Not many people know each and every nuance that goes into building a strong and good-looking website, so we’re going to pull back the curtain and let you in on a bit of our process! Our specific approach to web design includes more than just aesthetics, even though that’s an integral part of it. While we do create beautiful websites, it’s equally important to us that they function well also. Our holistic approach to website creation divides each project into five stages: discovery, information architecture & user flow, written & visual content creation, visual design, and website development.
We believe that your website should work for you. Like, it should actively take work off of you by answering your most frequently asked questions as soon as possible, and it should have a clear and concise path that users can take to get to your ultimate CTA (call to action). This approach results in a website that is both representative of your business, your story, and your style, and also actively converts visitors into paying customers. What’s better than that?
Here’s more on our process:
Discovery
The first step is one people often skip for convenience and time, honestly. But we believe it’s a pivotal step in the process of building a website that truly represents our clients. So, we get to know our clients & help clarify their brand message. We spend intentional time getting to know them, asking important questions, and possibly even thwarting them into an existential crisis (only to come out better on the other side, of course). We do this because before we do anything else, we build your content and brand message. (People want to skip this step to go onto something that’s more flashy—like an awesome website—but if you lay the groundwork, then building upon that will be easier later on.)
Information Architecture & User Flow
Since we actually believe a great website should work FOR a business, our next step is to identify the main calls to action and then map the site to get users to the desired destination as smoothly and quickly as possible. We establish an overall site outline, then develop flow patterns that will guide your users from page to page on your site. We like to think of a website as an employee. It should be fully functional, actively taking work off of a business owner’s plate so they don’t have to answer the same questions over and over via phone, email, or contact forms. And they can be free to focus on, well, running their business.
Written & Visual Content Creation
Then we move to some fun stuff— actually writing the content for a website. We will never, ever try to fit your business’s unique message into a premade template. Before developing any design aspects for a website, we always develop the content first. The story of a business’s products or services is the most important thing about their online presence, so we build everything to fit that. We get creative. This is where every bit of mapping and questioning really comes into play and gets used to build content that truly represents a client. Once finished with the written content, we create a plan for the photography, videography, or custom illustrations for the site. It’s true that a picture speaks a thousand words, so we look to communicate as much as possible through visuals, and each image is carefully planned for.
Visual Design
Once the written and visual content are taken care of, we put all of these pieces, along with all branding elements, together to create a design that is truly custom to a client’s needs. Each page is designed specifically to showcase the content and photography/illustration. We believe clients should receive mockups of each page before any coding is done on the site itself. This saves a lot of time in the end, so there’s no developing and redeveloping pages of the website.
Website Development
After the content, user flow, and design of the website have been approved, that’s when the site truly gets brought to life. It’s so important that a website be developed with true mobile-friendliness and great search engine optimization in mind. And it’s also important to test each page on your website before launching it to the public.
Conclusion
In conclusion, you should have a really cool-looking website. But it shouldn’t stop there. If you’re just starting out and you’re not making money yet, we believe that a templated website is a really great place to start. Really. But if you want your business to truly stand out online, investing in a website that will help to grow your business and drive more conversions is crucial. Your story matters, the flow of your site matters, and answering the most important questions that your audience will want to know matters. We hope this helped! And please, as always, shoot us a message with any questions you may have!
We’ve written a lot of blogs on many different topics, but if we take a step back, the majority have one overarching theme— don’t always just solely believe your own gut. Get others in on your ideas. Say things out loud and trust others’ feedback. Hold your business ideas loosely so if you do a case study and it becomes clear you need to change something, you can be open to actually doing it. Not everyone is as close to your business or industry as you are, so they just simply may not “get it” in the same way you do. So having outside feedback can really help.
All of this couldn’t be more true for today’s topic— naming your business. We know a business is deeply personal, we get it. Trust us. But when coming up with your business name, it’s sometimes best to check feelings at the door, especially if you’re dead set on a name and haven’t exactly gotten any opinions on it yet. Because at the end of the day, you want a business name that will be the absolute best representation of your business and get the best name recognition right? Of course you do! So let’s get to it, shall we?
1. Figure Out Your Ideal Customer
A great exercise, before trying to decide on a name, is to create a list of values and characteristics you want your business to embody. Then think about who your ideal customer group is (age, sex, income range, location, etc.). Every idea you come up with for a name needs to be held next to these details as a way to determine if that name fits with the kind of business you’re trying to create. If you want a bit more in-depth how-to for this practice, you can read all about it here.
Make it a Group Project
Group projects get a bad rap. But gone are the days when the Tommys and Tiffanys of the world are forced to be in class with no real motivation. (Sorry to any well-motivated Tommys and Tiffanys out there ????????) For your group, pick people who you love and respect, rally your friends who believe in you and your future business, grab your creative friends, and get to work!
Don’t be afraid to say every idea out loud. We have this thing in our office that we adopted from author and researcher, Brené Brown. We allow each other non-judgemental space to have a potential “????-y first draft.” When coming up with an idea, we may hit it out of the park the first time, or it may be a ????-y first draft. BUT, some of our very best work has come by saying a bunch of first drafts and playing off of those until we get to the final concept. It can be really quite fun in a group you trust!
2. It’s Ok to Be #Basic
In fact, it’s encouraged! When thinking of a name for your business, it’s great to keep it simple. A simple name is not only great for name recognition, but also when thinking about branding, print, and design. A long, more business complicated name can be well, complicated to fit on product labels, t-shirts, etc. A short name will keep things clean and pleasing to the eye.
3. Sleep On It
If you’re anything like us, you’ve had an earth-shatteringly amazing idea only to sleep on it and realize it’s mediocre at best. There’s no shame in that. So sleep on it! Maybe for a few nights. And if you still love it, you know it’s meant to be!
4. Check for Any Unwanted Doppelgängers
Before you ???? settle on your business name and get suuuuper attached, you’re going to want to do a quick Google search to see if there are any companies already using your name that may be potential competitors. Also take the time to make sure the name not already trademarked. You can easily search the federal database AKA TESS (the Trademark Electronic Search System) of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Last but certainly not least, do domain name search. In 2019 a website is necessary, so make sure your business name is available as a website domain. If it isn’t, try using an abbreviation, hyphens, or an alternate domain such as .net.
5. Register That Bad Boy!
Once you’re in love with a name as if it were your first born, you’re going to want to register it as fast as you can. (But not too fast or anything. No typos wanted here! ????)
If you have an LLC, a corporation, or a limited partnership in the U.S., you’ll need to register your business with your state authorities. When you do, your business name will automatically be registered (yay efficiency!). If your business is a sole proprietorship or a general partnership, in most cases, you will register your business with the county and/or city where it’s located.
Oh, and while it’s not a requirement, it may be a good idea to register your business name for a trademark to protect yourself from any of your own future unwanted doppelgängers. ????
Conclusion
Hailing from an entrepreneurial family and being entrepreneurs ourselves, we know how hard this process can be, but also how much fun it can be! We hope these little tidbits helped. And we can’t wait to see what future business names you guys come up with.
Anyone ever made a cold call? ✋ Probably all of us. Anyone enjoy them? Probably a very small minority of people… extreme extroverts only. ???? So, that begs the question: if we all hate cold calls, then why are we doing them?
Put it this way— if you’re starving and someone offers you a fishing pole or a pack of seeds, which would you take? The fishing pole, of course. Cold calls are like fishing. They’re useful when you need a client now, and we get it. Cold calls let you survive another day, like fishing for dinner. That’s also the biggest issue with cold calls: If that’s your only real way to gain clients, the cycle will never end. You’ll be making sales calls FOREVER. But we’ve been there— survivor sales. Also known as a traditional Outbound Sales Funnel (AKA, fishing). At the end of 1,000 cold calls, you have 10 clients, a headache, and an emotional breakdown. Then you get to start over again.
Here’s a little quip from one of our owners Joanna about her time in that cycle:
“When we relocated from NC to Greenville, SC, I knew that I would need to do the hard work to find clients. Along with attending dozens of networking events, I spent hours upon hours making cold calls or sending cold emails. And I hated it. But I have three kids who eat a lot, so I had no option. But I refused to accept the fate of cold calling every day forever. So I made a choice. I would keep on ‘fishing’ but I would ALSO plant some seeds. I began putting a long-term plan in place that is paying off now. At this point, I literally can’t remember my last cold call but the clients keep flowing in.”
SO, what can you do to get out of the survivor sales cycle? Our suggestion is: DO BOTH! Keep fishing if you need to now, because you gotta eat. But also plant some seeds to invest in long-term growth. And you can do that through creating what’s known as an Inbound Funnel.
Goal of an inbound funnel is to, instead of going after clients, simply take steps. You plant seeds to attract clients, then you water them so they come to you, then you get to harvest the crops. (Can you tell we love a good plant metaphor? ????)
At surface level, the funnels can seem similar, but when you break them down, you’ll see the clear differences. Plus, perhaps the biggest difference comes in step 4. Stay tuned. ????
1. Create Awareness
Potential clients won’t come to you unless they know you exist. Crazy, right? So the best way to get your name out there is to use a variety of methods. The more methods you use, the broader your funnel will be. In the farming metaphor, think of planting a variety of crops. Ideas for exposure? Most exposure methods are free/cheap but you can amp up your funnel by paying. Check out our handy dandy graphic for ideas for free vs. paid exposure.
2. Build Value & Trust
After exposure is executed, potential customers may visit your website, visit your store, or follow you on social media. Caution: Do not try to switch back to fishing and scare them away. Step 2 in a sustainable inbound funnel takes time. Many people fear losing the customer’s attention so they jump to sales again. Yes, short attention spans are real and they may lose focus, so using forms to gather contact info is okay, but don’t start a hard sell just yet. The natural progression is awareness, discovery, interest. The jump from discovery to interest is difficult because no one wants to be “sold,” so the marketing/sales tactics need to be balanced with building trust/goodwill.
So how do you do that?
- Offer Valuable Free Resources
- Testimonials & Customer Reviews
- Ask your customers/clients to write you a positive review online. In fact, we wrote a whole blog about how to do this well and why they’re beneficial. Check it out here.
- Insider Info
- Meet-the-team posts add a personal story and help viewers get to know you in a low-pressure setting.
- Sharing industry secrets by blog or social media can be a huge advantage for you over your more tight-lipped competitors.
- Features v. Benefits
- Keep touching on the benefits of your business or product rather than just the features. People make purchasing decisions based on benefits, not features.
- Nurture Interest
- Whether through email, social media, blogs, etc., make sure your customers see a product that meets their need(s) several times.
3. Close the Sale
You are still not a salesman here. We repeat. Not a salesman. ???? This isn’t time to “reel them in;” it’s time to reap the harvest. BUT When the customer shows true consideration (fills out a form, adds item to cart, asks for price quote), you need processes in place to help convert them. Some things to consider here:
- Ease of purchase: Can they do so without having to call? Is it intuitive? Do you accept various payment methods?
- Incentivize purchase: This may include increased direct marketing (call or email), coupon codes, limited-time introductory offers (positioned as only ONE TIME).
4. Create a Sustainable Funnel
The initial sale conversion isn’t the end. It is simply the beginning of the customer relationship journey and start of constantly refilling your funnel. If your whole funnel ends after a single purchase, your funnel isn’t sustainable. Here are a few great ways to create a sustainable funnel through customer relationship and retention
- Multiple Purchases: Could customers buy more than one of your products? How about a subscription model? How about a discount on second purchases in the same month? A loyalty program.
- Replacement Purchases: If customers won’t need multiple products, how long until they need a replacement? Do you have a long-term marketing plan in place that keeps the customer in contact until that time? Should you offer loyalty incentives? Email marketing and social media work great in this long-term plan.
- Complementary Products: What complements your product? If you know they will need another product in conjunction with yours, selling that complementary product not only gives you another sales channel, but also it’s good customer service. People like convenience.
- Customer Service: Go above and beyond expectations. Create a culture so your employees know to do the same. Great customer service creates a sales force of brand advocates, because content customers just come back. Surprised customers tell others!
Conclusion
Speaking of telling others, word of mouth is the best way to get you inbound leads, and by the way, it has the absolute best ROI you can ever get. So, ask customers to leave you reviews. Ask them to share with a friend for them both to get an incentive. “Ask and you shall receive…” That’s a popular saying for a reason!
And if you go above and beyond to thank customers who advocate for you by sending a hand-written thank you note, sending a gift card, or mentioning them on social media, they will feel validated as an important part of your company story, which they are! And then they’ll be more likely to continue to advocate for you. Advocates help fill your funnel with potential customers that are not only aware, but already have trust and are ready to convert. This cycle will grow, and soon you will be done with sales. Woohoo! We’re so excited about the potential of that, we’re leaving you with another awesome graphic.
Being a small business owner or entrepreneur comes with a lot of perks, like a flexible schedule and not having a boss. BUT it also comes with its own challenges, just like any job. When you own a business, there’s a lot of pressure to do things the right way and make it a success. After all, a lot of people will associate you with your business. Often times, this causes business owners to run themselves ragged. But listen, you don’t have to do that. You can delegate and still be successful. You just have to be strategic about what you delegate and to whom. We even wrote a blog about outsourcing that you can go read if you haven’t already!
Okay okay, moving on. We know we talk about this all the time, but we’re not going to stop any time soon because A) it’s important, and B) if we know anything about small business owners, it’s really hard to let things go.
But if you’re not ready to start delegating, why not try automating? There are tons of tasks you can automate that will end up saving you precious time, and also your sanity.
Automation doesn’t just save you time; it also increases overall customer service, makes you more efficient, and clears up your time for big picture stuff. Plus, there are some really great apps available to you! Alright, let’s get to it.
1. Social Media
Instead of wasting time every day thinking of what to post, breaking up your day by taking photos, writing captions, and then posting, try sitting down one day a month to choose photos and type out all your posts. Then, you can schedule them out a month ahead of time. Facebook has its own built-in scheduling software found in the Publishing Tools section of your business page. You can also utilize other softwares like Hopper or HooteSuite for your other social media accounts on Instagram, Twitter, or LinkedIn. ????
2. Customer Communication
Prompt and professional customer communication is an absolute must. In fact, most studies say customers expect a reply to an email or contact form submission within 24 hours. Everyone loves a thoughtful reply, but it could take the whole day to individually reply to everyone who contacts you, depending on your business size. So why not automate some of those emails? Whether you want to send an automated reply to contact form submissions on your website with helpful information or just send a thoughtful thank you email after every purchase, eliminating the time it takes to do so can free you up significantly. Another great idea is to set up an auto-reply on your social media accounts and emails, letting them know that their message DID go through (very important), and that you’ll get back to them within 24-48 hours. Head on over to your email provider and social media platforms to set these up there!
3. Inbox Management
Did you know that there are apps that will declutter your inbox for you and unsubscribe you from annoying email lists? Run, don’t walk. And whoever invented these services, we’d like to shake your hand. ????
4. Invoice Reminders
Have a client who owes a payment? Don’t we all. ???? Many apps will allow you to create automated email reminders and send them to clients for you. This not only helps free you up, but it also means you won’t be tempted to send emotional emails about past-due payments. (#aspermylastemail, anyone?)
5. Your To-Do List
There are several mobile and computer apps that will streamline your To-Do lists, keep everything in one place, and allow you to set reminders. Anyone else thankful for auto reminders? ✋
6. Payroll
So, you’re not a bookkeeper and can’t afford to hire one. Do you just make yourself miserable doing all that #math even though you’re not passionate about it? The answer is no. No, you don’t. Try a payroll automation company, like Gusto, and free yourself up for very important non-math related work. Because life is way too short to do things that make you miserable. (Disclaimer: If you love math, we see you. We respect you. Keep up the good work.)
7. Receipts
Have trouble keeping up with endless receipts? Honestly, #same. Right after your purchase, you can simply snap a picture of your receipt and keep track of your expenses via an app like Shoeboxed or Expensify. Those apps can automatically get the necessary information exported from them. Bonus points for this one because it will help you avoid getting bogged down during tax preparation. And your CPA will love you. Win-win.
8. Backing Up Files
Backing up files is one of those things that’s essential but also can be kinda annoying. And a LOT of people don’t really do it unless they’ve learned the hard way. It’s like properly removing a device from your computer… does it REALLY matter? Oh, we’re here to tell you it does. One of us may or may not have had their whole iPod erased back in the day. (RIP⚰️). ANYWAY, backing up your files is really a necessary precaution. And it’s super simple to automate. You can set up a cloud-based backup like Dropbox or Google Drive. And by syncing all your files to the cloud, they’re accessible on any device with an internet connection.
9. Website Analytics
It’s simple to set up a Google Analytics report to be emailed to you once a week. Et voilà! Your website analytics magically appear in your inbox ✨No more wasting precious time logging in to find it.
10. Bill Pay
Whatever you can automate, you should. Whether it’s a payment on your business credit card payment, your office rent, any software you utilize, or any building maintenance services such as cleaning, cutting down on the time you spend writing checks is critical. If you know you’re going to pay it every month, ask if they do auto-draft, that way you don’t have to keep it on your to-do list.
These may seem small, but every minute matters when you’re juggling a business, family and friends, and trying to have some sort of remnants of a social life. That’s why taking routine, recurring tasks off your to-do list can really help boost your productivity. These are the types of things that can break up the day at the worst times and have the potential to ruin a perfectly good train of thought. And no one wants that! If you can delegate some everyday tasks to employees, do it!! But even if you’re not able to delegate (yet), you could potentially free up some much needed time by automating these simple tasks. So just do it.
Is it too soon to use this GIF again? Asking for a friend….
Social Media can either seem pretty straight forward or it can feel overwhelming (depending on the day, AM I RIGHT? ????), and Instagram may be the biggest culprit. With constant changes in things like algorithms, a need to curate the perfect feed, and a steady stream of new features, keeping up can feel like a full-time job! So we’re going to take a few minutes today to let you know about some new updates with Instagram and break down some of the most popular features.
Instagram started as a simple feed of photos with cool filters, meant for users to share their everyday adventures in real time. But it has morphed into a huge social network full of photos, stories, IGTV, GIFs, and video clips all fighting for attention. While it’s still used for personal documentation, it’s also become a huge platform for businesses, marketers, and influencers to interact with and grow their audiences.
In recent years it’s turned into probably the most “curated” part of social media, where presets, Photoshop, advertisements, and fake smiles can make a lot of people wonder if they measure up. But that could all be changing…
The Grid
If you don’t know what the grid is. It’s another way of saying your personal Instagram page, or profile. Here’s a look at our grid as of late:
When Instagram started, there really wasn’t any focus on how the grid looked. No one even thought of it, but as Instagram became a tool for marketing, whether to promote a business or to advertise as an influencer, there became this obsession with how the grid looked to potential customers. The thought was (and mostly still is) that if someone visits your profile and your grid is messy, you won’t attract them as a customer as easily as your grid is very cohesive.
The Aesthetic
Over time, a lot of people got tired of the perceived perfection from businesses, influencers, and even just personal Instagram users. And content creators got tired of spending so many hours thinking about exactly what order to put photos in to make the perfect grid. So now we’re seeing a steady change towards an “anti-Instagram aesthetic” from many popular influencers, especially younger ones. After a few years of perfect profiles with filtered presets, it looks like we may be experiencing somewhat of a shift, with an article in The Atlantic suggesting that the ‘Instagram Aesthetic’ is over.
This article in The Atlantic was really about influencers. But if you’re reading this, you’re probably not a famous influencer. You’re probably a hard-working small business owner, trying to put food on the table and grow your business. So how does all of this affect you on Instagram? The reason we’re mentioning popular influencers now, is because businesses and brands always tend to follow suit.
We found two great examples of businesses already moving away from the Instagram aesthetic.
Here’s the feed of Glossier, a beauty and skincare brand, 2 years ago:
And today:
Two years ago, their feed was only professional photos, shot in-house, all with the same color aesthetic and filter. Today, you see a mix of memes, user photos they’ve shared, and some professionally shot product photos. But why the change? I think they, as they should have, realized that users didn’t want to look at a professional catalog of their products, but they wanted to connect. People want to see themselves in what brands post.
We’ve seen a change in Nike’s feed as well. Here’s two years ago:
And today:
2 years ago, Nike’s feeds was all professional, stock-like photos with the same high-clarity edited style. Now we see a mix of videos and photos, and a more natural look on a lot of them. Especially for an athletic wear company, having everything purposefully curated is kind of a catch 22. After all, athletics are messy.
The main takeaway here is that businesses should be aiming to connect with their specific audiences, even if that means creating an “aesthetic” that goes against outdated Instagram expectations. But one thing we will note is, depending on your industry, the aesthetics of your grid may stay cohesive in some ways. And that’s okay. Obviously with creatives, designers, artists, and the like, your grid will still have one solid aesthetic because usually artists have one style, at least for seasons. So since artists have a style, the grid looks more cohesive naturally, without a ton of planning.
Alright, we’ve spent a lot of time talking about how the aesthetic of Instagram is changing, now let’s hit some of their ever-changing features. Shall we?
Stories
According to recent statistics, Instagram Stories have about 250 million daily users, and 33% of the most popular stories are posted by businesses. So stories are a great way to get engagement from your audience as a business owner. The statistics also show that 20% of stories posted by businesses result in direct messages.
Ever feel like your business is competing with a million stories to get seen by your audience? You’re not *entirely* wrong. So here are a few ways to get your story more viewership!
1. Use a geotag for your location. Geotags have been shown to get 79% more engagement.
2. Use a hashtag for a 12% increase in engagement.
3. Get a friend, an influencer, or one of your employees to “takeover” the Instagram account. These stories get a lot of engagement and are a great opportunity to be more personal and add a face to a name.
4. Use a poll. Asking followers to help you make decisions here and there can give your engagement a boost as well as make them feel like an important part of the online community.
5. Offer them a sale exclusive to Instagram Story viewers.
6. Post Stories Monday & Thursday 7-9pm, and avoid 3-4pm.
Videos & IGTV
For a while, video was the new “it girl” in the social media world. And Instagram even prioritized video over photos in the feed. They got higher priority in the algorithm. Meaning, if you posted a video, your users were more likely to see it than if you posted a photo. Well, that is no longer true. Videos and photos now get the same authority. But recently, Instagram has introduced IGTV to the mix. IGTV is a great tool, allowing videos up to 10 minutes long. If you’re a business that sometimes utilizes YouTube, but haven’t seen high return there, this could be a way to reduce your workload and consolidate your content into one place!
Since IGTV’s release, it’s been common to see IGTV videos in the Explore tab, but recently Instagram also added the ability for users to add IGTV previews to their own Stories AND allowing users to post previews directly into the main feed. It’s a great way to share how-tos or any important stories behind your business!
The Explore Tab
The Explore Tab is a great way to grow your following. It’s a way for Instagram to suggest new accounts to people that they think they’ll like. Just like the feed, the Explore Tab has an algorithm that makes this all happen. And we’re going to break it down for you. There are 3 main factors to how your posts can show up on someone’s Explore Tab: Interest, Timeliness, and Relationship.
1. Interest: Instagram tracks what people like and comment on, which stories they watch, and they use that information via their algorithm to keep showing what they think you’ll like based on that information. So, if you want people to see your business’s posts more often, give them incentive to like or comment on the post!
2. Relationship: Instagram has an algorithm to understand your relationship with others. It’s mostly like interest but a bit different. Rather than liking and commenting, it has to do with tagging. If someone tags you in things, the algorithm thinks they might be your friend or family, so they’ll show you that person in Explore Tab, and vice versa. They’ll also show people or businesses also connected to those people. So, think about creative ways you can get your users to tag your business in their photos!
3. Timeliness: For example, newer posts get more authority on the Explore Tab rather than posts that are a week old. So post regularly!
Conclusion
According to digital strategist Taylor Cohen, the Instagram aesthetic hit its climax sometime in mid-2018, and since then, it’s slowly been changing. But again, what does this mean for your business? This means you can share what you want in the moment, what you think your audience and potential clients would like, without having to spend hours getting your photos in an order that will look a certain way when someone visits your profile. So you get some of your precious time back. (Yay!)
With all of these new features, the important thing is to not get bogged down in feeling like you have to do them all. Plus, things are always changing, so don’t put all your eggs in one basket, only to have the feature you’re using filter out after some time (pun intended). Figure out which features boost engagement and add value to your business. Don’t just use tons of your time with no return on investment. For example, if you don’t have any big stories to tell, or need to do how-to videos, IGTV may not be for you. And that’s okay! Stick to photos and Stories.
Alright that’s it for this breakdown on the ole Instagram. We hope this helped! Happy ‘gramming, y’all.
At the end of every year we see a ton of hype around the design trends for the upcoming year. But is there anything to all the hype? Well, yes and no. Just because something is trendy with designers on creative platforms doesn’t mean it will work in a functional way or catch on in the mainstream. So… since it’s been almost an entire year since we’ve talked about web design trends (also, how did that happen so fast!?), we want to show you a few of the big design trends projected for 2018/2019 that actually made it out of the “idea” stage and into the wild. These are the trends that have held up and gotten picked up over and over again on actual, live websites!
Shall we?
1. More Illustration & Diverse Illustration Styles
This year, design doesn’t take itself too seriously, and the big trend in illustrations proves that. While illustration has been slowly and steadily replacing photography-only design for the past year and a half or so, this year we’ve seen a super fun turn in illustration style. Surreal Design and Abstract Design are very in. Designers are having tons of fun moving away from photography-heavy design and taking new liberties with elaborate illustrations. And the surprising thing about this trend is that we’re not just seeing it from businesses that are in the creative field, but we’ve seen brands that are professional and traditionally more “serious,” like the two seen below, use this design trend to stand out and take a more lighthearted, fun approach. And we can get on board with that.
2. Serifs & Vintage Type
At the beginning of 2018, we had a big debate over serif and sans serif fonts for a few months, and someone (we won’t say who) on our team wasn’t exactly on board at first with the return of serifs. Ahem *he* wasn’t convinced the trend had staying power, because sans serif fonts in all caps had been on-trend in recent years, and before that it was sans serif in all lower case.
Well, for over a year now we’ve seen that Serifs are officially back, they’re bold, and it looks like they’re staying around for a while. But it’s obvious that serifs are more than just a “projected” trend, but they’re being used regularly and by big players in both the creative and business worlds. (And we happen to think they pair quite nicely with the abstract and surreal illustration trend as well.)
3. A New Style of Hero
Last year we saw a bit of an evolution (if you will) if the standard hero section. If you don’t know, the “hero” is the first visual a visitor sees on a website, and its purpose is to quickly present the most important information— what defines the company or product in an eye-catching way. In recent years, the hero was basically always some sort of full screen image with text overlayed, and centered. It’s obvious that designers grew tired of the centered headline and CTA button on top of a beautiful photo.
So what’d they do instead? We’ve seen a huge trend in moving the headline and CTA to the left and setting the image to the right, and oftentimes replacing the image with a custom illustration! This puts the most important information to the left where the eye (in western culture) naturally goes first. Genius! But don’t count out those who go against the grain. We’ve also seen a lot of headlines and CTA moved to the right with the illustration on the left as well. *Scandalous!*
4. Large Bold Text/More Text/Full Screen Text
Remember how we mentioned images are out and illustrations are in? Well, we’ve even seen a lot of sites with jumbo-sized characters even replacing images AND illustrations. Large, full-screen letters in bold colors are very in, as well as juxtaposing sans serif and serif fonts to help create dynamic visuals.
5. All The Gradients & Bold Color Palettes
2019 is all about color. Apple has been using gradients in their iOS icons for years, but over the past year, we’ve seen gradients that are not just in icons, but dominating the design. Popular gradients in years past were more of an ombre (different shades of one color), but now we’re seeing gradients with 2 or more distinguishable colors. And we don’t hate it at all.
Bold and unexpected color pairings are probably our favorite current trends. Vibrant and even clashing colors can be useful for newer brands hoping to instantly attract their visitors’ attention. Colors you wouldn’t normally see paired together can be very eye-catching and keep you in your users’ minds long after they’ve left your site. We’re even seeing bold colors play a huge role in creating a great user experience, with designers using eye-catching colors placed where they want site visitors’ eyes to go.
Hey— don’t have the money for new professional photography? A simple gradient background mixed with a few strong design elements like bold typography can be a super trendy, yet practical solution to represent your brand message and make your website pop.
Conclusion
2019 is definitely a fun year in design around the web. And several of the sites we’ve shared have incorporated multiple, if not all of these at once. Here are some examples of that:
2019 isn’t stuffy. It’s creative. It’s fun to look at. We can’t wait to see how these evolve and how designers will the limits on these trends in the coming months and years. We’re also having a lot of fun incorporating some of these into our designs whenever we can, too!
Our co-founder Joanna recently spoke about Online Reputation Management at one of our events, and since all of the attendees were super engaged, interested in learning more about OMR, and we got tons of follow-up questions, we figured we’d extend some education on this subject to those who couldn’t make it. Let’s get to it. Shall we?
You already HAVE a reputation online and otherwise, whether you manage it or not. Opinions will be formed. Reviews will be written. And word of mouth will be spoken.
So, what do you want your reputation to be?
If you’re anything like the small business owners we work with, you’re probably feeling like a marathon runner who (at the same time) is constantly juggling a bunch of different projects and deadlines, with a billion things to worry about every single day. (Sound familiar?)
You probably feel like there is no time to, I don’t know, have a personal life. (What even is that?) Let alone stop and “Google” your business and respond to any online feedback.
But we hope at the end of this that you’ve changed your mind and see the value in managing your online reputation because it is absolutely critical in today’s climate.
What’s in a Reputation?
It’s impossible to over-stress how important a good online reputation is today. Having customers creating a positive buzz around your product on Instagram can exponentially grow your business, while a slew of negative reviews could do a lot more damage to your business than you think… if you don’t handle it, or if you don’t handle it the right way.
But don’t fear. That’s where this article comes in. We want to equip you to drive more positive chatter about your business online and help you respond in a mature, professional way to any negative feedback you may receive. Because if you’re a business owner for any length of time, you WILL get a negative review. It’s going to happen. But you don’t have to fear it.
There’s definitely some confusion about online reputation management. To some it stops at just social media monitoring, while to others it’s a mysterious art that their marketing agency barely explained and just handles for them. And maybe others have never heard of it until now and have no idea how it can affect their business. We don’t know where you fall in that group, but it’s our hope that after reading this, you all feel informed and equipped!
So What Exactly is ORM?
According to Techopedia, online reputation management (ORM) is the practice of crafting strategies that shape or influence the public perception of an organization, individual, or other entity on the Internet. It helps drive public opinion about a business and its products and services.
With so many websites available for people to talk about and/or review your business—Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google, Angie’s List, Yelp, TripAdvisor, Bing, etc, etc—managing your online reputation can seem overwhelming. But the reality is, ORM involves much more than just monitoring your brand across social media platforms and commenting back with some witty emojis (although that is fun… and important ????????). It’s more than just responding to negative reviews, driving more positive reviews, and having a clear plan in place for both. But we’ll start here because managing online reviews is a big part of the work you’ll do from month to month when maintaining your ORM.
Whether users are commenting on your latest Instagram post, leaving a comment on your blog, or posting a Google review about their experience, people are talking about you online. So, what are they saying? And why does it matter?
What People Are Saying About Your Business
Here’s a statistic— about 500 Yelp Reviews are posted every second. EVERY. SECOND. Wait, Whaaat? That’s crazy. But it’s true. And did you know that 88% of online users trust reviews as much as personal recommendations? And 50% of people from the age of 18 to 34 say they trust online reviews even more than the opinions of friends and family.
Driving New Positive Reviews
Not only do users value reviews, but so do search engines. Do you always feel like you’re trying to figure out the highly elusive “SEO”? Well here’s at least one piece of the puzzle you can bet on: search engines highly value positive, recent reviews. So the more monthly positive reviews you have, the higher you will rank in your local area.
Here’s the good news: if you’re a great business, people WANT to leave a review. But the bad news is, they get busy or distracted and may forget. So, it’s important that every business needs a strategy in place to drive positive reviews. Don’t know where to start? Here’s a great place— just ask for them. It’s that simple. Encourage employees to ask for them, and ask again (when customers forget). Make it personal, and thank every reviewer, either with a reply or with a gift.
Responding to Negative Reviews
Alright now to the doozy…. Negative reviews. Our number one piece of advice and biggest takeaway from this article would be: always reply to negative reviews. Always. But never reply while emotional. When answered well, negative reviews can work to your advantage, as they’re a great opportunity to show current and future customers that their feedback matters. Everybody makes mistakes, and your customers know that. But it’s up to you to show them that you know how to handle criticism well—to acknowledge your shortcomings, apologize for them, and communicate how you’ve learned from them.
So if you have a few bad reviews, don’t stress. It’s not as bad as you think. Did you know that 95% of consumers suspect censorship or faked reviews when they don’t see bad scores? So, embrace the bad reviews. Respond to them in a professional and meaningful way, and drive those positive reviews up as best you can to outweigh the bad!
Here’s our rule of thumb: always comment back publicly to every review, whether it’s positive, negative, or neutral. But for negative reviews, first filter if the review is a legitimate one. If you did something wrong, own it. And we’d suggest publicly and privately messaging the reviewer and offering to make the situation right. However, if it’s an over the top, troll-like negative review and you believe it to be not legitimate, comment back anyway, but you don’t necessarily have to go above and beyond unless you want to! Viewers can generally filter those out themselves as invalid.
Comments on Your Own Posts
So, we’ve gone over reviews on review sites, but what about when people are commenting negatively about you in the comment section of your own posts? Anyone remember the Taylor Swift snake emoji situation…?
Listen, Taylor Swift went from thousands of people flooding her comment section every day with snake emojis, to then spinning it and even capitalizing on her bad online reputation by turning the snake into her brand for a massively successful album and record-breaking world tour. Here’s a fun article about all of that if you’re into that sort of thing.
But what does this have to do with you? You may not even have a thousand followers. But the principal still applies. Taylor Swift didn’t comment back or really ever even address those comments. When it comes to commenting back or not, that’s a judgment call you’ll have to make. If someone is unfairly blasting you in your comments, it may be best to simply delete the comment. However, if it’s legitimate like a review, don’t delete it and treat it exactly how you would a negative Google or Facebook review.
To sum up, in general you want to respond to comments just like you would reviews, but in some extreme cases, when responding Misty likely won’t do any good, you could make a judgment call to delete the negative messages and private message the user if there’s no way to resolve it well publicly.
Are People Posting About You?
Besides reviews and comments on your own content, a great way to build a good reputation is to have followers post about you, also known as User-Generated Content.
Today, user-generated content is a must. If you’re a really awesome company and have a great service or product, people will go a step beyond just leaving a positive review on your page and even share about you on their own page. This is the user taking on a role of actively promoting your product for you. Hello, free advertising. You can literally just rock so hard that people post about you for free.
If you have a shop or restaurant, you could give users an avenue like a cool backdrop or a very visual area to post on their own social media. When you provide a place for them to take a photo and post it, it’s very likely that they will. If you don’t have a brick and mortar shop, a great way to get users to post about you is to share posts that people are tagging you in. It will make them feel important and seen, it will give them an incentive to keep posting, and it’ll also show others that if they post about you, it could get shared, too! It’s a win-win for everyone.
What You Say About You
So we’ve talked a lot about what others say about you online and how it attributes to your reputation, but what about what YOU say about you?
Business Account Vs. Personal Account
A big part of your business’s online reputation has to do with your own personal reputation. As a business owner, you’ve tied yourself to your business, so whether you like it or not, how you represent yourself personally (both online and offline) will have a direct effect on your business.
You may think that since you have a separate personal social media account, you can compartmentalize that as separate from your business account. That’s true to an extent, and we applaud you for noticing a difference between what you should post on your own account vs. a business account. However, keep in mind that what you post on your personal is always going to impact your business as well. Like, if you’re slamming people on your personal account, that could greatly affect your business.
Knowing what to post on a personal vs business account can be tricky. For your business account, be sure to develop your unique brand voice and always stick to that. Your brand voice should be distinctly different from the voice of your personal account. And we’d say keep personal posts light-hearted and fun, more behind-the-scenes content on your business account, whereas you can share a lot more on your personal account.
If this is all confusing for you, there are a lot of professional and freelance social media consultants who would love to help you develop your business’s brand online, so feel free to utilize one on a consulting basis for that if you have further questions!
Conclusion
Basically, we’d say online reputation management is a must. Make time for it, even if you don’t feel like you have the time. What are people saying about you? What are you saying back? These are both wildly important to the success or failure of your business.
If people aren’t talking, get them talking! Your customers love you and they may just need a little push to get out there and let the interwebs know just how much they love you!
Good online reputation management is about reacting the right way and at the right time to what people say about your products and services. Sometimes an emotional or a “too late” reaction can cost you. So breathe, and remember, one negative review won’t hurt. You’ve got this. And we hope we’ve helped you get started!
If you’re a small business owner, we can pretty much guess that you wear (at least) 9,000 hats every day. Maybe it’s because you feel that you don’t have the budget to hire anyone to take some things off your plate, or maybe you’re one of those business owners who can’t let anything go because there’s no way anyone else will ever care about it as much as you do. Others think they can probably just do the work, and even if it’s not perfect, it can’t be that hard. Sound familiar?
Well, research from the American Psychological Association shows that when you multitask, or manage multiple projects at once, you can experience a 40 percent drop in productivity. Your projects take longer to complete, and you increase your overall stress levels.
Also, most small businesses usually start out with little or no overhead. But let’s be real, expenses build up a lot faster than revenue in the beginning. We’re not saying you should increase expenses unnecessarily by outsourcing tasks you’re capable of accomplishing, but the fact is, some areas require more expertise than you probably have.
(Brief pause for the nobody-can-do-it-better-than-me guy to have a good silent scream.)
As a small business owner, you can find good help by turning to freelancers or small firms as a less expensive source of assistance, and their expertise can help you realize that maybe you’re spending money in the wrong areas, or the amount of time it takes you (or an inexperienced employee) to do something is costing you way more in the long run. Before you hire one or more full-time employees to take over specialized tasks, consider outsourcing as a more cost effective alternative.
You don’t need to outsource everything, especially if you really are trained in a specific area, but we’ve put together a list of 5 areas we think would serve the average business owner well to outsource.
1. Accounting & Bookkeeping
This is a big one. If we had to choose one thing to tell you to outsource, this would probably be it. It’s really important to leave accounting to a professional. Having an administrative assistant or someone else handle accounting who isn’t well versed or trained in software or basic accounting rules is like playing roulette with your finances. When handling the finances for your business, you really can’t afford to make mistakes, and outsourcing is a great way to prevent that.
An experienced freelancer or accounting firm can save you a lot of money in the long run because they know what pitfalls to avoid and what tactics can be beneficial. If you’re a business owner trying to manage your own payroll, for example, and you’re not familiar with tax regulations and requirements, you could have a lot of issues or fines down the line with the IRS which can be more costly than simply hiring a professional.
2. Market Research & Branding
Market research is extremely important to the growth of any company. In-depth research on your industry or target audience can provide your business with important information for current and future strategies. Outsourcing this to an experienced individual or firm and having them build a set of customer profiles can help you make more informed decisions about your branding and marketing.
It’s almost impossible for business owners to view their business from an outside perspective, and so often they make branding decisions based on personal preferences and not market research. Basically, as a business owner, you’re too close to your business to see it the way others do. When you live in your business every single day and know the ins and outs of your industry and, it’s hard for you to know what an audience who has no previous knowledge about your business wants or needs to hear. So, enter the professionals!
3. Social Media Marketing
In 2018 there are so many different social platforms to choose from and each of them requires a lot of attention, so outsourcing social media can be invaluable to business owners. Professionals can develop a strategy, write strong content, and building up your following. Social media experts can give you a huge bang for your buck, helping you skip the expense of hiring someone full-time or taking other employees away from their job to do something they’re not really good at. (If we see one more cat meme from Karen in accounting….)
4. IT
Let’s just say you have a tech-savvy employee who you think can handle any IT issues that come up. That’s awesome, and not necessarily worst case scenario, but it’s definitely not best. If you outsource IT, technicians can fix issues faster and therefore save you money. But that’s not where the real savings are. A good IT company will help you put better systems in place to cut down on the number of issues you have in the first place, so your employees can get more done, without wasting company time waiting on the internet to work or an old computer to boot up. Also, IT companies can help you improve your data security, which minimizes your chances of experiencing a costly data breach. (You can read our blog to learn all about what a data breach can do to hurt a company’s reputation and, therefore, sales.)
5. HR / Staffing
Ooh, This is a good one. Everyone wants good employees, but how do you know who will be good and who is just really good at BS-ing their way through an interview? Not every business owner is experienced in hiring, so outsourcing HR to a professional can help your business attract great talent, weed through applicants to help you find the best fit, and also help you retain the good employees you already have.
Some mistakes in HR, made by someone who isn’t really trained in the field, can hurt employee retention and lead to costly fines. Leaving HR responsibilities in the hands of an employee who switches back and forth to HR on an as-needed or part-time basis, or who isn’t sufficiently trained in HR matters, can cost you dearly. Firms that specialize in compliance to HR regulations can be a huge asset to you to protect you from lawsuits or other unneeded expenses.
It may feel like HR isn’t an option for you as a small or medium-sized business owner. But even if you don’t have the budget to support a trained, full-time HR team, outsourcing tasks to an HR firm is a great idea that ultimately saves you money.
Conclusion
One misconception about handing off tasks to people is that it’s expensive and out of reach for small businesses. But, you don’t have to hire 6 new full-time employees to get these important tasks done the right way. You can outsource for a fraction of that cost. While there will be some cost associated with it, it won’t necessarily break the bank, and will often save you money in the long run.
There are a lot of areas you can outsource, but only you know which areas you need help with. Look at your finances, your team, your processes, and the work you are juggling yourself on a regular basis. And then really consider outsourcing the areas where you or your team struggle.
Simply said, outsource your weaknesses, so you can have the time to hone in on your strengths and kick booty at those.
In last month’s blog we spent a lot of time telling you how to talk about something besides yourself and your product on social media, but this month we’re going to pull a fast one on you and focus on how to do just the opposite. At the right moments anyways. We’re not changing our position here—we still think you shouldn’t constantly be shining the spotlight on yourself—but we are saying that when you do, you need to make it count, especially in the age of #communityovercompetition.
What is Community Over Competition?
The idea of community over competition has gained a lot of traction over the last few years among creatives and other professionals, with good reason. It’s an extremely positive movement. When owning a small business, especially as a creative, it can be very difficult to not keep tabs on competition. After all, competitive research is taught in business school. But competitive research is one thing… then there’s continual competitive “research” (aka: stalking), when you look at others as “competitors” all the time and have a high likelihood of becoming jealous, territorial, and negative. And that’s not good for anyone, especially your customers.
The other problem with competitive research is that none of your competitors are doing exactly what you’re doing the way you do it, so they’re not technically your direct competition anyway. (More on that later.)
So here we are, acknowledging just how positive this movement is, but we need to also acknowledge this elephant in the room. While collaboration is a beautiful thing, your livelihood still depends on successfully promoting your business, a business that you really believe in. But we get it. It can sometimes get tricky to know exactly how to support others in your industry, but still self-promote without getting competitive or seeming too pushy.
Here are a few ideas to get you started…
Defining Your Brand Story
“Storytelling” has become such a buzzword in recent years that a lot of business owners have started to ignore the idea, but the story of your business is maybe the only truly unique aspect you have to share. People love and crave genuine connections, and sharing your story is a great way to let people know about you, your day-to-day, the behind the scenes of your business, and ultimately build your brand.
Be Competitive With Your Brand Positioning
This is where things get tricky. “Community over competition” doesn’t mean you can never present yourself in a strategic way. You don’t have to be overly confident or put others down to get ahead, but you do have permission to own the things you truly are great at. The fact is, you have a unique selling proposition. No one is just like you. And just like others excel beyond you in certain areas (and you should encourage them in that), you’re better at some things than others are– so why not promote that? But remember, there’s a way to elevate your strengths without knocking the way others are doing things.
Determine How Your Add Value To Your Industry
Your customers are paying the most attention to your services or products, but that doesn’t mean they’re unaware of how you interact with other businesses in your industry. If you’re using passive—albeit extremely witty—captions to shade others in your lane, it puts a bad taste in people’s mouths. Instead, figure out how you add value to your industry (and by default, your customers too) and focus on expanding that. For example, maybe host a networking event, a lunch and learn, or an instructional seminar for others in your industry. Your peers will thank you and your customers will think you’re awesome, mostly because you are.
Conclusion
The bottom line here is, even if you’re all about celebrating the ???? out of others, you can still be proud of your work and believe in your business enough to promote it. There’s room at the table for everyone, especially you!
We all do it. The mindless scrolling through our social feeds. Everyone and their mother is online, so getting your posts to stand out in the feed and stop the scroll is becoming more difficult, but it doesn’t have to be intimidating. You just have to get intentional, and we’re here to help.
Maybe you don’t know what else to post, so you just post about your products or services. Maybe you don’t even give a second thought to your posts, but just usually post spur-of-the-moment when you have time to think or you when realize you haven’t posted in a few days. I think we can all agree that this isn’t an ideal scenario. So, if you’re in a rut, you’ve come to the right place.
The problem with posting the same thing all the time is, well, it eventually becomes very easy to tune out. Your feed can easily become white noise, an easy “scroll past” account and then before you know it, you’ve got your followers rethinking the follow. (Or using that ever elusive Mute button. Didn’t know about the mute button? You’ll thank me later.)
Why Diversify?
This one may hurt a bit, so brace yourself. Ready? Okay… let’s do this. Only about 20% of your stream should be about your products or a service promotion. Only 20%. That means for the other 80% of posts, instead of talking, posting, reposting, and posting again about how awesome your product or service is, you should be engaging in conversation and sharing other types of content and information with your audience. It’s so important to bring the personal along with the professional. Your followers don’t want to be sold to 24/7. Share your story. Hey, you could even have a little fun! The only thing you need to remember is to keep all of your posts in line with your brand message.
Diversifying the content that you post will really help to stand out, engage your current followers, and hopefully bring in new ones.
But how do you diversify?
Content Pillars
Content pillars are a great way to organize your content strategy on social media. A content pillar is a key theme that categorizes the type of posts you will share on your social media. Just like the name suggests, your pillars are a foundation for building your content.
Content pillars shouldn’t be too specific. They should be wide, like the trunk of a tree, with the ability to create different branches and limbs within each pillar. It’s up to you how many content pillars you choose.
Not sure how to determine what your content pillars should be? It’s important that all of your pillars are in line with your brand message, and they should also address the needs and values of your target consumer.
But First… Who, What, and Where?
Speaking of your target customer, before we jump into the different types of content you can utilize, there are some important questions you need to ask first that will determine exactly what kind of content you should post. A really good rule of thumb is, before you speak, you should know who you’re speaking to. You wouldn’t speak the same way to a CEO that you do your bestie. You’d say things to your kids that you wouldn’t say to your work colleagues. What are the demographics and behaviors of your target audience? Second, you need to find their outlets. Meet your audience where they are. Don’t spend all your time on Instagram if your target consumer is really on Facebook. And lastly, determine your message. What does your audience need to know about your brand?
1. Who’s your audience? How old is your target customer? How old is your social media audience? What does your customer like? What else are they doing and buying?
2. What platforms do you need to be on based on your audience? If you’re demo is 18-24, Facebook is out and Instagram is in. And vice versa, the 55 and older crowd isn’t really on Instagram, so if that’s your audience, you’ll want to utilize Facebook.
3. What message do you want to communicate through your social media? Some good examples of messages you want to include are ideas like services, about your team, your process, what sets you apart from your competition.
What are Your Content Pillars?
Now that you’ve determined your audience, let’s get started on different types of content pillars.
Products & Services – As I mentioned earlier, promotions should only account for a small percentage of your feed, but they should definitely be there. But because they’ll be so few and far between, make them count! Include an offer that will stop people while scrolling and get them to click.
Educational – These are posts like tips, how-tos, blogs, interviews, and more can add value to your followers, and they’ll usually be really appreciative of your time and expertise. This is something followers stay for. And maybe once they trust your expertise, they’ll become loyal to what you’re offering them!
Humanizing – This includes posts like Behind the Scenes, Team Activities, Emotional Stories, Meet the Team, and more. This should most likely be the bread and butter of your content. Your followers want to know you. And as much as you hate getting your picture taken (we all do!), ya gotta give the people what they want… and in this case, that’s your beautiful face.
Shout Outs – This type of post is a great way to engage with your following. The only thing people want to see more than your pretty face is, well, theirs! Things like Follower of the Week, Partner Spotlights, Follower Submissions, Follower Reposts, Giveaways, and more will make your followers feel appreciated and seen. And they’ll love you for it!
Once you’ve decided on a brand message and figured out which content pillars and platforms are best for your business, it’s time to cultivate the perfect post.
Elements of the Perfect Post
Videos, pictures, clever captions, oh my! Every platform will have its own perks and its own hurdles. But we believe in you! Here are two great tips to stand out in your followers’ feed. Be highly visual. And be very interactive.
Photography should be personal to you, and very eye catching. You have seconds to capture someone’s attention as they scroll through their timeline. You can write the most clever caption there ever was, but if you don’t stop your users’ scroll with a great visual, they’ll never stop and see what you have to share. It’s okay if you don’t have a fancy camera. There are plenty of tutorials online for how to get the most out of that high-tech phone camera! Portrait mode, anyone? We love it. It’s a #godsend.
Videos have been an ever-increasingly huge part of social media in 2018. And the good news is you can utilize videos on every social media platform. Some great ways to interact with your audience on Instagram are via Instagram Stories. These are way more lighthearted and personal than a post. You can also do fun things via stories like ask your followers specific questions (hello, free case study!), and polls are a great way to gauge the temperature of what your followers are thinking.
Captions are intimidating. But they don’t have to be! Just be you. Sitting down and actually taking time to be intentional about your captions instead of writing something on a whim will automatically make them exponentially better.
A Plan is Key
Now that you know your who, what, and where and have some strong content pillars to build your social media content, I’d like to briefly touch on mapping and planning. Mapping with a content calendar helps you to be intentional about which pillars you’re sharing throughout each month, that way you don’t have three posts of the topic in a row. A schedule helps make sure you’re giving even representation to all of your pillars. An ideal month would have a few posts from each pillar, evenly spread out throughout the month.
If you want a more in depth look at how to create and manage a content calendar, here’s a great article!
Conclusion
Alright, so, the good news and the bad news is that online, it’s not all about you. The social media world is all about your followers, so find a way to revolve your world around them. That’s right. For some of us that’s a huge weight off of our selfie-hating shoulders. But for some, it may mean you need to carve out more time to be intentional about what content you’re posting.
You don’t have to start as an expert. Just start somewhere! Ask yourself, what are 3 pillars my business needs (as a bare minimum)? And go from there.
For example, if you’re a retail shop selling handbags, an important pillar might be Follower Reposts. You want your followers to see real fashionable women carrying your bag, so they’ll want to carry your bag as well! But for a handbag company, Behind the Scenes of your process is a pillar that might not make sense for you, because you most likely don’t make your product by hand. Now, for a clay potter or hand-made jewelry maker, that’s a different story. People would probably love to see your process.
So get to work! What makes you you? And what pillars make sense for your business?