Impressions - March 2024 - 39

groups, what would the topics of those
groups be?
Can I take a stab at it? I'm willing to
bet their content falls into three distinct
categories: growth, nurture and sales.
Fundamentally, every social media strategist
worth their salt is saying the same thing:
You need to post some content designed to
grow your followers, some content designed
to make those followers fall in love with you,
and some content designed to make sales.
If any piece of that formula is missing, you
end up missing out on the massive impact
social media can have on your business.
Before we go too much further, let's
address the elephant in the room: the algorithm.
The
algorithm is not a teenage girl dead
set on stealing your boyfriend and ruining
your senior prom. She doesn't have a
vendetta against you, and you aren't " shadow-banned. "
The
algorithm is just a computer code
that's programmed to send users posts based
on certain triggers. This is why you've been
told " engagement " is so important - because
engagement is one of the main triggers that
indicates to the algorithm that your post is
" good enough " to show to more people.
Whatever social media app you're using,
be it Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, or Pinterest-they
all have a common goal: To keep
users on the platform as long as possible.
Because of that goal, they reward posts that
hold the attention of quick-scrolling-thumbs
and encourage interactions, like comments,
follows, and shares (aka engagement).
So, what do you do with that information?
You figure out how to get people to
touch your posts. Basically, any time someone
touches one of your posts, it counts as
engagement, so when I work with small
businesses, we're super intentional about
designing our posts to be touched. We don't
just cross our fingers and hope someone interacts
with our content-we strategically
encourage them to.
Now, to be clear, there are way more
triggers that the algorithm is looking for, and
unfortunately, we (marketers) only know
about some of them. That said, if we knew all
them, we could hack the system, the biggest
businesses would dominate the platform
and social media wouldn't be a fun place
for the public to hang out anymore.
Therefore, instead of looking at that as
unfair, recognize it as an opportunity.
Right now, you have access to as much
knowledge about how to grow on social
media as Nike does.
Right now, you have access to as much
knowledge about how to grow on social
media as Nike does.
And with all the 2024 trends leaning
Warriner spoke to a packed room at
Impressions Expo Long Beach. Photo
courtesy of Impressions Expo
March 2024
P.39
toward more authentic, entertaining content
shot on an iPhone or created in Canva,
you're using some of the same resources
as them, too.
Fancy graphic design and professional
photography are no longer mandatory
tools for successful marketing. Just look
at mega-viral brand Duolingo or ask the
17 million people who follow Starbucks
on Instagram. Most of their content is the
same caliber as posts and videos that you are
100 percent capable of making with your
smartphone and some sunlight.
We also know that social media platform
algorithms love consistency, although it's
not clear exactly what " consistency " means.
For the most part, the consensus is that businesses
should be posting at least a few times
a week, every week. I know that's broad,
so for clarity's sake, I recommend you set a
goal of posting at least three times per week.
The more you post, the more data you'll
collect, the more practice you'll have and,
statistically speaking, the more opportunity
you must figure out what kind of content
really resonates with your audience- so
you can make more of it.
After working with hundreds of small
businesses, it's also been my experience that
the less you post, the more pressure you
end up putting on yourself to be perfect:
pressure that only leads to frustration and
the feeling like nothing is ever going to
work; the exact pressure making the blank
page so daunting.
Warriner's passion for social
media is undeniable. Photo
courtesy of Impressions Expo
If you ask me, the temporary discomfort
you'll feel when you fight the blinking
cursor, and finally post some content is way
more constructive than the stress you'll feel
when your only post for the week falls flat,
and you don't make any sales.
Ready for your third, and final assignment?
This
week don't try to sell any products
on social media. Instead, create three posts
that are just fun! Maybe you show your
followers some behind-the-scenes action
at your workplace. Maybe you tell the story
of why you started your business. Maybe
you simply post a dog meme. The goal with
these posts is not to sell anything; the goal is
to create content that grows your following,
captures their attention and makes them
fall in love with you.
Then, once you have their ear and their
trust, your posts designed to sell will be
10,000 percent more likely to work.
You're still totally allowed to post product
shots on Instagram... just don't only post
product shots and expect to make sales.
Good luck out there, boss. I'll see you
online. 
Jenna Warriner is owner of the social media company
Parkdale Republic (parkdalerepublic.com), a marketing
coach and host of the Shiny New Clients Podcast.
Find her on Instagram and TikTok sharing daily tips
on how to use social media to build your business
at @JennasPaige. To see Content Director, Adam
Cort's, interview with Jenna as part of the " Ask the
Experts " video series, go to: impressionsmagazine.
com/video-categories/ask-the-experts.
http://www.parkdalerepublic.com http://impressionsmagazine.com/video-catergories/ask-the-experts
Impressions - March 2024

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