of these are visuals. Our attention spans are ridiculously short and a brand needs high-quality, stunning, eye-catching graphics in order to grab attention and get noticed. Consistency comes into play when developing these because you want your audience to instantly recognize you, and your brand, when they glance at content you’ve created. 

If you follow these guidelines, you will find that you are already ahead of the curve when compared to much of your competition. Creating your social media strategy, so you can #BeAwesome at what you do, should involve a plan ensuring your branding is consistent across all channels. 

Be sure to Follow us and Let’s Engage!
Hollie Clere of The Social Media Advisor is a “#BeAwesome” Developer, Social Media, Brand Builder, Content Manager, Trainer and Author in LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Blog, Google+, YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram and the tools to manage them.

#AwesomeConsistency – Frequency of Posts to Stay Top of Mind

Keeping up with social media posts can be a tricky thing – if you are posting too much, your audience tends to tune you out.  Posting too little can lead to a dropping off of followers. So what is the secret?  Consistency.  Consistency gives your readers and followers a predictable flow of information from you and keeps them coming back for more.

Consistency in Tone

The tone and voice used in your posts should reflect your company and its culture.  Are you laid back and willing to take a lighter tone or are you more professional and serious?  Take a look at the tone you want to represent your brand and stick with it – your tone should reflect the audience you are trying to attract.  Once you have set that tone, stick to it.  Be consistent, not only with the writing style and tone, but also with the content.  Every time you put a post on a social media outlet, you are releasing your brand voice to the public.  To make your brand more recognizable to new and old followers, consistency is the key.  Changing your tone or brand strategy too much can lead to consumer confusion.

Consistency Across Platforms

Your brand voice is your identity, and your identity should be consistent no matter the social media platform.  If you want your customers to know your brand as relaxed and witty, then it should reflect that across all social platforms.  Followers will be disappointed or confused and your brand voice will lose credibility without this consistency.  Focusing on keeping your tone and brand voice consistent will resonate with customers across all social media platforms.

Consistent Timing

Not everyone can post every day and that is ok. Whatever your schedule and preference, the key is to be consistent.  If you are posting every single day on Facebook but only twice a day on Twitter, don’t switch schedules.  What if you post every single day on Facebook for a year and then something happens that cuts into your time?  You have a couple of options – inform your followers that there will be a change coming in your posting frequency, or hire someone that does your posting for you.  The key is consistency – if your customers have to guess when they will see the next post from you, you could fall from top of mind and the audience may move on to the multiple other options available.  However, over inundating social media platforms with your brand voice can lead to content fatigue.  Pick a schedule, according to when your audience is most active online, and be consistent!

Consistently Relevant

Relevance goes hand in hand with consistency.  If you are updating your social media consistently with relevant posts, your followers will stay engaged.  An engaged follower is more likely to talk up your brand and bring in more followers.  It is important to not only be consistent with your brand voice and timing, but also with the relevancy of the topics you are covering.  Part of creating a brand that stands out on social media is maintaining consistency on relevant topics that are in the interest of your company and your followers.  In fact,  according to the Sprout Social Q3 2016 Index, 41% of consumers admitted to unfollowing brands who don’t share relevant information.

Consistency is important in so many aspects of your small business, but it can make or break your social media presence. To keep your followers happy and to gain a stronger brand voice and a strong reputation, be consistent in voice, timing, and relevancy across all social media platforms.

Be sure to Follow us and Let’s Engage!
Hollie Clere of The Social Media Advisor is a “#BeAwesome” Developer, Social Media, Brand Builder, Content Manager, Trainer and Author in LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Blog, Google+, YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram and the tools to manage them.

#BrandConsistency – How Consistency in Social Media Helps Your Brand

Consistency in Social Media is a necessary component for gaining and keeping loyal followers. Here are some of our top tips on being consistent:
1. Create a familiar look across all platforms. Your brand is a style, a unique voice among a sea of distractions. You want your potential clients and customers to recognize your brand no matter the platform (or mobile device) they use. Visual branding is just as important as the message you wish to share. For brand consistency, you’ll want to use the same color palette, logo/avatar, use the same filters in places like Instagram so your images look organized and part of an overall package, and consider using templates for graphics you share on social media sites. This will make the fonts, colors, designs, and size constant.
2. The voice must be the same across all platforms. A voice is more than grammar and spelling (but that’s important too!). It’s about how you speak to the public. Are you relaxed? Do you take a formal tone? Do you go out of your way to make viewers feel invited? Or do you prefer to keep a wall up between you and your customers and client? Deciding your brand’s voice involves these three elements: company culture, your audience, and your authenticity.
3. Humor is a unique form of communication. It can break the ice, relax or offend others, or reflect on the social and moral core of the individual. Sometimes, it can be all of these things at once. Keep your humor focused on your brand. When you use humor, imagine how someone new to your brand would interpret it. According to Sprout Social, 71% of consumers have unfollowed a brand on social media because they were embarrassed by the brand’s posts. You are on public display. Don’t forget that.
4. Consistent posting is key to brand success. Lack of interaction on your social media pages will leave a potential client/customer thinking you have gone out of business, or worse, that you don’t care about their business. If time is a factor, use social media tools to keep your pages updated.
Brand name recall is key to building a loyal following. Reinforce your brand’s beliefs and goals.
And one more bonus tip: Create powerful calls to action. Don’t be shy. This is still business. 
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Hollie Clere of The Social Media Advisor is a “#BeAwesome” Developer, Social Media, Brand Builder, Content Manager, Trainer and Author in LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Blog, Google+,YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram and the tools to manage them.

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