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Favorite Resources — November 2020
To quote Stuart Smalley (a fictional character from Saturday Night Live), “I’m good enough, I’m smart enough, and doggone it people like me.”
Albert Einstein (one of the greatest minds of the 20 century) said “Never memorize something you can look up.”
While I’m good, and I’m smart — I do not even attempt to memorize things “I can look up.” Especially in the realm of the works of social media.
Things change ALL THE TIME!!!!
And I’m a nerd — really I am — and I will spend quite some time diving into the annual reports and summaries and knowledge but I will not attempt to memorize everything, because I KNOW that things will change.
In my private program, (you can find out more about that here) I have a running resource of what’s new. Here are some of those useful resources:
- In November 2020 AgoraPulse published their opinion of the 45 best social media analytics tools. (NOTE — since this was published be AgoraPulse – there may be a slight bias). Find the AgoraPulse Report here.
- The folks at Sprout Social maintain an “Always Up-to-Date Guide to Social Media Image Sizes.” This is updated every few months. As we all know that the “best” size can change for any platform I always advise my clients to review their platforms regularly (from both phone and laptop), and ALWAYS leave a bit of a border on any image you create (so … if it does change … there’s a chance you might not get information cut off). You can find the Sprout Social guide here.
- As of this writing (November 2020) I’m expecting to see all the “year-end” and “new year” data coming out within the next 30-60 days, As a geek, I’ll enjoy pouring through all the information, and as a consultant, I’ll be reading with a thought to what my clients need to know (because for the average business person, some of it is kind of dry and boring). If you would love to see the information I pull out and highlight – ask me about my private program.
And as a side note — I know many start-ups that “bootstrap” their social media. If you are looking to learn from free YouTube channels or webinars — my best piece of advice that I want to have folks understand is
PLEASE LOOK AT THE DATES on any “free” resources. If it’s over 6 months old just walk away. There was an article published listing 15 social media training courses, this was published in 2020. It listed a course on YouTube, that was published in 2016, so please, always check the dates. (I was going to list it as a resource — but not with a course that is over 4 years old).
If you’d like to always keep up with the latest changes happening in the social media world, I can share the 4 podcasts, 5 Facebook groups, 2 newsletters, and 1 videocast that I watch or you can save time and discover the summaries that I post in my private consulting program. (Psssst — you might want to send me a private message and ask about the year-end special I have going on).
It’s that time of year
For me, it’s the “beginning” of a new semester (I know the semester started a while back — but the first class I’m teaching is on October 14).
I teach the same subjects – but they change ALL THE TIME
But — they don’t change at all.
The technology changes, the “how-tos,” which buttons you push change. The size of images changes frequently, but there are some basics that stay the same.
So — what are the basics? I’ll list 5 things you should be considering when you’re planning your social media activities.
- Begin with the end in mind. Whether you’re thinking about a long term strategy or thinking about a 3-minute video, know what action you want your readers/viewers to take after your post. You do not need to do this for every post everywhere – but you should have an idea where you’re leading your readers. (pssst stay tuned I’ll show a great example later.)
- Know WHO you are talking to. Figure out who your ideal client is and make sure you are directing your information to that person. Knowing your ideal client not only helps with your messaging, but it also helps you determine where your message needs to be (for instance, if you’re product is an anti-aging cream you’re not needing to spend time and effort on Tik Tok)
- Be YOU. There are “experts” out there that want to train people to do social media the “one right way.” But the great thing about people is that we’re a mixed-up bag of different personalities and styles and ideas. Let YOU shine through — people do business with people they know, like, and trust. Be yourself and your people will find you. (Okay – they won’t find you if you’re locked in a house and not posting or commenting or networking — but you get the idea).
- Stay focussed. Getting clients and referral partners on social media is a marathon, not a sprint. If you’ve done a Facebook Live once a week for a month — don’t give up if you don’t have thousands of followers. Be persistent (but if you need to, you can always check with someone you trust to see if you need to make adjustments).
- Know your limits. Make sure you are actively engaged with others on your chosen platform. If you are a business owner and you actually have, like work to do, you can’t be on every platform. So make sure you follow #2 above – find your platform – and engage with the people you want to attract.
Oh – and remember what I said above about knowing the actions you want people to take. WELL!!!!!!!!!! I will be teaching classes in October and November so if you need to know more about social media, LinkedIn, Facebook groups, Mailchimp, or Instagram, check out the following link. I’m doing 5 classes and each is $39
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT ENTREPRENEUR TRAINING AT JOLIET JUNIOR COLLEGE
My classroom will not look like this — but the information will still be great.
How to add an Admin to your Facebook Business Page
Of all the social media platforms, Facebook has the highest traffic. While it might not be the best for every business, it is a standard.
If, however, you want to have someone else manage your Facebook business page, here’s how to do that.
Once you have your Facebook page set up, go to your business page and click on settings.
You’ll get to another page and you’ll click on Page Roles.
And from here you can add anyone to your page as long as they are a “friend” of your personal profile.
You can add an Admin, Editor, Moderator, Advertiser, or Analyst. If you go to the Facebook help center, you can see what each role is able to do.
NOW – you can sit back, relax, and outsource your Facebook page management.
Tuesday Tip – The 80/20 rule
Tuesday Tip*
Social media is my passion. I love helping clients connect through the virtual world.
Most people that I’ve talked to at workshops, networking groups, or while consulting have heard me mention the 80/20 rule, meaning 80% of content in your blogs, newsletters, and social media posts should be interesting content and only 20% should be promotional.
You may ask WHY? (You may not be asking this, you may just trust me and that’s cool.)
One QUICK reason (this is a Tuesday Tip so I like to keep it under 200 words total) is that people want to do business with people they know, like, and trust. Having 80% of your content as interesting content gives your clients (and potential clients) a chance to get to know a bit about you so when you do mention your offers/classes/packages/promotions they will feel comfortable enough to take the plunge with you.
What does the 80% consist of?
- Quotes & memes help people know who your influences are.
- Humorous postings show people your fun side.
- Informational articles show you are knowledgeable and follow current information.
- Asking interactive questions encourages engagement.
There are many ways to build relationships – even virtually.
“Tips” image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
*Tuesday Tips are typically short, sweet, and to the point. A quick read and then back to your day.
Tuesday Tip – What small business owners SHOULD do
Tuesday Tip – if you are a small business owner, you SHOULD be doing this!
Backstory – for a few years I was a La Leche League leader. During training it was oft repeated that we needed to meet people where they were and help them as was best for them (meaning, no matter how much you wanted to tell someone “THE ONE RIGHT WAY” to do something, you needed to remember that there really isn’t one right way for most things).
I try to continue to live that (and I hope I do) but DANG it – sometimes there IS “one right way” to do something.
- Did you know that there are 1.44 *BILLION* (that’s billion with a B people) on Facebook?
- Did you know that on averagem Smartphone users check Facebook about times per day?
- Did you know there’s an incredibly EASY way for you to have your friends find your business page?
First, you need to have a Facebook business page. Once you have that, you can go into your personal Facebook profile and edit it so that your business page can be easily accessed from your personal page.
After that, all your “real-life” friends can actually FIND your Facebook business page.
SOCIAL TIP: One consultant I know didn’t do this UNTIL after she had a strong Facebook publishing plan and a month’s worth of posts. Then she invited not only her clients and prospects to “like” her page, she also invited her family and friends to “like” her page. Now, in addition to getting referrals from her business associates, she also gets referrals from her college classmates, neighbors, and former coworkers.
Related article
- 9 Tips for Integrating your Facebook Page with your Facebook Profile. Andrea Vahl (socialmediaexaminer.com)
“Tips” image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Tuesday Tip – It’s that time again
It’s almost August – which means it’s almost BACK TO SCHOOL TIME!!!
Some people that read this blog have school kids and look at this as an opportunity to start spending more time on their business. Some people reading this might go “OH DARN” that means traffic …
But most small businesses forget one really special event at this time of the year.
Girl Writing Back To School As A Symbol For Education
BACK TO SCHOOL $ALE$
That’s right, even if you don’t have kids, or your kids are well before or past the age of school, you can still take advantage of all those school supplies being on sale. There might be some back to school items you don’t need, but most “office” supplies are covered in the back to school sales. For example, mini staplers that can fit into a middle school locker can also fit in a purse or briefcase. Unless you have a locked office, I’m willing to bet that sometimes your pens wander off your desk. (Okay – even if you’re the only one that touches your desk I’m still willing to bet ballpoint pens disappear – see note below*). Every time I give a client a report or a contract, I put it in a two pocket folder. I rarely pay retail for those (they are either $0.10 or $0.15 during August). I know some consultants (I’m looking at YOU Michelle Smith at Z & B consulting) that often make use of colored markers and easel pads. Even if you don’t explore every sales flyer to find the “best” deals, you can’t walk down a school (office) supply aisle at this time of year without deals jumping off the shelf at you.
Staples Back to School Deals (moneysavingmom)
“Tips” image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
*In The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams has a theory that ballpoint pens slip off to their own planet and live (the ballpoint pen equivalent of) the good life. For their sake, I hope it’s true, because the ballpoints never stay on my desk.
Tuesday Tip – If it didn’t exist I’d invent it
Tuesday Tip – If it didn’t exist, I’d invent itI’m sure many people think of a speakerphone as something that makes talking on the phone while you’re driving easier. First – don’t talk on the phone and drive – it could be dangerous. Second, speakerphones were around quite some time before cell phones. (I honestly can’t recall when I first encountered a speakerphone. I know it was long before cell phones were around.)
Telephone
Some people think the magic of the speakerphone is so you can hear someone when you’re driving without holding the phone to your ear (I said it before — don’t do that), and some people think that it’s great because multiple people in the same room can listen to one phone call (perhaps when the mom calls grandma and all the kids can listen in).
The TRUE magic of the speakerphone is multi-tasking. You can do quite a bit while your listening to hold music.
Many years ago I was in the tax business. If you’ve ever tried to call the IRS during tax season, you know that you can spend quite a bit of time on hold (and I’m willing to bet they haven’t changed the hold music since 2008). It’s really not very exciting to sit on hold. However, with the magic of the speakerphone, you can listen to the hold music and have two hands free to clean off a desk or reorganize a file drawer or sort receipts or anything that keeps one hand close to free to grab the phone when the other person picks up.
(Just don’t inadvertently have the phone on mute — long story – not a happy ending) 
“Tips” image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Tuesday Tip – Soft Landings
Tuesday Tip – Soft Landings
Tuesday Tip – Manage Change
OH MY GOODNESS
- Set aside time during your week for learning new things, even if sometimes “learning new things” means relearning old things.
- Figure out if there is a way to revert. When WordPress.com changed the posting edito,r they still kept the old way active if you knew how to find it (or if you knew how to find the forum which detailed out how to revert). (This will NEVER happen with Facebook changes)
- Find someone (perhaps a wonderfully charming virtual assistant) who has complimentary strengths.
These are some options, and I’m sure there are more.
There’s a Jimmy Buffett song called “Cowboy in the Jungle”
We’ve gotta roll with the punches
Learn to play all of our hunches
Make the best of whatever comes your way
Forget that blind ambition
And learn to trust your intuition
Plowin’ straight ahead come what may
And there’s a cowboy in the jungle
“Tips” image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Tuesday Tip – Decisions, Decisions, Decisions – or NOT
Tuesday Tip – Decisions – or NOT?
It’s been a few months, but a while back there was quite a bit of news about Mark Zuckerberg’s wardrobe (see related article). From the Business Insider article: “He said even small decisions like choosing what to wear or what to eat for breakfast could be tiring and consume energy, and he didn’t want to waste any time on that.”
This actually makes a lot of sense to me in some aspects. While I wouldn’t want to have the same thing for breakfast every day (I like to “mix up” my smoothie ingredients), I can see the benefits to limiting decisions.
I recently updated a filing system (a real PAPER filing system). Had I wanted to, I could have come up with some kind of color coding system. But I just ran with what I had on hand for 2 reasons.
- It was on hand, so I didn’t need to make any runs to Staples or Office Depot and (more importantly)
- I could easily have spent days with an internal debate (do I have certain color hanging folders for “months” and others for “days” and others for “general” and others for “clients” or do I have certain tabs for the above — should I get multiple color pens for each different tab to make different things stand out.
These files are in a lidded case that nobody but me will ever need to see, and as you can see, there are yellow tabs and blue tabs and clear tabs, and blue and brown and yellow and … files, but there is no method to this. Because what really matters is what the tabs say, and that I have set this up to better organize myself and serve my clients needs.
If I had spent days fretting over which color scheme to go with, it wouldn’t have served anyone’s needs.
Sometimes it’s okay to have things planned out and look a certain way (for instance, a Powerpoint presentation, or a proposal), but when it doesn’t really matter, just remember the KISS principle. (Keep It Simple Stupid)
How do you simplify your decision making?
Related articles:
- Here’s The Real Reason Mark Zuckerberg Wears The Same T-Shirt Every Day Eugene Kim (businessinsider.com)
- Keeping it Simple Doesn’t Mean You’re Stupid. Amy Rees Anderson (forbes.com)