social media
you believe in the cause,
but, for all your effort, the hype hasn’t lived up to your expectations
Does this sound familiar?
and for those people who have given up
what do you get?
- a dead Twitter feed;
- a blog that has gone to sleep; and
- a sterile presence.
The love for the game has left you.
You didn’t figure on the effort it took to maintain each and every social media platform.
The need to stay engaged.
And, most of all, wired into the social media universe that has taken hold of your life.
There comes a point where all that effort seems so wasteful (of your time, your life …).
We are conditioned for success.
Determination, perseverance and passion.
and the results are bound to come
But social media is something different.
You talk to yourself.
and some more
And then the engagement comes.
But does it translate?
Does it translate to your goals?
The £.
or whatever it is that you have set your
sights on.
Social media is HARD.
Don’t let anyone convince you otherwise.
You have to love what you do, and do what you love.
You have to fight every day the voice inside your head that craves attention, and resist the temptation to spam the crap out of people.
The Uber bloggers (Godin et al) have been at it for years, have a string of published works (normally) and have a larger demographic to go after.
You, on the other hand, have decided to go niche.
This means that you have less scope to create the jaw-breaking, novel content that seems the stock in trade of everyone else.
A few tips:
- Learn how to write like your favourite writer;
- Get honest feedback;
- Understand the basics of SEO;
- Stick to the knitting;
- Create a comms plan and stick to it;
- If at first you don’t succeed don’t be afraid to go back to basics; and
- Follow your instincts and stop copying others.
It may well be that your audience needs persuading of the advantages of social media. Don’t be afraid to call in aid some old fashioned comms channels like email, newsletters and the telephone to get your message out there. Too often you expect to be found – build it and they will come – but it rarely happens that easily.
When the wall comes – as it will – make sure you suck down hard, be prepared to dig in and don’t despair if the numbers are stacked against you.
One note of caution, if you are doing it for the sake of it, then you will quit.
you will!
“If only I had done something more worthwhile.”