October 22, 2018
Social media won’t be going anywhere soon, and if you’re not using it as a tool to better market yourself to future employers, it’s time to start! Luckily, there are a few simple yet effective ways you can start making strides towards becoming a social media professional.
4. Post Quality Content Consistently
The absolute, number one, must-do step is to post! In order to grow and maintain an audience, they need something to look at and interact with. On more visual platforms, like Instagram and Facebook, this means posting photos or videos. Maybe you’ve got an infectious personality and enjoy shooting long-form videos – YouTube might be for you. Regardless of your platform choice(s), it’s important to stay on top of uploading content.
This ties in with Step 1: finding your brand. Content you post should generally relate to your brand. For example, if you’re a model, a food pic of the aesthetically pleasing salad you just ate won’t really fit in next to the photos of you giving a Tyra Banks-level smize or posing outside a fashion show. However, your salad will be AWESOME for your story! More on that in a moment…
5. Know What Content Goes Where
It can be tempting to share every cool event you attended, awesome thing you saw, and red carpet-worthy outfit you wore… but knowing where all these things go is crucial. Luckily, different social media platforms are suited better for different kinds of content and showcasing your talent and artistic abilities.
If you attended an awesome conference and want to speak on what you learned, LinkedIn is perfect for that kind of post. Posting work-related content shows you’re taking your career seriously and looking to share knowledge you may have picked up. Alternatively, if you don’t use LinkedIn or don’t have many connections and want to reach a broader audience, Facebook or a personal blog are also suited for longer written content and attached visuals.
Got a cool outfit of the day pic (#ootd for short – you’re welcome) and want to share it with your followers? You’ll need a more visual-focused platform. Instagram naturally makes the most sense, as pictures serve as the main focus with short captions taking a backseat.
When posting, be conscious about what medium you’re using (text, photo, video) and how your followers will interact with your content. Then, choose your platform accordingly.
6. Be Patient
Cultivating a personal brand takes time. Don’t expect to suddenly be gaining thousands upon thousands of followers in a few weeks’ time. Give yourself the opportunity to allow people to find you and over time, they will.
Best of luck out on the web, friends. Happy posting!!