Social media is a powerful traffic-driving tool for bloggers. Most of the promotions you run on social media don't cost a dime, yet they can bring thousands of new eyes on your content - and hundreds of thousands if you have something go viral on Pinterest or Facebook!
There are some proper steps bloggers should take to ensure the time spent on social media promotion is worthwhile. Read on for the best practices for social media!
Create specific images for each social media network.
Not all social networks are created equal when it comes to the size of image they share. Pinterest, for example, needs a long, vertical image (1000 x 1500 pixels is a good starting point). Facebook and Twitter, on the other hand, need wider rectangular images (940 x 788 pixels).
Ensure each blog post you create has at least two images, which will satisfy all of the major social networks you plan to share on. As you share your blog posts on social media, consider incorporating an innovative approach to engage your audience by generating QR codes effortlessly with tailored designs. This method not only makes sharing and accessing content easier but also entices users to interact more instantly. You can customize each QR code, track user interactions, and refine your promotional strategy accordingly.
You'll have to consider the images that you post - probably the most - on the Instagram platform, with it being the premier image-sharing social network. Share each blog post as much as you can on the day of publishing.
Once you hit publish on your newest article, it's time to get to sharing. Don't let it sit on your blog for a week before you promote...and worse yet, avoid let it get buried below newer posts without doing any promotion.
Each blog post should be shared once on Pinterest, Facebook, and Google+ the day it goes live. For Twitter, publish two tweets on the first day - one when it goes live, and a second status 4-5 hours later.
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Use keywords and hashtags as appropriate.
In order for your social media updates to receive maximum exposure, there are tricks you can do to help potential readers find your content. On Pinterest, for example, be sure you are loading your pin description with the right keywords for the blog post you are promoting. Pinterest is more of a search engine than a social media network, with its users utilizing the space bar to find the perfect dessert, craft, or tutorial they are searching for.
If you have used proper keywords in your description, it's likely they will see yours when searching on a given topic.
Twitter benefits from the use of hashtags. You can visit your Twitter account to see what hashtags are trending at any given time. If you have a post that fits within a popular hashtag, be sure to share it!
Pinterest is beginning to allow hashtags again, so don't forget to include a couple in your pin descriptions too.
The same applies to your website - to make a big impression online, you need to be consistently putting out search engine friendly content.
Schedule your social media updates to supercharge your promotions.
No blogger can live on social media 24/7...however, you are likely missing the prime times to get new readers when you are away from the computer. The solution? Scheduling social media updates to go out through the day.
This is a great form of blog promotion that works even when you aren't. Facebook lets you schedule your page updates in advance, so you can spend 20 minutes in the morning scheduling out 4 updates for the day.
There are a host of social media schedulers that work for Twitter. Hootsuite and Buffer are two fine examples. You simply upload your tweets and set the days and times you want them to be publishing on your accounts.
For Pinterest, Tailwind and BoardBooster are available to schedule your pinning. No longer do you have to get sucked into the abyss that is Pinterest...you can spend one hour a WEEK, yes, a week, scheduling your pin activity with these tools.
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Don't forget the Facebook groups.
Many bloggers have created Facebook groups to help specifically with social media promotions. In these groups, there are "share threads" for every day of the week. Simply drop your link to a blog post you want commented on or shared.
There are also threads for each social media network - for example, retweet threads for tweets you want to boost exposure on. Just make sure you return the favor in these threads, or you will be booted from the group!
Now that you have a better idea of the best practices for social media promotion, it's time to set up and follow a checklist. Having a list of "to-do's" when it comes to social media ensures you are using your networks to their fullest potential.
You can download my FREE Social Media Promotion Checklist to explode your traffic with effective promotion strategies!
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Thanks for sharing your tips with us! I always want to make sure I am using the best practices, but they change so often!
These were so helpful! Thanks for sharing your knowledge =)
Love these tips!! I need to start sharing my post more often after I've published them.
I've been wanting to start scheduling my posts like a lot of bloggers are doing now. Thanks for the tips. Will look more into it.
These are all great tips. Creating an article that sparks the interest of the reader is a lot of effort, so why just let it sit when we can amplify it through social media! I have learned a thing or two in this post. Thank you!
These are definitely some great tips. I usually share once on my social media channels, but I didn't think about sharing for a second time on Twitter.
These ideas are really helpful! New bloggers are going to love these.
I really like these suggestions. They are pretty simple to follow.
These are really great tips to keep in mind. I don't think I promote my posts nearly enough.
These are great tips for any blogger. Facebook groups really do help with engagement.
I agree with this! I am not a blogger yet but I learned a lot from helping bloggers. Strategizing and right timing are also important.
GREAT tips for social media promotion! I think Facebook groups are the best and I can't imagine not being in at least a few. It makes a world of difference!
Thanks for these tips. Social media amplification is important to keep up with the blogging game. This post is a great resource especially for the newbies out there still trying to make their mark.
Great suggestions, all of it takes a bit of tweaking to get it just right and make the business an amazing one.
This is going to help a ton of people. Knowing how to strategize and stay organized on social media is very important for great results.
Those are great strategies for social media promotion. I like the idea of having a checklist to keep on top of everything and not miss getting things out on different social media.
I love that checklist, it's really perfect for all bloggers! Tailwind is my favorite to use, it really helps!
I find images to be really important for social media. We are visual creatures, so if you want to promote your posts, make sure you have the imagery down first.
Thanks for sharing those pointer. Nowadays people are so busy it makes it hard to find ways to get in front of an audience. I will implement those tips and hopefully get more reach. Thank you for sharing!
These are some really good ideas to implement. I do think that scheduling updates on social media can take a lot of the stress away from blog promotion.
I have a lot to learn when it comes to social media promotion! These are really helpful and I love that you shared how to promote a post in detail! Thanks so much for that.
These are awesome tips for bloggers and one that I could actually use. I think it's really important to follow up with your promotions to make sure that you maximize your reach!
Thanks for the great information. This is a perfect post for a friend of mine. She is just starting out and has a lot of questions about promoting her blog.
Thank you for this! I have been so out of the blogging loop for about seven months now. I'm exploring the opportunity to dive back in and see what I can make it this time. Social media has always been a weak area for me. I'm hoping I can master some of it soon.
It sounds like you know what you're talking about! I try to do a lot of these tips but there are definitely some I could improve on. This is definitely a motivator to get myself moving more.
This is a great resource to have! I've been blogging for quite awhile, but social media has always been where I struggle. This will help for sure!
An amazing resource for the beginner blogger, or experienced blogger. I know of some bloggers who struggle with upping their social media numbers, and this would be helpful!
Excellent information here for any blogger who's just starting out. It can be struggle to get your site out there if you don't know how to leverage social media.
I wish I'd had a resource like this when I first started blogging. It was so hard for me to get any traction. I had to learn how to be seen the hard way!
This is a great resource for any blogger - beginner or otherwise. No matter how great our content is, if no one sees it, it won't matter.
On instagram, hashtags are everything. I also agree that an image is needed on every social media platform - it helps everything stand out.