Social Media Marketing for Small Businesses: Build Your 30-Day Strategy

1. WELCOME + WHAT YOU'LL LEARN: Hello, everyone. My name is Jaclyn, and I'm the founder of J Baker Media, and I like to invite you to social media marketing for small businesses. So I have been working in social media marketing for over nine years now, so it has been a hop in it. And one of the biggest things I've learned is that most businesses don't struggle because they have nothing to post. They struggle basically because they don't have a set plan, you know, in place. Basically, they open up their Instagram or their LinkedIn, and they realize they haven't posted in, you know, a week and think, Okay, well, what am I supposed to, you know, post today? And then they throw something randomly together, post it, and repeat the same process a few days later. And eventually, social media starts to feel like another chore on there to do list instead of something that could actually really help, you know, your business grow and thrive. So if any of that above sounds familiar, this class is free, my friend. We're going to take social media from something you constantly have to think about and turn it into a simple 30 day strategy could easily implement at home. And listen, when I see simple, I mean, really simple. I'm not going to tell you that you have to throw out, you know, three posts a day every single day, make ten TikToks every week or spend hours trying to figure out the newest trends. Basically, the goal is to create something that actually works for you in your business. So by the end of this class, you will learn a ton of really cool stuff. You will learn exactly who you're making content for, which platforms you should focus on, your main content pillars, what type of content to post, how often to post, and how to make a super simple 30 day calendar. And most importantly, you'll leave this class with an actual strategy you can start using as soon as today. Now, remember this, my friends. You do not need a huge following. You do not need crazy expensive equipment. You do not have to be a super fancy graphic artist, and you don't have to spend your entire day making content. All you need is a plan. So let's build one together. 2. STOP TRYING TO BE EVERYWHERE: So, listen, this is super important. I want you to stop trying to be everywhere. Before you start planning content, I want you to address one of the biggest mistakes I see small businesses make constantly, and that's trying to be everywhere. Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok, LinkedIn, YouTube, Pintres, X, the list goes on, you do not have to be on all of them. When you're a business owner, your time, you know, is limited. If you're trying to create completely different content for six platforms, you know, answer comments, messages when you're business, send invoices, talk to customers, and get work done, social media can become super overwhelming. So it's much better to have, you know, a strong presence on one or two platforms Max than have five accounts that you barely even touch. So if you're not sure where you should be spending your time, ask yourself these questions. So where does your ideal customer actually, you know, spend their time? Let's say you are a B to B consultants, LinkedIn might be the best option for you. If you're, you know, a beauty or E Commerce or fashion brand, Instagram or TikTok might be a bit stronger. If you're a local business, Instagram or Facebook might be a super solid combination. If you're teaching something or answering questions, YouTube might be worth considering. So those are just a few things to be mindful of. I want you to think about the content you're comfortable creating as well. So if you're super confident and comfortable on camera, making videos on TikTok or YouTube could make a lot of sense for you. However, if you love to write, LinkedIn might be a better fit. Or if your business is super visual, like if you're an artist, Instagram might be where you want to put, you know, your energy. Listen, you do not have to force yourself to be on every platform, just because, you know, your friend or your family member told you that it's the next big thing. I don't want you to choose a platform because everyone's talking about it. I want you to choose it because your audience is there, and that type of content actually will help your business make money. And remember, you can always expand later on. It's so much easier to build a one or screw. It's much easier to build one or two strong channels, you know, first, and then you can always add another platform down the line in, you know, six months time. For your class project today, I want you to choose one or two primary social media channels. Those are the two channels you're going to build your strategy around. 3. DEFINE YOUR AUDIENCE: Next, I want you to really define your audience. Now, we need to figure out who we're actually talking to. One of the easiest ways to create boring social media content is basically trying to speak to everyone. Because you're speaking to everyone, you usually end up creating content, and it's so general, no one really feels like it's meant for them. Let's just say, you know, you're a real estate agent. You could easily say, looking to buy or sell a home, call me today. Now, there's nothing technically wrong with that, but it could apply to basically every single realtor under the sun. Now imagine your target audience is first time homebuyers in Toronto. Suddenly, you can make content along the lines of, you know, three costs that Toronto for S homebuyers forget to budget for or, Hey, are you buying your first condo in Toronto? Here's what I look for? Those posts are a lot more specific. So the person you're trying to reach out to can look at those and think to themselves, Hey, that's me. And that's exactly what we want. So when you're defining your audience, don't overcomplicate it. Answer a few of these questions. Who are they? What do they want? What problems are they dealing with, and what problems are they already asking about? Now, let's say for another example, let's say you own a skincare company, your audience may be women who want simple skincare routines but feel overwhelmed by so many complicated products that already gives you so many content ideas to work with. You can make posts along the lines of, Hey, you do not need a ten step skincare routine. Here are three products you need as a beginner. Wire skin karatine doesn't have to be complicated, stuff along those lines. So you're sitting around trying to invent a random content plan. You're looking for what your audience needs and creating content around that. Your audience's problems become your content ideas. Their questions become your content ideas. Their goals become your ideas. Even their misconceptions can become ideas, and that's something that you can continue to do over time. I want you to pay attention to the questions your customers ask you in emails, DMs, consults, or sales calls. If one customer is asking the same thing over and over again, there's a good chance that other potential customers are wondering the exact same thing. So take a few minutes and write down what you're trying to reach. 4. CREATE YOUR CONTENT PILLARS: We're going to work on content pillars. So we're getting onto one of my favorite parts of social media strategy, which is content pillars. Content pillars are basically the main categories that you're constantly talking about. So instead of waking up every morning, wondering what to post, you have a few categories you can always pull ideas from. I want you to keep it super manageable, so it won't be, you know, overwhelming for you. Let's use a fitness studio as an example. So their content pillars might be education. So that can mean a workout tip, some sort of advice, nutrition facts or common workout mistakes. Services could include classes, personal training, memberships, or what actually happens during a session. We also have social proof. So that means testimonial, success stories, reviews, transformations, all that kind of good stuff. Another pillar could be behind the scenes. So that includes, you know, like trainer spotlights, team culture or, you know, a typical day at the studio, community could be stuff like member stories, challenges, local partnerships, all that good stuff. Now we have dozens of potential post ideas. So let's say you're working with the education pillar, for example, one pillar alone could give us so many options. We have, you know, like three mistakes they get to us make at the gym. How often should you work out? Should you do cardio before or after wts? Three exercises you can do at home. That kind of good stuff. Now, that is already so many points just from one pillar. Now, do the same thing with your other pillars and suddenly you have a month's worth of content done in one sitting. And here's something super important, my friends, I want you to be super mindful of. Not every post has to actually, you know, sell something. If every single post you make says Buy this book now, call me today, people are going to be like, Yeah, okay, I get it. Social media should give people a reason to follow. Even when they're not ready to buy. So I want you to teach them something, entertain them, answer their questions, show your personality, and, of course, build trust. Now, don't get me wrong. You can absolutely promote your business, but I want you to think about social media as building a relationship with customers over time. Someone might follow you today and not reach out to buy something from you for, you know, six months or even longer. But if you're consistent, if you're helpful, if you're interesting, enjoying them what you do when they are ready to buy, they're a lot more likely to think of you when they're ready for that product or service. Um, so for your next project, I want you to choose three to five content pillars that you could start promoting or implementing for your business. 5. THE 4 TYPES OF POSTS I'D INCLUDE: Now we have made it to the four types of posts, I would recommend including in your plan. So, once you have your content pillars, you want to think about the actual format and purpose. So I like to create a solid mix instead of posting the exact same thing every single day. Here are just four categories I'd recommend including in your 30 day plan. So first, we have educational content. So that means actually teaching something useful. So that can include a few things. It can include answering some sort of a question, correcting common misconceptions, sharing quick tips, all that kind of good stuff. So educational content is super helpful because it gives people a reason to save or share your posts. Think about what your customer may not know. It may feel basic to you because you do it every single day, but that doesn't mean people who follow you aren't familiar with it. Next, you have personality and behind the scenes content. So people like to know who they're buying from. So show them, you know, your team, your process. Tell story. Talk about why you started your business. Show what goes on behind the scenes when you're creating a product or delivering your service. Now, this does not mean you have to share every single detail of your personal life because that is not always ideal. It's basically about making the business feel more human and more like you. Now we have proof. So this is where you show people that you actually know what you're talking about. If a customer sends you a text through an email, you know, just expressing how much they love working with you, how much they love their product, don't just leave that email, you know, sitting in your inbox. With their permission, turn it into content. Social proof helps Social proof helps potential customers see what working with you is really like. With their permission, of course, you could easily take a screenshot of that text for that email. Jazz it up a little bit, add your logo in the corner, at a border, something along those lines, and that could easily be a really cute graphic for your social channel. Yeah, we have promotional content. Yes, so you should actually talk about what you sell. So sometimes businesses become so worried about sounding salesy, they barely mention what they actually do. So I want you to explain your services, highlight your products, talk about your offers, and tell people how to work with you. Basically, the key is balance. You do not want to post every single day about, you know, what you sell because that could be a little bit too much, you know? But you also don't want people to follow. You would have no idea what your business actually does. So it's all about 6. HOW OFTEN SHOULD YOU POST?: Often should you actually be posting? This is probably one of the questions I get asked about most often. And that is, how often should I post on social media? Now, there's no magic number. You do not have to post, you know, three to five times a day just because someone on TikTok told you it was good for the algorithm. For small businesses, I'd much rather see you make three really good posts every week consistently than try to post every day for, you know, two to four weeks and burn down and totally disappear. So you want to make your goals super realistic. I want you to look at your schedule. How much time can you realistically dedicate to making social media content every week? If you can manage two to three a week, then start with that. That's roughly, you know, ten to 12 posts a month to give or take. If you can consistently create four to five, that's also great. Or maybe you can only handle one post a week, and that's totally okay. The most important word here is consistency. You do not have to make content every single day. You get 100% batch. I highly recommend sitting down once a week and making all of your posts at the exact same time. Or maybe even once a month, you can plan out all your topics and create the posts throughout the month. All you have to do is find a system that works for you. The best strategy isn't necessarily the one with the most content. It's the one you can totally stick to. So choose a schedule that you can maintain. You can always increase or decrease your posting frequency later on. 7. BUILD YOUR 30-DAY CONTENT PLAN: E. So now you're going to want to build your 30 day content plan. So now we're going to put everything together. I want you to open some sort of a spreadsheet, calendar, notebook or whatever planning tool makes most sense for you. And we're going to make five, and we're going to make five columns. So we have date, platform, content pillar, post idea, and format. Let's just say we're going to post three posts a week for Easy Math. Week one could look something like this. Monday could be an educational carousel. Wednesday could be some sort of a behind the scenes realer moment, and Friday could be a client testimonial. Then for week two, we could have an educational reel on Monday, Wednesday, it could be some sort of a service spotlight, so explaining what you offer and who it's good for. And Friday could be a personal or some sort of company story, and then keep going in that kind of direction. So perhaps week three could include another educational post, an FAQ and a customer story. Week four could include something behind the scenes, another educational reel and a promotional post. Basically, you're going to want to keep repeating the process using your main content pillars. You'll notice that once the structure is there, coming up with new ideas will become much easier. So you'll no longer be asking yourself, Hey, what should I post today? You'll be asking yourself something more specific. Hey, what type of educational post can I create this week, or, you know, what customer question can I answer? That's a lot easier, don't you think? And there's no need to feel like every idea has to be totally original. You can absolutely revisit older topics. You can update older posts. You can turn reel to the carousels. You can turn a blog post into five or six posts easily spread out slowly over time. You can take longer form videos and cut them up into several shorter clips, all that that's something I want small business owners to remember because content doesn't always need to mean starting from zero. B social media marketing isn't about constantly reinventing the wheel. It's about communicating useful messages 8. CREATE CONTENT PEOPLE ACTUALLY WANT TO STOP FOR: Discuss creating content people actually want to stop for. So before we finish, let's talk about one more thing. Having a strategy doesn't automatically mean people will pay attention. You need to give them a reason to stop scrolling and check out your page. The first thing someone sees really matters. Whether it's a first sentence of your caption, the text on the graphic or the first few seconds of a video, you want to give people a reason to keep going. Instead of, Hey, here are some, you know, social media tips. You can try posting consistently best getting no engagement. Here's what to do. Instead of I offer a bookkeeping service, you can say something along the lines of three numbers every small business owner should know. Instead of, Hey, here are my skincare products, you could say something along the lines of, you know, your skincare routine might be more complicated than it needs to be. Here's how you. Notice you're giving the person a reason to want to actually digest the next piece of information. You're going to want to start with a problem, question, curiosity, or benefit. Then make the rest of the post easy to understand. People don't need to feel like, you know, you're a marketing textbook. You don't have to sound overly professional. You do not have to use super complicated marketing language. There's no need to fill your captions with buzzwords. I want you to write like an actual person because, well, you are. Before publishing something, read it out loud. If you would never say it out loud, you probably don't need to write that in your 9. YOUR CLASS PROJECT: Alright, now it is your turn. For your project, I want you to create your own 30 day social media content plan. So your plan should include your target audience, one or two primary platforms, three to five content pillars, your posting frequency, and at least 12 content ideas for the next 30 days. And there's no need to do all 12 posts in one sitting or focusing on the strategy for right now. Want you to know what you're going to talk about before you start worrying about captions, graphics, hash tags, all that kind of good stuff. And there's no need to worry about making everything 100% perfect. Your social media strategy can totally change over time. Maybe down the line in a few months, you'll notice one type of content performs much better than another. And that's awesome. Create more of that next month. Maybe your audience keeps asking you about a topic you haven't originally planned for. Add that in. Your content plan should give you direction without making you feel trapped. The point of this project is to stop guessing and give yourself a career direction for the next month. Once you completed it, upload your project to the class, I would love to see what you created. 10. FINAL THOUGHTS: Congrats. You have now found the foundation of a 30 day social media strategy, and if there's one thing I want you to take away from this class, it's this. You do not need to post more just for the sake of posting. You need to post the purpose. I want you to know who you're talking to, know what you're trying to communicate. Create a few strong content pillars and build a schedule that you can realistically stick to and then pay attention to what happens next. Look at what people are commenting on, look what they're saving, look what they're sharing. Look at what gets people visiting your website messaging you or asking about your services. Your first 30 day strategy does not have to be your strategy forever. Think of this as your starting point. After 30 days, look at what worked, what didn't work, and use that information to make the next month even better. Your strategy does not have to be complicated to work at all. In fact, usually simple is much better. Thank you so much for taking the time to watch this class. If you found it helpful, make sure you follow me here on Skillshare because I'll be creating more classes on social media strategy, Instagram marketing, content creation, and growing your business. And don't forget to upload your 30 day plan. I cannot wait to see what you create. I hope you all have a great rest of your day. I'll see you all next time.