When it comes to cooking up high-converting social media marketing ideas, take it from social butterfly Emily Cooke, Head of Strategy at social media haus Brandshake – good content will always reign supreme.
As our very own resident social media advisor here at the VA Lead Network, we’ve seen firsthand her deep knowledge and expertise of everything social, and trust us, this gal knows her TikTok from her Twitter to her Threads.
Today, she’s giving our readers a peek behind-the-curtain of what makes the foundations of a great social strategy for 2024, including her top social media post ideas for businesses, whether paying to play is worth it, and what’ll never go out of style.
Feeling social? Dive in for more.
What tools, trends or platforms in the pipeline do VAs need to get across now?
Put AI in your toolbox
Social media managers, or those with a social media specialty need to be across developments in artificial intelligence.
We keep hearing AI is going to steal our jobs, but I disagree: it’s the people who know how to utilise this technology to their advantage that are going to steal them.
Take for example, ChatGPT. Does it produce great copy? Absolutely not – and yes, clients and customers absolutely can tell when something is written by a bot instead of you.
But it does cure blank page syndrome and might get you started on a blog or social post. It can even help you generate ideas for social media content if you need a shove in the right direction.
Top tip: use Grammarly to tell you when you’re being wordy, and Canva if you need a quick graphic.
The resurgence of employment networking is alive and well
LinkedIn is not new, but it is having a real moment, and LinkedIn influencers are becoming more prominent.
The rise of the “personal brand” is still happening, so while you don’t need to necessarily bare your soul, don’t be afraid to experiment with selfies, thoughts, learnings and wins.
For your clients: enjoy while organic reach is still excellent.
Get down with the data train – this will make you invaluable
Finally, get across major data changes that are occurring on social and for email marketing: like how LinkedIn is retiring lookalike audiences and people’s data and the big email marketing changes happening on Google and Microsoft.
In our field, we need to be across changes happening in the whole marketing mix – we’re trusted advisers, and we shouldn’t have social blinkers on.
Top tip: If you haven’t yet signed up as a member of the VA Lead Network, make sure you do – it’s a great resource for these developments in our digital nomad world.
What sort of content has always done well, despite changing consumer habits?
Humour and humility is timeless – it never goes out of style
People love to laugh at themselves if they feel ‘in’ on the joke.
So, on top of your trusty content pillars like education, social proof, product and process, make sure to entertain your audience.
For VAs and OBMs, poke a little fun at some client tropes using memes, or even your own Type A personality stereotype that means you do fabulous work.
You’ll build community this way, but because it’s also not uber-personal, it’s a win-win.
Look back to move forward
At Brandshake, we see over and over again that people love history and a throwback – think the before and after post (like ‘where we started versus now’ or ‘look at what our locality, factory, office space looked like 20 years ago’).
The journey of growth and development, even through the hard, trying times, is something everyone can relate to, so whether you do this for your own business or your clients, it’s always going to be well-received.
What are your top 5 VA social media tips across organic content marketing and copywriting for 2024?
Luckily, they are pretty simple.
#1. It’s not you, it’s them
When you hear that you need to become customer-first in every piece of copy, social post, eDM, ad and blog content – what does this actually mean?
It means you need to tap into your customer’s fears, desires, beliefs, goals and situation, and to do whatever you have to to put yourself in their shoes and understand their motivators and drivers.
This can be more formal market research if you have the means, or for the more budget-conscious, finding them in Facebook groups, forums, TikTok/IG and reading what they’re asking about. Read, trawl, research, write it all down.
Remember, it’s the all-illusive emotional connection that earns their trust – and subsequently dollars.
Your content marketing will be better if you think this way. It just will.
For VAs and OBMs specifically, this looks like this: You focus on revenue-driving activities, while I take care of operations (rather than the preceding ‘I’ statement, e.g. I take care of operations, so you can focus on revenue-driving activities).
Switch your thinking on everything to put them first.
#2. Proofread, proofread, proofread
The focus here is less on grammatical correctness, and more so on length and readability.
So, read your copy out loud, and if it’s clunky for you, it’ll be tough for your customer to get through as well.
A good rule of thumb is if you are naturally taking a breath while reading, but there’s no natural grammatical break in the content (like a full stop), then the sentences are too long and need revisiting.
#3. Don’t reinvent the wheel if it doesn’t make sense for you
The best kind of content marketing is the kind you’ll actually do.
There’s no use brainstorming Instagram Reels and TikTok videos if you don’t have the resources or team buy-in to make it work in a consistent way.
Of course, experiment with different kinds of marketing, but don’t be afraid to just do the basics really well.
Old-fashioned graphic and copy posts still work. Old-fashioned blog posts still work. Old-fashioned, lo-fi eDMs still work.
#4. Social content is only one part of the equation
Think about your marketing mix and what your sales funnel looks like – because putting content out into the ether alone will not get you sales.
Similarly, posting organic content will not cut it as the entirety of your business development efforts.
There needs to be a multi-faceted approach with at least three different channels and types of content marketing being utilised consistently.
This is where we can help at Brandshake. If copywriting isn’t your thing, you’ve got platform paralysis, you need help targeting different customer segments on different platforms, or you don’t have the time or will, engaging tactical help can be hugely beneficial.
Remember, getting help with organic content marketing doesn’t need to cost the Earth.
There are plenty of done-for-you agencies, done-with-you agencies and consultants that can help to unlock your social content marketing potential. Generally, we manage our clients’ social media presence for them, but we’re happy to point any VA Lead Network Members in the right direction.
Reach out to me via the website with the subject line ‘Social help for a socially awkward VA’ and let’s chat.
#5. Being a lurker won’t do you any favours
Never post and ghost.
That’s that old chestnut you’ve seen a million times where someone spams a bunch of accounts using a certain hashtag with the same comment or emoji in the hope it gets them some return buzz.
Frankly, it’s lazy, and people can see through it.
Instead, connect with like-minded businesses.
Celebrate their posts, comment on them, connect with people and reach out via LinkedIn DM.
Real engagement works – even if it’s using an hour or two a week to just scroll and make an effort to connect with your clientele.
For a total VA newbie to social media, what are the main brand messaging pillars to build a brand?
Sometimes content pillars get a bad wrap. But, in my opinion: what’s not to love?
They’re consistent, repeatable and a trusty bank to dip into.
Plus, as they’re tied to marketing and business goals, they’re strategic every single time.
I’ll dive into my five favourites below:
- Entertainment, controversy, inspiration and relatability – This is awareness-level content marketing. It’s how we draw in people by being funny, polarising, inspirational or relatable. Think memes, zeitgeisty content, viral moments that can be applied and repurposed to your brand. Zero sales expectation, no CTA, do not pass go… we just want eyeballs.
- Education and value-adding – Talk about topics that are related to your services and skills, but not sales-y. As a VA and OBM, if your target audience is the executive team within businesses, share leadership articles around building teams and driving business growth, or share insights into productivity reports. Look to publications they would read and repurpose and share content from there.
- Products and services – As service providers, but particularly for VAs and OBMs, assume that our target audience has no knowledge of what we do. Don’t treat them like dummies, of course, but remember that we probably take for granted what we practise every day. So, assume no prior understanding about your contractor relationships, your retainers, what your skills are or what kind of businesses you’ll work with. See them as content opportunities for those who don’t know about how great remote virtual assistants are.
- Social proof – Social proof is a phenomenon which is like FOMO: we naturally want things other people have. We trust in products (and people) that other people trust. Your audience needs to see testimonials at a minimum, and case studies if you’re looking for a content gold star from me.
- Your special sauce – Behind the brand, behind-the-scenes, your unique selling points. What makes you specifically the best gal or guy for the job?
The million-dollar question: Can organic content perform just as well as paid?
Absolutely, and I would even reframe the answer: the organic is critical, and Ground Zero. Because, you can do organic content successfully (this is often how we work at Brandshake), but we generally don’t advise conducting paid marketing without first having consistent, strategically-backed organic content out there to land on in the first place.
When your target clicks on your Facebook Ad and arrives at your profile or your website, what are they going to see?
Will they see a plethora of up-to-date, relevant content for them to read through and buy-in to your services, or will they see that you last posted in 2019?
This is most relevant for service-based businesses and high-investment purchases. For price-motivated, smaller purchases, a focus on paid marketing can work.
Overall, your social media output is a matter of input – what you’re willing to invest to make it successful is the success you will see.
So, hopefully, these ideas for social media content work (check out this Key Dates by Industry planner for more content ideation tips while you’re at it), and remember, social media is (and should be) fun.
Good luck, and happy posting!
📌 Want more of these stories and insights on building the best VA business you possibly can?
The VA Lead Network is your one-stop shop for everything tips and tricks (plus a bucket load of great, local VA jobs).