Social Media is king and getting even more popular than ever. Who can blame it? It’s an easy and inexpensive way to keep your current audience informed, engaged, and inspired as well as attracting new peeps to your tribe! Plus, according to Phocuswright’s latest research, 40% of a travel advisor’s business comes from social media. However, despite social media being an integral part of the business landscape for the last 6 – 8 years, I still find that many small business owners struggle with exactly how to slay this beast. My advice? Use this time (before the craziness of Wave season) to plan out your social media strategy.
Below is a Mad Libs-style strategy worksheet to help you nail your social media for 2019. Fill it out and let’s get social!
My 2019 Social Media Strategy Worksheet
Let’s start with the basics – picking a platform. The social media platform(s) I want to focus most of my attention will be __________________________ (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, etc.). As for frequency, I will commit to posting _____ times a ______ (day, week, month).
*Tip: I recommend posting 1 -3 times a day on Facebook and at least, once a day on Instagram.
Ok, now let’s move on to my audience. The people I would like to engage with on social media are _________ (current clients, potential consumers, referrals, friends and/or family). To increase my following, I plan on _______________________ (running ads, sharing business profile/ account on my personal accounts, etc.).
*Tip: More followers on social media doesn’t necessarily mean more leads. Remember, it’s about engagement.
Onto my social media branding and goals. My brand’s voice will be __________, ____________, and _____________ (funny, inspirational, educational, celebratory, etc.). Ultimately, my top three goals for social media are _________________________, ___________________________, and __________________________________ (increase my likes/ followers, create more effective ads/ drive more traffic to my account/ establish myself as a travel expert/ inspire my audience to travel).
*Tip: Whatever your goals are, check-in often to measure your progress. If your goals change, that’s alright. Adjust accordingly.
Finally, content. As a good rule of thumb, I’ll make sure to follow the 70/30 ratio – 70% engaging, filler content and 30% dedicated to sales/ promotions or offering my services. My followers can expect to see content like _____________, _______________, and ________________ (polls, inspiring stories or quotes, educational/ “did ya know” content/ testimonials, FB lives, etc.). If I can’t create my own content, I’ll grab it from these resources: ______________________, ___________________________, and ____________________________ (supplier marketing hub, my host’s Facebook page, online travel publications, etc.).
*Tip: When creating videos, Facebook Lives, or sharing other valuable information, try not to overthink this. Think about it as documenting what you’re already doing versus creating content. All the new features you’ve learned about a resort can be featured in a quick Facebook post. The 30-minute do’s and don’ts spiel you gave to a client about cruising can be transformed into a blog post or video. Or even better, start a Facebook Live and then post it to YouTube and IGTV.
Remember, the key is to not overthink it. Having a basic plan is half the battle. All you have to do now is start and stay consistent.
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