Social media is all around us. What started out as a way for college students to stay connected with one another has now consumed the business world. Most businesses that have an online presence typically have at least one social media profile, and an expert to help them with their social media writing.
Social media has opened the door for many businesses to connect to a wider audience. So naturally web writing, when it comes to social media, needs to be specific. Social media encompasses a wide variety of networks like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+ and more. Social media is an extension of your overall communication strategy.
Social Media Writing 101: 10 Tips for Best Results
In order to effectively write for social media you need to keep in mind the following ten tips:
1. Know and Understand Your Target Audience
In order to do social media writing effectively, you need to have a clear understanding of who your target audience is. It does you no good to write about hair care products in your posts if your audience is members of the construction field.
2. Know Your Objective
What do you want to achieve with your social media posts? What is the main point you want your audience to know? When your objective is clear; your writing can be more focused
3. Write Using Plain Language
Sometimes, in writing, it is easy to go off on a tangent and write what is clearly playing in your head. The problem is that when you write in that manner, your audience may not have a clue what you’re talking about. You want to write in plain language that gets your point across but is also easily understandable. Never use jargon or slang
4. Talk In An Active Voice.
Writing in an active voice means you’re taking control of the conversation. The verbs you use are the action. Example: This supplement took our client to the next level in her quest for health. The word “took” is the active word. It shows the action
5. Keep Your Messages Short
Social media is about getting the facts in a short and simple way. Remember, with social media you don’t want to write a novel. Keeping it short is also going to cause you to be more specific about what you say. Because the posts, tweets, etc. are short, you have to get to the main point and fast
6. Go Sparingly When It Comes to Acronyms
Remember, people may not know an acronym right away. It is recommended that you use them sparingly. If you have to use an acronym, be sure to spell out what it stands for “before” the acronym itself. Even if an acronym may seem obvious to you, it may not be so obvious to someone else.
7. Numbers Can Help Make Your Point Clear
Numbers can often get to the point for you. However, you need to use them in the right way. So instead of saying “25% of the people” say something like “1 in 4 people”. People tend to relate more to number when they make content easy to understand.
8. Focus On The Positives
It’s easy to point out why someone shouldn’t do something. You get more from your message and your readers, however, by focusing on the positives of anything.
9. Encourage Your Readers With A Call To Action
A call to action gets your readers to do something. Whether it’s clicking on a link or making a change in their life; get them to act.
10. Make the Content Relevant and Relatable
People read and respond to what they feel relates to them and their life. If they can relate to it; make a connection with your post, than you are ahead of the game.
By utilizing these ten tips, your social media writing will be more effective, grab your reader’s attention and get them to act upon it.
Social media is about being sociable. So make sure your writing reaches your audience the way you intended it to. Use these tips and you’ll be on your way to social media success.
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