Social media can be your biggest asset or your greatest downfall. I've read countless articles such as "how to double your twitter traffic in 5 days," "get 500 Instagram followers in 30 days," and "increase your Facebook traffic 100%." What do I say? It depends.
I know that probably isn't the answer you were looking for, but that's the honest truth. While, yes, creating better images will help you getting "pinned" more and using hashtags will get your posts noticed, there is no fool-proof formula for overnight success. However, it is very important that you are doing the best that you can and using all of the many assets at your disposal to get those 500 followers and 100% more traffic. Here are a few things that I've learned about social media since I've started blogging.
1. Social media is important. Right now I have accounts on Pinterst, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Google +, and Bloglovin'. While I use some more than others, I think it's important to at least be available on everything that you can. Now keep in mind that Rome wasn't built in a day. When I started on social media, I didn't just pick up my computer and go account crazy, creating profiles on every social media platform possible. I slowly worked my way through the different outlets and took it one step at a time. That being said, looking back I should have gone slower. Ideally, you should start out with two social media accounts and spend a good amount of time (no less than 2 weeks) getting to understand it and learning how to make it work for you.
2. If you already have a million and one social media accounts, SLOW DOWN. When I started blogging, I was very... optimistic. I created a Facebook page, Twitter account, Google Plus page, and Bloglovin' all in one day. I was stressed, depressed, and in over my head. It wasn't until I took a specific amount of time to focus on each account individually that I finally started to breath again and make a plan for growing each account.
2. A consolidation resource will be your best friend. It is a serious pain to go into every single webpage and post your status. No one has that kind of time! I started looking into consolidation resources pretty soon after I started blogging and I am SO GLAD I DID!! I am currently using the free version of Buffer and I love it. It's very simple and easy to use and it does the job. You can also schedule your updates in advance so you don't have to worry about rushing to your computer to post your social media update. Unfortunately, Buffer does not have an outlet for Instagram or Pinterest, but it takes care of my Google Plus, Facebook, and Twitter posts and that is great!
In a few weeks I'll be posting on each individual social media outlet and how to make it work for you specifically. Until then, do you have any tips for how to run social media like a boss? Share in the comment section bellow.
