Be genuine. Submit Reels. Goal your best viewers. Sacrifice a goat. Perhaps these issues acquired you seen final yr however not anymore.
With nearly half (46%) of Gen Z “consistently on-line” — and Millennial oldies like me not far off, I’d argue — social media is extra crowded than ever.
It’s not sufficient to put up often, grasp Reels transitions, be part of TikTok, or observe what everybody else is doing. To develop this yr, manufacturers should be authentic, likable, and helpful.
If you happen to’re not any of these issues, listed below are 17 social media content material concepts to do as an alternative. (Kidding! You’re already nice, and these concepts will make you even higher.)
Bonus: Obtain our free, customizable social media calendar template to simply plan and schedule all of your content material upfront.
1. Use authentic audio in Reels
It’s been a basic Instagram development technique for some time: Discover a trending Reels audio clip, make a Reel, get hundreds of recent followers, and repeat.
These days are gone. Sure, you possibly can nonetheless use a voiceover of Michael from The Workplace and sure, it could develop your Instagram a bit. However 2023 is all about authentic audio.
Brainstorm your individual humorous skits as an alternative, or for the only Reel of all? You + digicam = answering your clients’ questions.
Utilizing authentic audio in your Reels can:
- Hold individuals watching longer, not figuring out the way it will finish (as they do with trending audio after seeing a number of).
- Showcase your creativity and, doubtlessly, make you — gasp — go viral.
2. Create “how you can” content material on YouTube Shorts
How-to YouTube Shorts hook individuals instantly with fast visuals and a particular finish consequence. If you happen to promote a product, present your audience how you can use it — both the “common approach” or one thing artistic.
Service suppliers, share your course of or steps to realize a fast win, like your greatest gross sales e-mail script or a software program tutorial.
How-to YouTube Shorts might help you:
- Entice new subscribers.
- Quickly take a look at to search out out what your viewers needs to see or study most.
3. Begin a sequence
You’ve heard of #ThrowbackThursday and #SundayFunday however as an alternative of regurgitating these drained developments, create your individual each day or weekly sequence. It’s extra authentic, and it’ll make your content material planning course of simpler.
As an alternative of getting to think about three new put up concepts for the upcoming week, you’ll already know the format and theme of your sequence and may get into creating it instantly. For max effectivity, preserve a operating checklist of all of your concepts then decide one to movie for the week, or movie and schedule all of them in bulk a month or extra forward of time.
In-depth instructional sequence work particularly nicely on YouTube. To maintain individuals watching, create a YouTube playlist and hyperlink to it from every video’s description.
Supply: YouTube
A content material sequence might help you:
- Construct momentum towards a product launch or occasion.
- Show your experience and earn belief.
- Hold a constant publishing schedule.
4. Put money into UGC content material
UGC, or “user-generated content material,” isn’t new however it’s positively time to hop on board if you happen to haven’t already. Like influencer advertising, UGC content material is created by individuals as an alternative of the model, however — historically — UGC content material comes from unpaid, actual clients.
Why hassle? Your clients are 2.4 occasions extra doubtless to work together with UGC vs. brand-created content material. Authenticity sells.
Create a hashtag in your clients to make use of and have their photographs or movies in your feed.
Don’t have a giant viewers but? No worries: You should purchase authenticity, too. UGC creators are large in 2023: Individuals paid to create content material that seems to be like natural buyer content material.
UGC content material might help you:
- Promote your merchandise with out seeming too sales-y.
- Collect various belongings to repost throughout your social accounts or use in different content material. For instance, photographs of individuals of many alternative ethnicities utilizing your merchandise, or a number of dwelling decor types, like Wayfair’s instance above.
5. Hold it easy
Spicy take: Some companies are luckier than others in the case of social media content material concepts.
Exhibit A: What kind of content material is universally adored by everybody, no matter language, location, tradition, demographics, or pursuits?
Cute animal movies.
The San Diego Zoo doesn’t overthink their social content material technique. Individuals like cute animal movies, so they provide them cute animal movies. It’s actually that straightforward typically.
@sandiegozoo Most boopable moments of 2022 ✨ #boop #cuteanimals #animalsoftiktok #bestmoments #SanDiegoZoo
Consider what “easy content material” seems to be like for your corporation. What are you able to make in 5 minutes or much less? Then, make a bunch all of sudden and bulk schedule as much as 350 items of content material at a time to routinely publish with Hootsuite. Ahh, the easy life.
Easy content material can:
- Permit for batched manufacturing and scheduling, chopping down content material creation time.
- Attraction to a number of buyer sorts and audiences.
6. Curate content material from others
Nice information: Content material curation continues to be scorching. Your authentic content material is what retains individuals sticking round, however curated content material can beef up your posting frequency and appeal to new peeps.
Put aside time every week for strategic content material curation and your publishing queue won’t ever run out.
What you share must be related to your corporation and in step with your typical model voice and tone, in fact. Attempt sharing trade information, or media options out of your workers, like this text by Adobe’s Chief Product Officer.
Content material curation can:
- Refill your content material calendar while not having to create visible belongings.
- Develop cross-promotional relationships with different manufacturers and/or trade leaders.
7. Embrace memes
Humor is all the time in model as a result of there’s all the time one thing to be unhappy about. So give your viewers a lil’ giggle, eh?
Perhaps run tremendous spicy stuff by way of authorized compliance first. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.
SO BASICALLY IT’S LIKE CHAPTERS AND AUDIBLE AND NETFLIX AND SPOTIFY HAD A BABY BUT YOU CAN BORROW ALL THE STUFF FOR FREE. pic.twitter.com/tpWVSOnR8N
— ReginaPublicLibrary (@OfficialRPL) August 18, 2022
Memes might help you:
- Acquire new followers by cashing in on new, trending memes.
- Seem cooler than you’re. (That’s a joke. You’re very cool. Memes will assist your viewers see that.)
8. Launch a problem
Challenges are a enjoyable strategy to enhance engagement, doubtlessly get some juicy UGC (user-generated content material), and subtly promote your self on the identical time.
Some companies have extra apparent problem concepts than others. Nikon hosts month-to-month pictures and videography challenges which inserts their enterprise completely. You’ll have to hunt for an concept if you happen to, say, manufacture paper cups.
@nikonusa For this month’s problem, right here’s Nikon Ambassador Kristi Odom’s tackle movement with stunning wildlife cinematography 🎥 Ideas and tips on NikonUSA.com
Challenges might help:
- Educate or encourage your viewers, and encourage them to take motion on a objective or use your product extra.
- Refill your content material calendar. Share your viewers’s work as a part of your content material curation course of.
5 Social media content material concepts for small companies
1. Leverage AI for social content material concepts
I’m only a author standing in entrance of ChatGPT asking it to not take my job. Simply kidding. AI can’t exchange this sort of—
Supply: OpenAI
Crap. Okay, however critically: AI is our pal (no less than till it tries to reprogram our microwaves to kill us all).
I didn’t use ChatGPT once I outlined this text, however it got here up with a number of of the identical social media put up concepts. None of them are rocket science, however that’s precisely the purpose: Let AI do your straightforward duties so you have got extra time to create the unique parts of your content material that may make you stand out.
As a small enterprise proprietor, you’re in all probability both nonetheless doing all your individual social media or counting on a small group. If developing with concepts is stopping you from posting as a lot as you’d like, AI content material instruments get the ball rolling.
Simply don’t put all of your eggs in a single synthetic basket. Use your human mind for content material concepts, too.
AI content material instruments might help you:
- Refill an inventory of content material concepts so you may get creating sooner.
- Overcome author’s block.
- Save time on concept technology so you possibly can concentrate on the true work that strikes your corporation ahead. (Spoiler alert: It’s content material.)
2. Run a contest
Social media contests are all the time a good suggestion as a result of individuals love free stuff.
Give away a present card to your corporation or one thing you promote. You are able to do something from the super-simple “like, observe, and remark” format, to extra concerned contests like asking your followers to share a photograph, or fill out a survey.
A very good rule of thumb is to maintain the hassle of coming into the competition in step with the prize worth. Smaller worth prize = much less effort to enter, increased worth prize = extra effort.
For brick and mortar companies, goal native individuals with a enjoyable scavenger hunt contest:
@cookcountysaloon Thirsty anybody? 🤠 #yegscavengerhunt #yegbar #cookcountysaloon #edmontonfun #yeg #edmontontiktok #yegfun #edmonton #countrymusicalberta
Social media contests might help you:
- Quickly develop your follower counts and viewers.
- Generate potential leads.
- Discover out precious details about your clients by way of surveys to tell your advertising technique.
- Collect content material belongings you need to use for future campaigns (for picture or video submission contests).
3. Characteristic your clients
What’s the easiest way to promote your services or products on social media? Exhibiting not telling.
Share a testimonial or transformation story from a buyer. It goes a lot additional to realize belief than speaking about your self.
This may be as straightforward as whipping up a testimonial quote graphic, or higher but: Movie a brief video interviewing your buyer. Edit it into a number of variations and share them throughout TikTok, Reels, Instagram Tales, YouTube movies, and extra.
Hold social media movies beneath 60 seconds for greatest outcomes.
Buyer tales (particularly video ones!) are:
- Extra impactful and versatile than a written testimonial.
- Nice promoting instruments: Individuals with the identical drawback as your featured buyer see you as the answer.
4. Accomplice with content material creators
Creators, a.okay.a. influencers (or KOLs), are sometimes pictured working with enormous manufacturers solely, however 2023 is the yr small companies take over.
Our Social Traits report discovered solely 28% of small companies presently work with creators whereas 42% of companies with over 1,000 workers do. Including influencer advertising to your technique this yr will show you how to stand out out of your friends, and ship cost-effective campaigns in these unsure monetary occasions.
You don’t want a giant announcement to begin partnering with creators. New analysis reveals influencer campaigns have as much as 30.5% increased ROI once they’re not for brand spanking new product launches.
You additionally don’t have to dish out one million {dollars} to rent an influencer. Micro and nanoinfluencers are a way more budget-friendly choice — and may truly be more practical than very large creators in getting their audiences to take motion (e.g. click on by way of to your web site or purchase a product).
@gracewellsphoto Replying to @drinkpoppi the gamification of soda 🎮 👀 #epiccommercial #videography #videographer #filmtok #popcultured #poppipartner
Creator partnerships might help you:
- Attain precious audiences who belief the creator introducing you, usually for a lot lower than paying for adverts.
- Collect high-quality photographs or movies you need to use in future campaigns, in your web site, and extra.
5. Get suggestions out of your clients
Dying to know what your clients need? Simply ask them.
This doesn’t imply that as a result of one individual suggests one thing, it’s a good suggestion or that you must do it instantly. However permitting clients to decide on new flavors or the following occasion matter brings them nearer to your corporation and builds a way of group.
Asking for suggestions on social media can:
- Encourage engagement. Be sure to answer to feedback, even simply to say thanks.
- Deepen current buyer relationships and develop new ones.
You may positively use the ideas above, however these social media concepts are particularly efficient for B2B manufacturers:
1. Share your greatest case research
Testimonials, success tales, earlier than and afters, yada yada — same-ish, completely different phrases for one factor: Demonstrating your capabilities.
B2B consumers are searching for a consequence, not the hope of a consequence.
By how a lot % did your buyer’s e-mail open price enhance after utilizing your A/B testing software program? Precisely how a lot cash did your answer save your buyer?
Pull some key stats out of an current case research and make a number of graphics to put up on social, or edit them right into a video for a TikTok or Reel (relying which platforms you’re on).
Can’t point out your large consumer successes by identify? Pull collectively common statistics into averages, like how Heyday’s AI chatbot saved shoppers a median of $3,000 USD per day throughout Black Friday/Cyber Monday.
Case research might help:
- Construct belief. Testimonials are nice, however numbers and statistics persuade.
- Your prospects perceive your product’s key options in motion.
2. Assist your group
Do you often give cash or volunteer time to native non-profits? Do you provide workers a paid day to volunteer at a company vital to them? Just lately sponsored a fundraiser or occasion?
Present how concerned you’re with native and trade communities. Faucet into the Instagram Reels algorithm by asking your workers to document a brief clip of their volunteer day to share.
If you happen to assist an occasion, sew a number of clips collectively into a fast Reel, TikTok, or YouTube Brief and let your clients know the affect of their contributions to the trigger.
Group involvement might help you:
- Construct belief inside your native space and make individuals be ok with procuring at your corporation vs. a competitor.
- Community with different native companies and not directly, although successfully, promote your self to draw new shoppers.
3. Submit your analysis
Have a brand new white paper or research? Seize a number of key stats and create social content material linking again to the complete report.
Make graphics for carousel posts and quick movies for Instagram Reels, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts. Or, provide a number of pages of your report as a PDF on LinkedIn with a hyperlink to obtain the remainder.
Use on-line graphic design instruments to show your statistics into animations you possibly can put up as Reels for increased visibility within the Instagram algorithm.
Sharing your analysis might help you:
- Goal and appeal to your best viewers.
- Construct credibility inside your trade, particularly for brand spanking new corporations.
4. Share your organization tradition
Apart from promoting, recruiting high expertise must also be a foremost objective in your B2B social media advertising plan. Sharing open jobs is a part of that, however so is sharing why somebody ought to contemplate you within the first place.
If you happen to can, weigh in on a well-liked hashtag to additional enhance your attain.
In fact, this implies you even have to supply nice advantages in your group members. If you happen to don’t already, begin now.
Exhibiting your organization tradition can:
- Hold you high of thoughts when a competitor’s star worker is searching for a change.
- Assist advance vital advantages and protections for workers throughout your sector or nation. (Social progress is cool.)
Plan, schedule, and analyze all of your social media content material from one organized workspace with Hootsuite. Go additional than the essential options you’d anticipate with Greatest Time to Publish, social listening instruments, computerized put up boosting, and extra. Do all of it throughout all of your platforms with Hootsuite.
Do it higher with Hootsuite, the all-in-one social media instrument. Keep up to the mark, develop, and beat the competitors.
