Can you believe it’s almost spring? It’s the time of year when we clear out cobwebs, purge our closets and deep clean our homes. Spring cleaning might be a bit of work, but the results are very much worth the effort. We think that social media spring cleaning is no different.
How you show up in social media is just as much a reflection of your business as your website. You wouldn’t want a website that’s shabby, messy, or looking threadbare and the same applies to your social media profiles. Making sure you look your best means checking and updating your profiles regularly to keep them fresh, interesting, and current.
In honor of spring, we offer lots of tips and strategies on how to keep your social media profiles sparkling and up-to-date.
To kick things off, here are 5 tips to refresh your social media presence in less than an hour:
Tip # 1- Check all your social media profiles and handles.
- Do your profile names on each social network reflect your company brand well? Would a potential follower recognize your company within the handle? Make sure you use relevant names for your profiles and handles, so people can find them easily when they search for your company.
- Do you have multiple profiles for one social media channel? It could be time to consolidate profiles that have few followers, likes, or are inactive. However, it’s also a good idea to keep certain content separate. For example, if your company is involved with a certain charity or other causes, you may want to keep charity and volunteerism news separate from industry and business news.
- Are you on relevant platforms? Each social media platform performs a different function. Are you showing up where your audience is scrolling?
Tip # 2 Update all your profile and cover images.
- On every social network, your profile picture should be professional. For company pages and profiles, use the company logo, not an individual’s photo. If you’re an individual or solo practitioner, such as an independent financial advisor or mortgage broker, use a professional photo that reflects your personal brand. If you use a company logo anywhere on your personal profile image or cover photo, make sure that you have permission from your employer – some companies have strict rules on use of their logo for personal or professional social media profiles.
- Are the cover photos of each social media account relevant and do they convey your company’s story? The cover photo is prime real estate on your social media account. Make sure you use it well by telling a story, showcasing an event, highlighting an important topic, or showcasing your brand.
- Check how your cover photos on each social network show up on mobile devices. The area visible to the user is a lot smaller than on a desktop. Any copytext or important information you want to convey in your cover photo should be visible within the space that visible on a mobile device, such as a smartphone or iPad.
- Do the images fit the recommended dimensions for each platform? Images that aren’t sized correctly can look stretched and/or blurred.
- Twitter: Header photo 1500×1500 px, Profile photo 400×400 px
- Facebook: Avoid compression of your profile picture by using a square image at either 720px or 960 px. Cover photos sized 851 px wide and 315 px tall load fastest and display the best on desktops and mobile devices.
- LinkedIn: profile picture of 400×400 px. Larger uploads are ok, but keep in mind they’ll be displayed as a square image.
Tip #3 – Make sure all your profile information is complete, up-to-date, and accurate.
- Your profile information is often the first impression a potential client has of your company. Is it complete and does the content convey your desired message? We often see companies that haven’t completed their company information section on social networks. Facebook provides a lot of fields that can help describe your business, contact information, location, business hours, etc. that will help visitors to your page learn more about what you do and how you interact with customers. Be as diligent here as you can be – complete your company information so it’s easy to contact and engage with you.
- If you include links to your website or other social networks, do those links work? Check all links and fix them if they lead to old or dead pages or accounts.
Tip #4 – Consider Your Profile’s Effectiveness
- Are you stronger on one platform than another? Look at your follower count, how actively you post, and whether people are engaging with your content. If you find that one of your company profiles is particularly weak, it may be time to rethink your strategy and tactics to engage with your audience on that platform.For example, on Twitter, in addition to posting relevant content consistently, be sure to include relevant, popular hashtags in the copytext, and spend time following and engaging with industry leaders and peers. Often, what you do to “socialize” on social media platforms is as important as the content you post.
Tip #5 – Check the state of reviews of your company
- Are you being reviewed by customers, employees or others on popular reviews sites like Glassdoor or Yelp? Reviews sites often show up in search results when someone Googles your company. This means that negative (or positive) reviews can have an immediate impact on the impression someone has of your business. No reviews, too few reviews and the overall rating can also have an impact on your business reputation, depending on your industry and business size. Be cautious about asking for positive reviews. This can be construed as solicitation and is highly discouraged by social networks as they prefer honest, authentic opinions, not skewed by the company.
- Too many negative reviews? If you’re seeing consistency in what people complain about, look at it as an opportunity to take in feedback – and fix the problems.
All these tips can be followed in less than an hour. Certain areas might need some additional time to do a “deep-clean,” however it’s likely that the effort will yield results. Remember that these days, your social media presence is frequently the first impression customers, industry peers, and potential all-star recruits have of your company. Make that first impression shine.
As always, we’re here to help. Email questions to info@allpryme.com or call toll free (844) 447-7963.
